Air Exchanger

Hello,
I have a home that is about 2 years old. Around a number of our windws we have wood extensions. Some of them are showing signs of a raised bubble that is discoloring the stain on the wood. The main area of issue is with a couple of the windows on a north facing bathroom. We run the fan after showering for 30-40 minutes normally to try and remove the moist air. We also have a lot of moisture buildup around all windows within the house in the winter and we run a dehumidifier 5 out of 7 days a week all day/night which has seemed to help with the moisture around the windows part to some degree.

Someone asked if i had an air exchanger and should really consider one where we live and with what I was telling them. It would do a few things for me including possibly remedying some of the issues i mention above but also reduce my heating and cooling costs.

Some stats of where I live. I mentioned north facing bathroom. I live in ND and the north side of the house is always coldest as it gets pounded with a stiff north window for much of the winter.

Any ideas on what is causing the issues I mention above and would an air exchanger remedy these things do you think?
Also, how would you go about installing an air exchanger in an already fully finished home?

Thanks for the help.

 

Yes it will help. I would try this before you do. 1st turn the dehumidifier off. They are not for winter RH issues. Rh issues in winter is a sign of not enough ventilation. Turn your bath fans on and open a window an inch or so for 12 hours or so. Check RH readings before and after and post the #. On a side note Your bath fans may not be big enough to pull all the RH out during showers.

 

Thanks for the reply.

Can you tell me the best method of getting an accurate RH reading? Is it best to do it in the area I am seeing the most issue?

 

That will be fine! I would also get a reading near the center of the home

 

OK . I got a non digital guage to read the humidy. There wasn't a whole lot to choose from so it is a combo heat/humidty gauge. When was at the home store the rane varied slightly on the units hanging to purchase by +- 4 (humidity wise) I have left it in the bathroom all day today (10 hours) and have a pretty steady reading of 55%. I am going to open the windows and that as you suggest on Wednesday as it is supposed to be warmer and sunny.

 

Here is what I found and what I did:
Before opening house.
Bathroom where I am seeing the humidity 55-62%
Middle of house was about 53%

After Opening house.
Bathroom was about 55% even
Middle of house was the same 53%

I left the house open for about the 12 hours recommended and have a bathroom on either end of the house that I turned the fans on and left them on for the time as well. I hope the humidity gauge is working correctly but i am assuming it did.

Does this give you an clues?

 

Not much change! Did you have the bath fans on?

 

I did have the bath fans on. I wonder if i should try a different humidity gauge possibly. however, this one changed a lot when we showered in there so seemed to be functioning.

 

Was it raining the day you opened the windows?

 

No it wasn't raining. It was one of the warmer days we have had in a long time and partly my reason for opening the windows that day. I didn't want to have to open them on a 30 degree day which is normally high for this area at this time of year. It was around 50 the day i did it.

 

That could be why there was not much drop. The cold less humid air will help dry out the home more. Warmer more humid air will change it less. As we head near April I assume that your issue is less visible. But keep a check on the RH you might need a dehumidifier in the no load time of the year.