Winter weather in Ontario often brings dry indoor air, making it essential to maintain the ideal humidity level for winter to protect both your home and your family’s comfort and health. In this article, we’ll explain why indoor humidity matters, what the ideal winter humidity range is, and how to keep your home healthy, efficient, and comfortable through the cold season.
Why Indoor Humidity Levels Matter in Winter
In the winter, it is important to maintain good house humidity in Ontario for improved home protection, comfort, and health. If your humidity levels are too low, this can lead to cracked wood floors or damaged furniture, whereas if your humidity levels are too high, there can be an increase of condensation in your home, leading to mould developing around your windows. High humidity levels can also lead to damaged finishes such as swollen wood floors, expanded wood trim and doors that rub together.
Ensuring ideal humidity for a house in winter doesn’t just protect your home, but also makes it more comfortable and reduces heating costs. This is because having balanced humidity levels can make your home feel warmer.
As for your health, dry air in the house, especially during the winter, can lead to various issues including eczema, dry skin, worsened colds, irritated eyes and static shocks. A good amount of humidity, however, can mitigate these issues and lead to improved health conditions. Too much dampness can also cause discomfort in the joints and bones, especially for the elderly.
In addition, controlled humidity reduces airborne allergens and viruses, which improves air quality and contributes to healthier indoor living.
What Is the Best Humidity Level for Home in Winter?
The best humidity level for a home in winter in Canada is between 35-50% (and all year round).
RH, which stands for relative humidity, refers to the amount of water vapour in the air compared to the maximum possible amount at the current pressure and temperature. Relative humidity below 30% means that the air is too dry, while RH above 50% is too wet, causing condensation.
RH is affected by the temperature, and cold temperatures often change what feels comfortable in your home, which is why levels differ between the winter and summer.
How Humid Should a House Be: Older vs. New Homes
Depending on the type of house you have, your ideal home humidity level in the winter in Ontario could vary slightly. For example, older homes are typically more drafty and, as a result, can quickly lose heat and humidity. On the other hand, new homes are airtight and energy efficient, but can be prone to excess condensation build-up if it’s not built right or if humidity is not controlled.
At Avvio Fine Homes, every custom build is designed as a system — an airtight, high-performance home that works in harmony to maintain balanced humidity and superior indoor health. A key part of this design is our use of Energy Recovery Ventilators (ERVs) instead of traditional Heat Recovery Ventilators (HRVs).
ERVs are an essential part of a home’s ventilation system as they bring in fresh air from outside, filter it, and eliminate old and stale air from inside. They also provide improved energy efficiency and climate control. While HRVs are similar in function, ERVs reduce the humidification requirements of the home, therefore providing additional benefits and are ideal for the climate in the Greater Toronto Area.
When building a high-performance home, the building envelope is critical. We use variable permeable vapour barriers that intelligently manage moisture and allow the right amount to move through the walls. This helps prevent mould and rot, increases the durability of the structure, and improves indoor air quality.
Ultimately, humidity levels need to be carefully managed based on environmental factors in and out of your home. It is not just the season or temperature that affects humidity, but also your house type. Remember that each home can act differently based on the moisture contained in new building materials. As such, it is up to you to maintain proper humidity levels. If proper RH is not maintained, then your warranty coverage is voided.
Tips to Maintain the Best Humidity Level in Winter
The following are a few tips to help you achieve the best humidity level for your home in winter:
- Use a hygrometer to monitor indoor humidity levels
- Keep an eye out for warning signs (it’s too humid when there’s condensation on the windows and too dry if you’re getting nosebleeds)
- Use humidifiers (if too dry) or dehumidifiers (if too humid) to maintain between 35–50% RH
- Make sure that the fans in the bathroom and kitchen are working and seal any air leaks
- Double check that your ERV systems are working properly
Finding the Right Balance with the Ideal Humidity Levels at Home
It is important to remember that 35–50% is the recommended humidity level in a house during the winter. Maintaining healthy indoor humidity levels in Ontario will protect both your home and your family, improving comfort and health, so continue to monitor and adjust as needed.
At Avvio Fine Homes, our airtight, energy efficient, custom homes are always designed with good indoor health in mind. For more information about how our integrated ERV systems help maintain ideal humidity levels and air quality year-round, contact us today!
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