How to Remove Humidity from a Room Without a Dehumidifier

If you reside somewhere with high humidity, then you already know how discomforting the extra moisture in the air can be. High humidity and heat create a sticky, clammy, and uncomfortable atmosphere for anyone to leave in.

Admittedly, you can easily turn on the dehumidifier and stay comfortable.  But, you landed here to know how to remove humidity from a room without a dehumidifier.

That said, the easiest and cheapest way to achieve this would be to find the source of humidity in your room and fix it. You probably already know that humidity above normal level encourages the growth of mold and mildew.

While using a dehumidifier is good for your health and structure, but it can be very unfriendly to your wallet.

So here’s what I suggest:

Have your dehumidifier intact, but try all the alternative options to determine what works.

This way, your dehumidifier is just a backup – in case your humidity level increases.

Isn’t that a fantastic idea?

But before we go to how to remove humidity from a room without a dehumidifier, let’s first figure out how to determine if your room is humid.

How to Know if your Home is Humid

Here’s how to determine if your house is actually humid.

The job will be super easy if you have a hygrometer (also known as humidistats) at home.  You will basically find out with the percentage shown on it.

But if you don’t have a hygrometer, you can easily see the signs of condensation on your windows and walls.

You want to look for run-off tracks and watermarks especially in places where warm air meets with cold surfaces like window sills.

If you were living in such a condition, there will be some mold growth somewhere in the room.

You should be able to feel the dampness and smell the musty odor.  In some cases, you’ll have allergic reactions if the mold activity is above normal levels.

In any case, hygrometer is a perfect idea to check for a correct reading.

Why is my House so Humid?

There are many reasons why your house is so humid.  The first and obvious reason is that you live in a very humid climate.

Apart from that, other reasons could be:

1. Your Basement Isn’t Properly Sealed

Crawlspace dirt will be humid and boost the level of humidity.

And if you do not have a crawlspace but have a basement, then your basement concrete floors are probably breathing vapor inside your basement space – except all the cracks and floor are properly filled up and sealed.

Even then you are unsure of the concrete walls.  Walls are absorbent and you will see the increased humidity if not properly insulated with a vapor blockade type of material.

2. Poor Insulation and Ventilation

Ever noticed mold growth in your bathrooms?

I bet you have; this usually happens because your steam shower puts lots of moisture in the air with no way to get it out.

The same thing applies to a laundry room that isn’t properly ventilated. When your laundry or bathroom door is open, you are just helping to increase the humidity level of your entire house.

This is why insulation is of utmost importance.  Ideally, if your wall isn’t adequately insulated and outside humid air is getting in, it will directly affect the room’s humidity level.

3. Oversized Air Conditioner

Here’s the fact; if you have an oversize air conditioner, you will certainly experience humidity.

You may actually think you air condition is so powerful, but it hurts more than it helps.

Your AC unit is running shorter cycles and cools your room pretty fast, but consequently not letting your HVAC units dehumidify well.

You probably didn’t know that dehumidifying is equally a function of an air conditioner.

4. You Have Wet Wood and Plants Indoor

If you love plants and keep and water a lot of them indoors, don’t forget that they’ll breathe.

What happens after the plants are watered?

Now you know what I’m talking about.

The plants suck up all the water from the soil when you water them, and when they breathe out (so to say) they’ll leave out lots of moisture in the air.

The same thing is applicable for wet wood or anything that has moisture kept indoors.  Basically, your indoor air will suck the moisture out when it becomes dry.

5. Seasonal Problems

The amount of vapor in the warmer air is usually more than colder air.  So summer months are generally humid.

Since the air outside gets in many ways, there will be much more humid air in the summer months.

How to Remove Humidity From A Room Without A Dehumidifier

If you want to know about the following:

• 
  How to dehumidify a room without a dehumidifier
• How to dehumidify a room without electricity
• How to reduce humidity without dehumidifier
• Natural dehumidifier baking soda
• How to reduce humidity in house in winter
• Natural dehumidifier plants
• Etc.

This section and the ones after it applies to all these topics and its variations.

That said, below is how to remove humidity from a room without a dehumidifier:

1. Ventilate your room properly

The first step is to keep your home well ventilated, especially in spots that usually create moisture such as your bathroom and the kitchen.

Open doors and windows if possible, and keep fans or vents on for a longer period to ensure enough ventilation.

Having sufficient ventilation in your home for at least some hours per day can significantly help to reduce indoor humidity.

2. Hang wet clothes outdoors

Hanging your wet clothes indoors will greatly increase humidity levels, especially in rooms with poor ventilation.

The best way to reduce indoor humidity is to leave your clothes outdoors to dry before taking them inside, especially on humid seasons.

However, if the option isn’t for you (maybe your apartments has no balconies), then make use of a cloth dryer that’s vented to the outdoors.

3. Fix your walls

Walls that have holes or cracks can equally cause indoor moisture. Moist and warm outside air can travel indoors via cracks and holes during humid, warm weather. This can result in condensation on materials indoors if they are somehow cooler than the air outside.

Additionally, if the condensation is not quickly wiped up, it can create problems like decaying wood, mold and mildew. You, therefore, want to always check the external walls of your home to make sure there are no cracks, and if you found one, repair them properly.

4. Fans can be of help

Fans are very good at rotating warm stale air in the room. A fan will typically increase the air flow in your room that will get rid of excess moisture via evaporation.

5. Always keep your air conditioner on

Find out at what temperature makes you comfortable and set your air conditioner to run continuously. If you have the right-sized air conditioner, it will have a decent cycle time.

With this, it can run consistently and dehumidify your room and basements.

6. Keep cooking pot closed while on stove

Always close the cooking pot while on the stove, this will ensure that moistures are trapped on the lid – and when you open the lid, you will get to see condensation under it.

This way, you can just remove the water directly in the kitchen sink.

Apart from that, it’s also good to turn on the vent hood while cooking, so that any vapor that passes through the pan will be pushed outside.

If you’re mindful of these suggestions while cooking, you will significantly reduce the humidity from the kitchen.

7. Move indoor plants outdoors

We’ve talked about this earlier. It’s not proper to leave plants indoors as they usually leave moisture out.

When conditions are good for your plants to flourish, leave them outside. Just take them inside late fall, and you will be just fine.

How to Dehumidify a Room Without Electricity

When it comes to how to dehumidify a room without electricity, the best way is to use any material that sucks up and retains moisture (a desiccant).

In fact, the proper approach is to vent any vapor out.  So, it’s good to install a bathroom fan and vent it outside. The same thing applies to your laundry room.

You want to keep all the doors closed and ventilate properly. And get the desiccant, so you don’t put much stress on it (silica gel is a good one).

Just buy them, open the container and keep them in a place where it can easily absorb moisture from the air. It acts just like a sponge which sucks and retains the water.

A desiccant sucks up vapor and moisture from the air, leaving you with dry air.

Manufacturers create absorbent dehumidifier. Using a desiccant like silica gel, they absorb the water and find a way to suck it into a container for disposal.

How To Reduce Humidity In A Room Naturally

If the above methods didn’t work in you, there are more ways of tackling this issue. Here’s how to reduce humidity in a room naturally:

1. Use silica gel

One of the best ways to remove humidity in a room naturally is by using silica gel. This is the small, plastic-looking pellets that are usually found in the box of new shoes.

The gel pellets will instantly absorb the humidity in any room they are kept in.

However, you will need a good quantity of them for this to work. For instance, you will need about 400 grams of silica gel for a room of 800 square feet.

Unfortunately, it is not always easy to find it in such quantities.

2. Use a rock salt

3. Get a basket of charcoal briquettes

You can use charcoal briquettes to get rid of humidity and even odors from the air, due to their adsorption properties. Simply get a basket and fill it up with a bag of charcoal.

The charcoal will last for about 2 to 3 months and if possible, get a coconut shell charcoal. This type of charcoal has high adsorptive power and can resist powdering in adsorption – a very critical factor.

4. Take a cold shower

Another way to reduce indoor humidity without a dehumidifier is to use rock salt (a hygroscopic material). It draws and stores water molecules from its environment, pulling excess humidity out of the air just like a dehumidifier.

To do this, just take 2 plastic tubs of the same size, then put an object inside the 1st tub to uplift the 2nd tub. Then drill holes in the 2nd tub and fill it up with rock salt.

Furthermore, place the 2nd tub and put it in the 1st tub. In a few days after doing this, you will see some water in the underneath tub. You want to check the bottom tub every day to remove the water.

Finally, you may equally use silica-based kitty litter, calcium chloride, and zeolite rocks as an alternative to rock salt.

Interestingly, one of the best and easiest ways to minimize your excess moisture problem is to take a cold shower.

Isn’t that easy?

Just turn on your shower where it’s not so cold, but just beginning to be comfortable, and you will be very fine.

Natural Dehumidifier Baking Soda

Try baking soda for a more affordable, energy-free, homemade, and easy solution for room humidity that will help to keep moisture levels at bay.

To do this, just place an open bowl of baking soda (also known as “sodium bicarbonate”) where there are moisture problems in your house – including cupboards and cabinets.

How well does baking soda work for reducing humidity?

Baking soda is undoubtedly an excellent substitute to store-bought products, though not as effective as rock salt. It works well for smaller spaces such as closed cupboards and cabinets.

However, this kind of setup will need occasional stirring immediately the baking soda starts to such up moisture from the room. Interestingly this is a cheap, all-natural, effective option for small spaces like bathrooms and closets.

How to Remove Humidity in Your Home Using Plants

I mentioned indoor plants earlier, but that was about general plants.

Let’s now talk about the specific type of plants that will help you reduce moisture in your room.

These are specifically the type of plants that survive and flourish in harsh weather conditions.

In other words, these type of plants grows very well in sunny deserts – they can survive without water and knows how to protect the water they absorbed from evaporating.

Below are the names of these plants:

• English Ivy
• Boston Fern
• Reed Palm
• Peace Lily
• Tillandsia
• Spider Plant

Some of these plants do not need soil to survive, they can simply hang in the air and thrive – and you put some between rocks and they will still thrive.

They’re mostly beautiful and decorative plants with different looks.

But they all have one thing in common…

…They absorb the moisture and hold on to it.

But not just that:

It will interest you to know that some of these plants are also natural air purifiers.

Isn’t that super amazing?

Read more about the natural dehumidifying plants here:

How to Reduce Humidity in House in Winter

When the winter months come, you might start noticing some seasonal changes in your home like condensation forming on your windows.

That said, here’s how to reduce humidity in house in winter:

1. Identify the source of the humidity: Understanding why your home is excessively moist will let you have a more targeted approach to tackling the problem. Excess humidity may come from:

• A damp basement
• A leaky roof
• Improper or poor ventilation
• An HVAC system that is not the right size or needs repairs
• Lots of water-loving houseplants
• Storing freshly cut wood inside your home
• Not venting the clothes dryer outside the home
• Not using exhaust fans in your bathroom or kitchen

2. Turn up the heat: Heating your home during the winter season will help to reduce excess moisture.

This is mainly because warm air holds moisture, and your home should not be too humid to start with, else you will turn it into a sauna, which will only worsen the issue.

It’s advisable to use dry heat and maintain proper airflow when warming the home.

3. Proper drainage: You want to keep your downspouts and gutters clear. Ensure that the downspouts and landscaping properly channel water out of your home.

4. Insulate your pipes: Having exposed pipes inside your home may cause sweat. You have to insulate them to avoid sweating and to also safeguard them from the cold weather.

5. Upgrade your windows: High-efficiency windows like double pane windows or windows with an insulating film minimize energy exchanges during the winter season, so they’ll not fog up.

Apart from that, you also want to make sure that the weather stripping and padding around windows is in the right shape.

Conclusion

By now, I believe you already know how to remove humidity from a room without a dehumidifier.

Even though the strategies we discussed in this post might not be as effective and fast as a dehumidifier, they are healthier and natural.

Now, if you combine these methods with changing your daily habits, you can get a well-balanced humidity level in your entire home.

Furthermore, this natural means of reducing humidity will also help you handle your humidity problems without spending a fortune, as well as help you get rid of headaches when the electricity bill comes.

Just try these methods and see which one works well for you. Once you’re able to reduce your room’s humidity level, you will feel better, and the air in your entire home will also smell better.

So tell us, is there any other way you’ve successfully reduced humidity in your home that we didn’t mention here? Let’s discuss it in the comment section below.