I'm a complete noob with questions (Minneapolis, Rochester: homes, neighborhoods, to buy)

[GhostPoet]

yeah, I was looking at the weather archive and it seems to be even colder there than here in washington. ack!!

sigh, never going to find a place to move....

[GhostPoet]

So, i've been reading about the weather and I see the humidity is 80% to 100%. that's crazy! How do you handle mold and everything else caused by that kind of moisture?

[AVguy]

It's probably more accurate to look at dew point, rather than relative humidity (which is dependent on air temperature). Dew point is a more accurate measure because a 70 degree dew point will always feel humid, while 100% relative humidity feels different based on whether it is 80 degrees outside or 20 degrees outside.

By way of example, if it is 40 degrees outside with 100% relative humidity, it will not feel humid because the dew point is only 40 degrees. Likewise, you aren't going to have any moisture issues in your house at 40 degrees with 100% relative humidity because the air temperature in your house will probably be around 70, with a relative humidity of well below 100% (because the dew point will probably be around 40 degrees as well).

Another thing to consider is that air conditioners typically work by taking water out of the air, as well as cooling the air. Drying out the air will help prevent moisture issues in your house. There can mold issues in Minnesota, but it is not very common.

Minnesota is not a humid place at all. Maybe it's not as dry as Colorado and Utah here, but it is definitely drier here than most of the country.

[judogl44]

Days with humidity are rare here. It's definitely not the "hit you in the face" type like the coasts. Most new homes also have air exchangers along w/air conditioning.

[GhostPoet]

Ahhh ok. See, the humidity was the only thing I really didn’t like. I checked some weather site and it said the humidity was around 80% to 100% most of the time. But maybe if it’s not like the coastal states it wouldn’t be as harsh…

[GhostPoet]

Actually, if anyone has a website that has the daily weather archived so I could go back and check out all of 2006 that would be AWESOME. I’ve been looking, but can’t seem to find anything like that.

[DaninEGF]

Originally Posted by GhostPoet

Actually, if anyone has a website that has the daily weather archived so I could go back and check out all of 2006 that would be AWESOME. I’ve been looking, but can’t seem to find anything like that.

Hi

I work at the Natl Weather Service in Grand Forks ND....and there is a variety of climate data out there avbl. The National Climatic Data Center in Asheville NC is where the official climate records are QC'd and kept. But each state does have a climate office and there are several regional climate centers and then local NWS offices which have various sorts of data avbl.

I will give you links to the Midwest Climate Center, from which you can get maps of past temp/pcpn data and all sorts of data via the web. Also I will include a link to the Minnesota state climatology office which again has lots and lots of data for every point in Minnesota where data is kept, including NWS and cooperative observer stations (family - individuals take the obs).

Midwest Climate Center (climate map map page)
Midwest Climate Watch

You can click on a county and look at average temps/snowfall/pcpn for locations in that county where data is kept.
Historical Climate Summaries


Minnesota state climate office main web page:
The Minnesota Climatology Working Group Home Page

This might be what you are looking for....here is a link to past weathers daily high/low/pcpn data for MSP.
Preliminary Local Climatological Data - Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN

About RH/dew point....
Now, humidity and dew point past data is not usually analayzed a whole lot.
AVguy is 100 percent correct in his explanation of RH and dew point. Relative Humidity is a pretty meaningless thing in trying to figure out how "humid" it feels. The dew point temperature is much better.

The dew point is the temperature at which the airmass is saturated. The warmer the airmass the more moisture (water vapor) it can hold. Typically a dew point of 68 or higher will make most people feel humid when outside, with 72 or higher, most uncomfortable to most people.

The relative humidity is basically the difference between the air temperature and dew point. So...for example, on a summer morning, it may be 70 outside with a dew point of 68 for an RH value of 93 percent. Say that during the day it warms outside...while the amount of moisture in the air stays the same so that at 3 pm it is 88 outside with a dew point still 68. The RH then is 51%. It is still humid out there as the moisture in the air has not changed, but as temps warm the airmass can hold more moisture....thus the RH falls. Thus RH value is not a true representation of how humid it would feel to a person.

In the winter....cold air holds less moisture. Thus a dew point of 20 holds much less water than at 68. Thus on a morning it is 20 outside with a dew point of 20 the RH is 100 percent....but it is not "humid". You will probably have some frost on cars, yards due to 100% saturation and water vapor turning to droplets and freezing on surfaces.

Here is a link to a weather calculator for getting Wind Chill, RH, etc.
NWS Boston, MA - Weather Calculators

As for summers, yes it can be "humid and muggy" for a few weeks but typically doesnt last very long at a time as we are far enough north to see frontal passages bringing cooler and drier air from canada.

I have a basement home and I live up in the northwest corner of Minnesota some 300 miles northwest of MSP where it is considerably colder than downstate Minnesota. Those folks in the cities have it easy for winters compared to us out-staters in the north We do use a de-humidifer in the summers as basement can stay cool and to prevent any mold formation we want to keep the RH at 40-50 percent. During winters often a humidifer is needed upstairs where it is warmer due to heating.

I hope all this helps some....any more weather questions please ask or PM me.

Dan
NWS Grand Forks ND

[GhostPoet]

Sweet, thanks A LOT!! I love you guys! I didn't even know there was a difference between humidity and dew. thanks!

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by Minnehahapolitan

You can't be scared of the sky.

Tell that to Chicken Little. :-)

[holkel1]

I live in Rogers, MN. Depending on type of house you're looking for they can range from really reasonable up to half mil or more. There's a movie theater in Rogers, one 5 miles in either direction,as well, in the neighboring towns. There's a huge shopping complex in Maple Grove 7-10 miles (or 2 highway exits) from Rogers. Many of our neighbors work for Gen Mills, Target Corp as well as other companies of varying sizes. We moved to Rogers planning to stay 3-5 years due to hubby's work, now thinking 10, 20 years, who knows! Good luck in your search. People in MN, for the most part, tend to be very friendly, nice considering we lived many years in So. Cal. If you can handle a few really cold days, it's a beautiful state!