Abstract
This study examined four air humidification systems and compared their performances under drought conditions in the Brazilian Midwest. Those systems were the electric humidifier, basin with water, wet towel, and an artisanal system made for this study using clay roof tiles. The evaluation was conducted between July and October 2017 in Cuiabá, Brazil. The measurements of the relative humidity were taken in two similar bedrooms, one without a humidifier and another one with an air humidification system. The electric air humidifier provided a continuous and prolonged humidification, maintaining this condition until the end of the measurement period in all situations, but the study highlights the high response time to humidify a space, up to 292 min, and the high relative humidity, around 85%, provided by the humidifier after longer running times. The basin with water system resulted in a humidification of about 59% of the moisture provided by the electric humidifier, while the wet towel, despite producing the best response time in humidifying an environment - up to 18 min, did not maintain the reference humidity until the end of the measurement period under ambient conditions of 43% relative humidity. The artisanal system presented a humidification of about 92% of the moisture provided by the electric humidifier, which demonstrates the potential of the system to increase humidity indoors.
Keywords:
Humidifiers; Indoor residential humidity; Environmental comfort; Air quality
