Don't Do the Dew: Humidifier Finds Its Home

Among the to-do items that recently got to-done was getting and setting up a humidifier for the cellar. And what a workhorse it has been, pulling a stunning amount of water from the air down there, which initially required me to empty its bucket three or more times a day. A better solution was going to be essential.

When I bought the Roediger House in 2003, I was still going to the laundromat and didn’t get around to buying a washer and dryer until 2006 or 2007. Following the example of the previous owners, these were installed in the cellar, where a drain line allowed for the exiting washer water. (Once the kitchen addition was completed in 2009, those appliances were moved up to the new laundry room.)

There was also a disused sump pump in a mortared bowl on the floor, also tied into that drain line. I’d never cleaned and tested it but often wished it worked...especially when I was shop-vac’ing the water that had seeped in if we’d had a particularly heavy rainfall.

That’s how I came to rig a water pump to a garden hose...

...that I routed out across the cellar and through the crawlspace to a foundation vent...

...to empty into one of the yard drains I installed (from my marvelous Quarantine Jar Task List!).

When the new HVAC system was installed at the start of the year, I’d taken to heart the service techs’ recommendations about lowering the humidity so that the equipment would undergo less strain. I’d worn out at least one condensate pump with the old system, plus I’ve got plenty of things stored in the cellar that don’t need to be quite so moist all the time! (There is also such a thing as mold, mind you.) And while the original set-up for the downstairs HVAC system had the condensate pump draining into that cellar line, new codes required that it instead be routed and drained outside into the yard.

Which brings me back to the new humidifier and the need for a manageable drain system that took advantage of what was already in place. In my mind was a scheme to extend the drain line, rebuild the P-trap with fresh components, and install hose connections for more secure and leak-free water removal.

The measuring, cutting, assembling, and cementing got completed just as we hit the middle of August.

I’d ordered a utility table to elevate the humidifier so that gravity could work its magic, and once the new lines had cured for a couple of days, I hooked it all up and waited for clues as to the success or failure of my amateur shenanigans.

The final report? So far, so good.