Fraternity-Testvériség, 1963 (40. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)

1963-06-01 / 6. szám

6

FRATERNITY

IT’S NOT THE COLD, BUT THE HUMIDITY

Humidity, that notorious destroyer of summertime comfort, can be a wintertime menace, too. But for different reasons.

During hot summer days, the air is often damp with moisture. It’s difficult for perspiration to evaporate from your skin, and you keep on mopping your brow.

Just the opposite is true in winter. There’s liable to be too little humidity.

Humidity is simply the amount of moisture in the air, compared to the total dampness the air can hold at the same temperature.

In winter, cold moisture-carrying air rushing into your home from

outside expands with indoor warmth. As the air spreads throughout the house, the quantity of moisture in each cubic foot of air decreases.

(Air at zero and 80% relative humidity drops to 5% relative humidity when heated to 76 degrees, because at 76 degrees air can hold 17

times as much moisture as at zero.)

This thirsty air steals moisture from every possible source, including your body. Nose and throat membranes may become too dry. With the protective moisture gone, these membranes may become the

seat of infectious organisms, thereby increasing your susceptibility to respiratory ailments.

Not only your health, but your appearance may be affected by air that is too dry. Hair may become dull, skin tend to chap, and nails become brittle.

Home furnishings may also be damaged when cheated of moisture. For example, draperies and rugs may shrink, walls crack, veneers on furniture often become detached from the wood. You have to water house plants more often to prevent withering.

How can you cure the varied ills caused by a humidity shortage? Moisturize your home.

Mother’s method was to place a water-filled pan or deep metal container on the radiator. These makeshift moisturizers, though helpful, vaporized only about one or two quarts of water in an evening. The water evaporated too slowly to relieve the problem of “thirsty air”.

“Today you can have ‘push button’ winter humidity control with a modern electric humidifier”, says Lee Miles, manager of Customer Education for Mueller Climatrol, a major manufacturer of home heating equipment.

This automatic device enables you to add from 2 to 28 quarts of moisture to your family’s indoor air supply each day, depending on the needs of your home.

When your family enjoys comfortable indoor winter weather for the first time, you can surprise them by saying: “In addition to the heat, it’s the humidity.”