Low Humidity is KILLING me

rhines81 · March 23, 2017

I think when I wake up tomorrow, I am going to fill about 20 5-gallon buckets with water and randomly place them around my house. I've had the humidifier running for the past few days and still cannot break 24% RH.

This year I have well over 220 seedlings sprouted with more coming and the watering chore is becoming WAY too much to handle. The past few years, I only watered twice a week (if that). There is still over 18" of un-melted snow outside and the weather is dry, dry, dry. I seem to be watering half of the plants every other day.

Any other suggestions to keep these plants hydrated??? Please don't say mulch.... LOL, I will NOT mulch a Dixie or Solo cup!!

MissS · March 24, 2017

How about hanging a few wet towels in the area? Save some money and hang your clothes inside to dry. You could also run an aquarium air pump in your buckets to make it evaporate more quickly. Turn down the heat. Run the shower with the door open. Simmer something on the stove.

Just a few suggestions, I hope that they work. I hang clothes to dry and get a good sweat on my windows from this.

rhines81 · March 24, 2017

Quote:

Originally Posted by MissS

How about hanging a few wet towels in the area? Save some money and hang your clothes inside to dry. You could also run an aquarium air pump in your buckets to make it evaporate more quickly. Turn down the heat. Run the shower with the door open. Simmer something on the stove.

Just a few suggestions, I hope that they work. I hang clothes to dry and get a good sweat on my windows from this.

Good suggestions but where the plants are there is no place to hang things and also would not want to drip too much water on the floor. Laundry is usually only 1 or 2 loads done on a Sunday. Showers are 1 and 2 levels below so that wouldn't work for me very effectively.

maxjohnson · March 24, 2017

Why don't you use more compost and mulch? I would gladly trade my Florida humidity for something a bit drier.

edit: oops, shouldn't have mentioned mulch.

Worth1 · March 24, 2017

Good time to dry peppers.

MissS · March 24, 2017

Quote:

Originally Posted by Worth1

Good time to dry peppers.

Doubt that there are that many growing out there in the snow. But of course you never know.

Gardeneer · March 24, 2017

Keep boiling water on the stove and circulate the air ( just run the fan ).
When the cold low RH outside air get in and warms up, RH drops sharply. That is what happens in the winter.

MendozaMark · March 24, 2017

Can you tent your seedling area in or close the door if they are in small room? Then put your humidifier inside or use large pots/containers full of water and place in area.

rhines81 · March 24, 2017

Quote:

Originally Posted by MendozaMark

Can you tent your seedling area in or close the door if they are in small room? Then put your humidifier inside or use large pots/containers full of water and place in area.

I have thought of the tent idea. I have also been waiting for milder temperatures so that I can move them out to my unheated sunroom. It's 12x16 with 10' ceiling. Currently the plants are in a 20x20 room with cathedral ceiling which doesn't help the battle.

Father'sDaughter · March 24, 2017

Pots of water on the stove is what we always used when "Glubby," the six gallon humidifier couldn't keep up. That was before my husband installed a new furnace with a whole house humidifier.

Nan_PA_6b · March 24, 2017

In my younger years I went a wee bit overboard with tropical fish. (I have the fish show trophies to prove it). As many aquaria as I had up and running, it did nothing for the dry air in winter. Run a humidifier in the area.

Nan

KarenO · March 24, 2017

pretty typical relative humidity on the dry cold winter prairies. The trade off is minimal fungal problems. I would just water more and don't worry about it.

I also like the much maligned MG moisture control seedling mix for the same reason so maybe something to try next time is a more moisture retentive potting mix.
Now I live on Vancouver Island which has a maritime and temperate rainforest mixed climate with super high humidity and have to wash the algae off my driveway

nowhere is perfect we just have to adjust and this is why there is not one right way to grow tomatoes.

KarenO

Worth1 · March 24, 2017

Reminds me of the woman I knew that moved from Lubbock Texas to Austin.
In about a month everything she had as far as shoes and leather was covered in mold and or mildew.

The spores were just waiting for the right environment.

Greatgardens · March 24, 2017

Interesting. Has it been unusually dry (outside)? If, that's a pretty bad harbinger for the summer, if anything like here in IN 5b.

Back in the day when I was little (1940's - 1950's), my grandparents set pans of water over the registers, sometime with a towel "wick" to help evaporate the water. No forced air heating then. Big ducts from the basement and maybe 12" X 15" floor registers that were ideal for setting pans of water. Did it work very well? Well, I remember little nose bleeds in the winters from the dry air, so probably not too well.
-GG

oakley · March 24, 2017

Consider it a good thing as bottom watering is superior letting you starts dry out fast.

I've been going through about 3 gallons a day as the potting up larger plants need so much water being thirsty over the young ones. I wait until they are weightless before watering. You could gather a few 5 gallon buckets of snow and place them in your seed
starting room to thaw.

But i so prefer dry. Fighting FungusGnats is not fun.

March 23, 2017	#1
rhines81 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: Zone 5A, Poconos Posts: 959	Low Humidity is KILLING me I think when I wake up tomorrow, I am going to fill about 20 5-gallon buckets with water and randomly place them around my house. I've had the humidifier running for the past few days and still cannot break 24% RH. This year I have well over 220 seedlings sprouted with more coming and the watering chore is becoming WAY too much to handle. The past few years, I only watered twice a week (if that). There is still over 18" of un-melted snow outside and the weather is dry, dry, dry. I seem to be watering half of the plants every other day. Any other suggestions to keep these plants hydrated??? Please don't say mulch.... LOL, I will NOT mulch a Dixie or Solo cup!!

March 24, 2017	#2
MissS Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Pewaukee, Wisconsin Posts: 3,150	How about hanging a few wet towels in the area? Save some money and hang your clothes inside to dry. You could also run an aquarium air pump in your buckets to make it evaporate more quickly. Turn down the heat. Run the shower with the door open. Simmer something on the stove. Just a few suggestions, I hope that they work. I hang clothes to dry and get a good sweat on my windows from this. __________________ ~ Patti ~

March 24, 2017	#4
maxjohnson Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Oct 2015 Location: OH 6a Posts: 592	Why don't you use more compost and mulch? I would gladly trade my Florida humidity for something a bit drier. edit: oops, shouldn't have mentioned mulch. Last edited by maxjohnson; March 24, 2017 at 11:19 AM.

March 24, 2017	#7
Gardeneer Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2015 Location: NC - zone 8a - heat zone 7 Posts: 4,919	Keep boiling water on the stove and circulate the air ( just run the fan ). When the cold low RH outside air get in and warms up, RH drops sharply. That is what happens in the winter. __________________ Gardeneer Happy Gardening !

March 24, 2017	#5
Worth1 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Den of Drunken Fools Posts: 38,539	Good time to dry peppers.

March 24, 2017	#8
MendozaMark Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2015 Location: Yarmouth,NS Canada Posts: 296	Can you tent your seedling area in or close the door if they are in small room? Then put your humidifier inside or use large pots/containers full of water and place in area.

March 24, 2017	#10
Father'sDaughter Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: MA/NH Border Posts: 4,919	Pots of water on the stove is what we always used when "Glubby," the six gallon humidifier couldn't keep up. That was before my husband installed a new furnace with a whole house humidifier.

March 24, 2017	#11
Nan_PA_6b Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2016 Location: Pittsburgh, PA Posts: 3,194	In my younger years I went a wee bit overboard with tropical fish. (I have the fish show trophies to prove it). As many aquaria as I had up and running, it did nothing for the dry air in winter. Run a humidifier in the area. Nan

March 24, 2017	#12
KarenO Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Vancouver Island Posts: 5,931	pretty typical relative humidity on the dry cold winter prairies. The trade off is minimal fungal problems. I would just water more and don't worry about it. I also like the much maligned MG moisture control seedling mix for the same reason so maybe something to try next time is a more moisture retentive potting mix. Now I live on Vancouver Island which has a maritime and temperate rainforest mixed climate with super high humidity and have to wash the algae off my driveway nowhere is perfect we just have to adjust and this is why there is not one right way to grow tomatoes. KarenO

March 24, 2017	#14
Greatgardens Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Indiana Posts: 1,124	Interesting. Has it been unusually dry (outside)? If, that's a pretty bad harbinger for the summer, if anything like here in IN 5b. Back in the day when I was little (1940's - 1950's), my grandparents set pans of water over the registers, sometime with a towel "wick" to help evaporate the water. No forced air heating then. Big ducts from the basement and maybe 12" X 15" floor registers that were ideal for setting pans of water. Did it work very well? Well, I remember little nose bleeds in the winters from the dry air, so probably not too well. -GG

March 24, 2017	#15
oakley Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2015 Location: NewYork 5a Posts: 2,303	Consider it a good thing as bottom watering is superior letting you starts dry out fast. I've been going through about 3 gallons a day as the potting up larger plants need so much water being thirsty over the young ones. I wait until they are weightless before watering. You could gather a few 5 gallon buckets of snow and place them in your seed starting room to thaw. But i so prefer dry. Fighting FungusGnats is not fun.