Damp Basements Maine (how much, house, home inspector)

[Fife]

Hi all,

We recently found mold in the basement. I was wondering if any of you have had the same problem and how you fixed it. We had the home inspector pop round who did the initial inspection before we bought the house. He said the Humidex system may be the way to go. Has anybody installed this system, is it any good?. Thanks in advance for any help.

[peachie_in_maine]

Originally Posted by Fife

Hi all,

We recently found mold in the basement. I was wondering if any of you have had the same problem and how you fixed it. We had the home inspector pop round who did the initial inspection before we bought the house. He said the Humidex system may be the way to go. Has anybody installed this system, is it any good?. Thanks in advance for any help.

Ta Da.... I am a humidex system story.
We bought our house and noticed this mold problem. I was terrified we were all going to get sick .

Then 3 years ago, we bought it, and POOF. GONE.
No more sweating windows in the winter too.
I highly recommend it.

They are tall slim and never needs any changing (Water that is)

My parents got one years before us for there log home, but they got one that has a chamber for water to be removed from.
We don't have that problem. It kicks on when the air becomes moist.

Good luck to you ( we got ours in Canada an it was only about 400.00 and worth every penny.

[Fife]

Originally Posted by peachie_in_maine

Ta Da.... I am a humidex system story.
We bought our house and noticed this mold problem. I was terrified we were all going to get sick .

Then 3 years ago, we bought it, and POOF. GONE.
No more sweating windows in the winter too.
I highly recommend it.

They are tall slim and never needs any changing (Water that is)

My parents got one years before us for there log home, but they got one that has a chamber for water to be removed from.
We don't have that problem. It kicks on when the air becomes moist.

Good luck to you ( we got ours in Canada an it was only about 400.00 and worth every penny.

Thanks Peachie, it's great to hear a success story. Your advice is invaluable as the Humidex system is not cheap. Did you install it yourself?. We know nothing about DIY, which means we would have to pay for installation as well. We have been told numbers around $1200 which seems very high.

[Maineah]

We just run a de-humidifier in the cellar and the mold dries up in about three days.

[BacktoNE]

We always have run a dehumidifier in the basement as well. Around $150 for the unit and no dampness or mold issues.

[Maineah]

Mine would probably work better if the bulkhead closed good and the cellar window wasn't a screen!!!

[peachie_in_maine]

Originally Posted by Fife

Thanks Peachie, it's great to hear a success story. Your advice is invaluable as the Humidex system is not cheap. Did you install it yourself?. We know nothing about DIY, which means we would have to pay for installation as well. We have been told numbers around $1200 which seems very high.

I'm glad, I wish I had this information years before.
We did install it ourselves. Very easy and works amazing. I will get back to you on where we bought it. With the easy installation and the no fuss, you may enjoy the ride to pick it up and save so much. I'll find out just where and can find out what the costs are today for them.
Give me some time.

P.s.
Ours measures 7ft tall (apprx6inches off the ground~)
It's only 11" x7 1/2" Very slim and not overpowering at all.
I'll find out more for you. If it helps save you tons of money and we have had ours for over 4 years we recommend it. The name on it says Humidivent.

[Trailmonkey]

A dehumidifier is a good choice, plus it can be moved around where needed. I just shampooed the carpet upstairs, and dragged the unit up there to help dry the carpet.

A more permanent solution might be an air-to-air heat exchanger, which will bring in fresh air, but drop the moisture out before it has a chance to condense in the basement. The current units are almost 90% efficient, and use very little power, compared to active dehumidifiers.

Depends on what your living habits are in the basement, as to what is the best solution. I am not a fan of the humidex type units. They can work very well in certain conditions, and very, very poorly in others. remember that when you vent a basement, the make-up air has to come from somewhere, and it is typically more warm, moist air. if there is no place to collect that moisture, it will condense on everything on its way through the basement to the fan unit.

dm me for specific recommendations

[Fife]

Originally Posted by Maineah

We just run a de-humidifier in the cellar and the mold dries up in about three days.

I wonder how much a dehumidifier costs to run per month. The humidex is supposed to be around $3 per month.

[Fife]

Originally Posted by peachie_in_maine

I'm glad, I wish I had this information years before.
We did install it ourselves. Very easy and works amazing. I will get back to you on where we bought it. With the easy installation and the no fuss, you may enjoy the ride to pick it up and save so much. I'll find out just where and can find out what the costs are today for them.
Give me some time.

P.s.
Ours measures 7ft tall (apprx6inches off the ground~)
It's only 11" x7 1/2" Very slim and not overpowering at all.
I'll find out more for you. If it helps save you tons of money and we have had ours for over 4 years we recommend it. The name on it says Humidivent.

Thanks again, I literally know nothing about DIY so would probably pay to get it installed. The house inspector gave us a card of a local company. It's crazy we now have a mitigation system, sub pump, pontentially Humidex system and a monthly payment to keep the carpenter ants at bay. It certainly isn't cheap owning a house.