Many people overlook museums as being businesses, yet they’d be surprised to find out how important museums are to the U.S. economy, culture, local communities, and historical preservation of the arts. This article will share some insights about this topic while discussing 3 reasons why museums should have commercial humidifiers:
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- Comfort and Health of Visitors
- Preservation of Displays
- Building Maintenance and Safety
Stats About Museums in the U.S.
There’s some interesting museum facts found at American Alliance of Museums‘ website, in an article/study called: “Museum Facts”, which compiles data on the impact museums make in America, both economically and culturally in local communities. The article/study shares:
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- 850 million visits each year to American museums
- 400,000 Americans employed at museums
- $21 billion directly contributed to economy
- $135 billion in economic activity by nonprofit arts and culture industry
The study goes on to discuss how museums are: “…Community Anchors” , trustworthy, partnered with schools, and more. The amount of visitors to museums is amazing, as the article explains that it’s “…more than the attendance for all major league sporting events and theme parks combined (483 million in 2011).”
Comfort and Health of Visitors
Museums and their curators are tasked with preserving historical, artistic, technological, and other precious items – while displaying them to the public for viewing and even touching. Museums are creative spaces for visitors to dwell, so curators must find a balance between interactivity and preservation; climate control is an important tool curators use for optimal preservation.
With such an important directive, curators should consider a commercial grade humidifier. Improper moisture levels in museums are damaging over time, and create uncomfortable environments for visitors and employees. Too much moisture can cause mold and bacteria, which means buildings can be unsafe for visitors and damaged structurally as well.
Preservation of Display Items
Curators most important duty is the preservation of the display items. Controlling the building’s climate with HVAC units is important, yet a commercial humidifier is also needed to control moisture levels (not just temperature levels). The buildings’ size and type will determine the commercial humidifier unit needed, for instance, Smart Fog’s products include: Direct Space, In-Duct, Mobile, and Fog Tunnel.
With a quality commercial humidifier unit, museums will eliminate bacteria and dust, have no-wetting from units, get precise humidity control, and not have to deal with any: pumps, drains, or fans. Smart Fog’s patented technology boasts the smallest droplet size (4.2 microns) in the market, and the units are designed for little to no maintenance. This is the type of quality humidifier that curators need, in order to fulfill their most important duty to preserve the display items.
Building and Maintenance and Safety
The building may or may not be part of the exhibit, yet it’s facilitating the display of the valuable items, thus, becomes part of the experience. In such a large industry with so many visitors, museums are focused on maintaining a clean, safe, and comfortable environment – so visitors will dwell and appreciate the displays. Commercial HVAC and humidifier units are the main tools curators have to ensure this type of conductive environment is accomplished and maintained.
Another aspect of maintaining a building is preventing any structural damage to the building. Extremes in moisture levels can erode wood and create black mold inside the structure, which eventually can make buildings unsafe structurally and health-wise. Moisture has decades to do its work on buildings, yet having a commercial humidifier nullifies its “progress”.
Summary
The economic, cultural, and social importance of museums is often overlooked by most Americans, yet the facts (shared from the AAM) tell us that museums are, indeed, powerful economic and social engines. In light of these facts, curators should consider these 3 reasons why museums need commercial humidifiers.
Not all commercial humidifiers are the same though, which is especially true with Smart Fog’s industry-leading products and technology. Museums of all sizes can find a fitting answer with the help of our experienced staff, ensuring their valuable items and buildings have proper humidity levels always. To learn more about our products, please contact us today.
