Last Updated on May 22, 2023
Since humidifiers vaporize the air and dust floats with air, does it have any effect on that? In other words, do humidifiers help with dust?
Yes! They do help with dust, but they don’t reduce it! Humidifiers basically remove airborne dust so that you can breathe air that is a lot less dusty.
Here, we discussed how humidifiers actually remove airborne dust and also whether they are responsible for accelerating dust mites and mold growth in the house. Check it out!
How Do Humidifiers Help with Dust?
To understand how humidifiers help with dust, first, you need to know how humidifiers actually work.
Humidifiers turn water into vapors and then disperse that into the air. As a result, the air gets moisturized.
Dust is almost weightless, which is why they seem to float in the air. And when humidifiers emit vapors into the air, they soak those tiny dust particles.
The vapors make dust waterlogged, and they become heavy. And then gravity takes care of the rest; it brings them down. Therefore, dust isn’t floating in the air and is not getting into your body.
Here’s what the humidifier does, it kind of purifies the air by reducing airborne dust so that you can breathe healthy and clean air.
To get rid of the dust totally, you can either vacuum-clean or sweep them away.
Humidifiers are never the first line of defense against dust, but they can be a great support if coupled with an air purifier. Fortunately, now you can find some hybrid air purifiers in the market that also come with a built-in humidifier.
Do Humidifiers Help Dust Mites to Grow?
Normal humidity in the air can help one relieve the symptoms of allergies such as nasal irritation, congestion, etc. But if the humidity level is too high, then it can trigger the allergies instead of relieving them.
There are many allergens, but the common one that is found in almost every house is dust mites.
This microscopic organism can thrive when the humidity level is high. 70% – 80% humidity level is good enough for them to grow and put your health at serious risk. So, there is a chance your humidifier may be helping dust mites to grow by increasing the humidity level.
So, you have to make sure that your room humidity doesn’t cross 60%.
A Humidifier or Dehumidifier for Dust?
It actually depends on the condition of the house. The normal humidity range for any house would be 40% – 50%. Get a humidity measurer, and check the humidity level of your room or house.
If your house has a humidity level above 60%, then you might want to consider using a dehumidifier because high humidity will help the dust mites to thrive, which is a big threat to overall health, especially to the lungs.
On the other hand, if you find the humidity level of your house below 40%, then you need a humidifier to increase the moisture in the air so that there will be less airborne dust.
Whatever you do, make sure the humidity level is between 40% – 60%; it is the range where dust mites won’t be able to grow, plus dust particles will be suppressed to the floor.
And anything below or above the given range is a red flag.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Which is better: a humidifier or an air purifier?
It actually depends! Humidifiers and air purifiers are two different things. Air purifiers purify the air and remove dust particles from the air. In contrast, humidifiers increase the moisture in the air.
So both of them are better at their fields. But that being said, as a defense against dust, air purifiers work the best.
2. Does low humidity cause more dust?
Yes, low humidity causes more dust. Dry air will make the human skin and indoor plants dry, which will increase the dust rate in the air.
3. What helps with dust in the air?
An air purifier will be a good defense against dusty air. These machines come with several air cleaning filters which remove the dust particles from the air. An air purifying machine basically sucks in air, take it through all the filters, and then releases clean air in the room.
4. Does a humidifier or dehumidifier help with dust?
A humidifier and dehumidifier both can help with dust. If you want to get rid of air-borne dust particles, then a humidifier will help. And for stopping the growth of pesky dust mites, a dehumidifier is the way.
Conclusion
No one should ignore the need to keep the room dust-free. Yes, it is not possible all the time, but keeping it as clean as possible can surely be extremely rewarding. Dust in the air is not just a pesky thing; it is a massive threat to health.
So do humidifiers help with dust? Yes, humidifiers can suppress airborne dust down so that they don’t get inside your body and create complications.
But also make sure to keep the humidity level between 40% – 60% percent; anything above that range will boost the dust mite growth in your room.
