Workplace humidity issues. Maybe you’ve never thought much about what low or high humidity could do in your work facility – despite seeing subtle signs. Many of those signs are confused for other ailments. It’s why so many businesses frequently overlook workplace humidity issues for months (or perhaps years). You might mistake your employee’s sickness, or problems are a result of their own health issues.
If you’ve already conquered high humidity problems in your building, are you completely sure you’ve solved low humidity issues as well? One thing you’ll discover with low humidity is that it can cause far more problems than high humidity. High humidity creates dangerous mold, but low humidity creates some definite physical signs as well.
The question is: “Can you distinguish between problems caused by low humidity and unrelated health problems in your workers?”
It’s important to learn how low humidity in your workplace physically affects employees and how to take action to correct the issue. Your best solution for the future is to find an innovative humidifying system, and we can accommodate that need at Smart Fog.
Why Wintertime is a Major Culprit
You can certainly experience low humidity any time of the year; however, winter can bring some of the worst symptoms. This occurs because the colder it gets, the more heat you’re going to use in your facility. The more heat you use, the drier the air becomes in the exterior.
We sometimes forget heat removes moisture from the air. Once this happens, you’ll start to notice some common symptoms in your workers. Some of these might include dry skin issues, eye irritation, bloody noses, or throat irritation.
It’s easy to write these off as being mere allergy problems. But how can you tell when you’re just guessing what your humidity levels are?
Finding Evidence of Workplace Humidity Issues
Don’t just assume the above symptoms are going to go away on their own. Workplace humidity issues need to be identified and corrected. Buy a hygrometer for your building to gauge exactly what your relative humidity is inside.
If it’s below 35%, then you definitely have a low humidity problem to solve. You also should study how long some symptoms in your workers keep occurring.
Winter Itch
No doubt you’ve heard the term “winter itch” before. This is where skin starts to crack due to the dry air. As a result, it can make skin feel itchy leading to scratching and possible infections.
Take a careful look at the skin of your employees and see if it continually looks scaly. If this is going on for weeks at a time in numerous employees, it’s clear low humidity is a direct cause.
The same occurs to eyes. Checking for excessively dry or irritated eyes in your workers is essential. Dry air evaporates all eye moisture ultimately leading to an overly red appearance.
Catching Flu and Colds Easier
Some people forget the science behind why the flu permeates so much in the winter. It’s because the flu likes cold, dry weather. The dry air keeps the virus alive longer increasing the chances of it spreading throughout your work site.
This is a typical sign of a low humidity issue. In the end, it leads to a big problem when half of all your most valuable employees stay home with the flu.
Without having proper humidity in the air, sinus membranes become irritated in general.
Finding a Proper Humidifier
The solution is to find a humidifier that properly adjusts relative humidity through intelligent precision control. At Smart Fog, our humidifiers do this successfully without being obstructive or dangerous with moving parts.
With this feature, it’s just the beginning of the innovations we’ve applied – making us a true leader in the humidifier industry.
Contact us to learn more about the health issues low humidity brings and how our technology solves these issues without constant supervision.
