Help! My apartment is always humid, my couch is damp! (how much, Home Depot)

[GoUSF]

So kind of like the title, I have a big problem with humidity and have for a while. I am new to living alone so I wasn't aware the AC removed moisture, to save on electric, I rarely (almost never) ran the AC, and I was comfortable the apartment is not hot. But the problem is I guess all the humidity is making our stuff damp, my couch fabric is buckling form the humidity, our clothes will feel damp when we put them on (after being dried properly. I dont know what I should do,

I actually noticed some white spots on a hat of mine this morning that I suspect is mold (we have a big issue with mold growing around the windows as the condensation is so bad there will be water pooled up on the window sill area and the area that "frames" the window is where the mold grows. We take care of it with spray and a towel though.

with the winter I have left the windows open to let dry air in and closed them when leaving for work, but its actually warm still so I dont need to run the heat.

Any ideas is there an optimal temperature I should be running the AC unit at? I dont need it so much for the cooling affect as the humidity removal any help is greatly appreciated!

[Joy333]

Your probably going to have to run your a/c to eliminate this, or you could have a Dehumidistat Installed on your a/c. It activates the fan on the a/c when the humidity levels reach a certain level so the a/c doesn't run as much. An HVAC guy should be able to give you detailed info on this. I hope one posts on here for you. Good luck, and I wish I was down there with you, cold and snowy here!!!!! I'm much rather deal with humidity!!!!!!

[GoUSF]

I live in an apartment so Im not sure the stat thing is something I am able to add or can it be taken off when I leave. That would be ideal because again Im actually quite comfortable when i am in the apartment.

My GF just called me (shes upset because the hat that had mold on it was her favorite one of mine) she wasm entioning there are freshly washed jeans in the closet that she almost wore today but they had a horrible mildew smell on them (smelled fine when first taken out of the dryer.

I got to be honest I would love the snow right now, my family is from NY and so id happily take that.

[Alley01]

You may try putting damp rid in closets (you get it in hanger/laundry supply section in a store like Target or Wal-Mart) as well so that mold can't grow. You have to empty it pretty frequently but it helped when I lived in an apartment with a humidity issue. Good Luck!

[GoUSF]

how much of this stuff are we talking about and how expensive is it? I might need it for the whole apartment !

[tewas]

You can look to buy de-humidifyer (or however it is spelled), so it should help you with the problem. However you might want to check out other units to see if they have same problem. I haven't ran AC in the past two months, but i have no issues with the humidity at all.

[Innertuber]

Something sounds a lil fishy to me. Even with Florida's humidity I've never had wet clothes or mold growing. Mildew in a shower ... maybe. You might go spend 20 bucks and buy a temperature/humidity device and that will give you some accurate info. In the winter humidity for me is about 55% and it goes much higher in the summer.

A dehumidifier will help. You can get them at Sears or Home Depot, HH Gregg, etc. They range about $150 to $300. You have to empty them or drain into a tub.

All the little 5 to 10 buck solutions aren't very effective. I use those in a safe and they might drop humidity 5 or 10% below the average.

You mentioned so much condensation that the water is pooling on the windows. Usually that is indicative of a temperature difference inside versus outside.

A/c will help, but water goes from higher to lower concentration. If your space is lower than the surrounding space moisture will attempt to migrate into the dryer air. Maybe try running your A/C 30-60 minutes a day and see if you like the effect.

[GoUSF]

Thanks for the suggestions, I will look into this gadget you are talking about, I do know the buildings I am in are very old, however they were all redone, so the place is decent, but this issue with damp couches and making our clothes stink is driving us nuts!

[Innertuber]

Did the closet stink when empty? Might be something else going on. Mildew might be the culprit rather than humidity. Kind of has a real musty smell. Or carpets that were saturated and dried too slow can stink a closet up too.

I know how aggravating this must be - hope you find a good solution.

[GoUSF]

It is the musky smell, not mildew sorry that is my bad. But yeah its all over the apartment, and it wasn't like that when we moved in so I think it is something we aren't doing right might be the reason. I will start running the AC for a few hours a day to see if it clears it up. I'm still open to other suggestions.