Should I get a dehumidifier?

[ChocolatPocky]

I live in Portland, OR, and it gets kinda humid in the winter (70-80%!) but only around 60% in the summer, so I was wondering if I should get a dehumidifier for my chin? I haven't had him during the summer yet so it'll be a test. He seems fine with the higher winter humidity at the moment. The temp around his cage is usually around ~65F.

I have an window A/C unit and am wondering if that'll be enough combined with a ceiling fan set on low to get the air moving? Summers can get pretty hot in Portland.

 

[Zahrii]

70-80% Is way too high humidity, 60% and above is in the danger levels. High humidity can easily lead to fungal infections and other diseases. A good humidity for that temp would be 30-50%, personally I prefer it to be 30-45. So yes, you should get a dehumidifier as soon as possible.

 

[ChocolatPocky]

70-80% Is way too high humidity, 60% and above is in the danger levels. High humidity can easily lead to fungal infections and other diseases. A good humidity for that temp would be 30-50%, personally I prefer it to be 30-45. So yes, you should get a dehumidifier as soon as possible.

Yeah it didn't even occur to me to get a dehumidifier until I actually checked the humidity here - it sounds really high but doesn't feel that way for some reason? I had to rub some olive oil on his feet today bc they were getting dry.

Anyways, I'll get a little dehumidifier to make sure his little room stays dry.

 

[Zahrii]

Yeah it didn't even occur to me to get a dehumidifier until I actually checked the humidity here - it sounds really high but doesn't feel that way for some reason? I had to rub some olive oil on his feet today bc they were getting dry.

Anyways, I'll get a little dehumidifier to make sure his little room stays dry.

If he gets dry feet again, I recommend Bag Balm. A lot of chin owners use it and a small amount of it does wonders.

 

[Spoof]

Don't worry about the humidity unless your walls are dripping/forming condensate. Everywhere in the world has a dewpoint - twice a day at sunrise and sunset the humidity will be 100%. If you walk into the room and are comfortable he is too. A window a/c unit will dehumidify the room when it runs so you will be fine this summer when it is warmer. The humidity in the Pacific Northwest isn't bad, quite a few breeders up there and several with open air barns. Humidity does not cause nor encourage fungus/ringworm or other infections, a weak immune system, stress and exposure to those things causes them.

My barns average 65% humidity year round and will some times spike to 100% when I leave the windows open in the winter - that is natural. I simply can't keep it any less due to location (San Antonio, TX) and the outside air is 85-95%. You have to bring that outside air in for them and it's going to be humid. What is most important is not allowing the temps to climb above 76 at that humidity.

 

[ChocolatPocky]

Don't worry about the humidity unless your walls are dripping/forming condensate. Everywhere in the world has a dewpoint - twice a day at sunrise and sunset the humidity will be 100%. If you walk into the room and are comfortable he is too. A window a/c unit will dehumidify the room when it runs so you will be fine this summer when it is warmer. The humidity in the Pacific Northwest isn't bad, quite a few breeders up there and several with open air barns. Humidity does not cause nor encourage fungus/ringworm or other infections, a weak immune system, stress and exposure to those things causes them.

My barns average 65% humidity year round and will some times spike to 100% when I leave the windows open in the winter - that is natural. I simply can't keep it any less due to location (San Antonio, TX) and the outside air is 85-95%. You have to bring that outside air in for them and it's going to be humid. What is most important is not allowing the temps to climb above 76 at that humidity.

Thanks that's really helpful! I had only recently checked the humidity in Portland because I was thinking ahead of what summer will be like - and was surprised that the numbers looked so high! I've lived in NYC before and it def gets super humid in the summer there, you can feel it. So I was confused about the high humidity in Portland when it felt so different in person.

I also just asked the lady who runs the chinnie adoption center I got my chin from and she said she doesn't use a dehumidifier, just keep the temp cool enough and they should be fine etc.

 

[romas_spoiledpets]

I live in Portland, OR, and it gets kinda humid in the winter (70-80%!) but only around 60% in the summer, so I was wondering if I should get a dehumidifier for my chin? I haven't had him during the summer yet so it'll be a test. He seems fine with the higher winter humidity at the moment. The temp around his cage is usually around ~65F.

I have an window A/C unit and am wondering if that'll be enough combined with a ceiling fan set on low to get the air moving? Summers can get pretty hot in Portland.

Hi - YES, you should. Based on my experience, having one is super crucial especially if you live in areas with high humidity. The rule of thumb I've lived with in owning my chinchilla for 9 years is the "120 rule" meaning, as long as the numbers of both humidity and temperature add up to no more than 120, you should be okay. So for example, if the temperature is 72 F, the humidity should no higher than 48%. If humidity is 50%, than the temp should be no higher 70 F. I try to avoid having a 50% humidity though.

I live in the southeast United States where it can get reeally hot and humid so we purchased a dehumidifier and a Nest Thermostat to help monitor the temps in our pet room. This is the dehumidifer we have: https://amzn.to/36UC0Vr
Hope that helps!

 

[ChocolatPocky]

Hi - YES, you should. Based on my experience, having one is super crucial especially if you live in areas with high humidity. The rule of thumb I've lived with in owning my chinchilla for 9 years is the "120 rule" meaning, as long as the numbers of both humidity and temperature add up to no more than 120, you should be okay. So for example, if the temperature is 72 F, the humidity should no higher than 48%. If humidity is 50%, than the temp should be no higher 70 F. I try to avoid having a 50% humidity though.

I live in the southeast United States where it can get reeally hot and humid so we purchased a dehumidifier and a Nest Thermostat to help monitor the temps in our pet room. This is the dehumidifer we have: https://amzn.to/36UC0Vr
Hope that helps!

Hmm I'll go get a humidity thermometer to see what the actual humidity in my chinnie's room is, and look up some humidifiers (that one is kinda pricey!) Thanks for the input everyone!

 

[Spoof]

The problem you will run into with dehumidifiers is that they put out as much heat as an equivalent sized a/c unit will provide cooling for. A/C units hang out of the back of the window so that heat is exchanged outside - and the air movement over the coils dehumidifies the room.

 

[Zahrii]

The problem you will run into with dehumidifiers is that they put out as much heat as an equivalent sized a/c unit will provide cooling for. A/C units hang out of the back of the window so that heat is exchanged outside - and the air movement over the coils dehumidifies the room.

I've never had issues with my dehumidifier making the chin area warmer, it's also not close to the cage though. I live in a pretty wet and cool area, so the temp stays at 64-66 F with the dehumidifier on. Not much of a temp difference when I turn it off. It even dropped to 59 once. I also have an AC ready for summer, but that does NOT dehumidify, especially when it's not on the dry setting. It jacks the humidity up. Even on the dry setting, if I leave it on for more than an hour, it jacks the humidity up again. The dehumidifier releases cool air toward the chin cage, so that helps with temp. I would never use an AC instead of a dehumidifier, as it really doesn't help with humidity much in my experience. Mine does more harm than good. I can see using an AC and a dehumidifier, but not completely replacing a dehumidifier with an AC.

 

[Amethyst]

I've never had issues with my dehumidifier making the chin area warmer, it's also not close to the cage though. I live in a pretty wet and cool area, so the temp stays at 64-66 F with the dehumidifier on. Not much of a temp difference when I turn it off. It even dropped to 59 once. I also have an AC ready for summer, but that does NOT dehumidify, especially when it's not on the dry setting. It jacks the humidity up. Even on the dry setting, if I leave it on for more than an hour, it jacks the humidity up again. The dehumidifier releases cool air toward the chin cage, so that helps with temp. I would never use an AC instead of a dehumidifier, as it really doesn't help with humidity much in my experience. Mine does more harm than good. I can see using an AC and a dehumidifier, but not completely replacing a dehumidifier with an AC.

Your experience is very odd and I can't explain it. Having an AC on normally dries out the air since it pulls moisture out of the air. I don't notice as much with the window unit since the water goes outside and evaporates, but I have a hose connected to the portable AC in the bedroom so the water it pulls out of the air has somewhere to go. We drilled an extra hole in the metal plate so the hose goes outside, otherwise I'd have to empty the tank/bucket every couple days, on humid days you can see water dripping from the hose.

 

[Zahrii]

Your experience is very odd and I can't explain it. Having an AC on normally dries out the air since it pulls moisture out of the air. I don't notice as much with the window unit since the water goes outside and evaporates, but I have a hose connected to the portable AC in the bedroom so the water it pulls out of the air has somewhere to go. We drilled an extra hole in the metal plate so the hose goes outside, otherwise I'd have to empty the tank/bucket every couple days, on humid days you can see water dripping from the hose.

Yeah, I have no idea why my A/C does that. It's excellent at cooling, dehumidifying not so much. It was free though since it came with a broken wheel, so I just used that extra money to buy a dehumidifier that actually does dry the chin area. It's collecting dust now, but I'm sure I'll use it when summer arrives.

 

[ChocolatPocky]

Hmm my general understanding is still air = more humidity/moldiness, so moving the air around helps reduce humidity. But I have a window unit so it should be fine! I think I can get away with using a smallish dehumidifier that will hopefully produce less heat.

 

[Zahrii]

Hmm my general understanding is still air = more humidity/moldiness, so moving the air around helps reduce humidity. But I have a window unit so it should be fine! I think I can get away with using a smallish dehumidifier that will hopefully produce less heat.

Yup, it shouldn't make the chin area too warm as long as it's not side-by-side to the cage. Just make sure to monitor the temp.

 

[ChocolatPocky]

Okay so I finally got my hands on a thermometer/hygrometer, and it says the humidity is between 40-45% by Mr. B's cage, which I read is good for chinchillas. I have no idea why the local humidity in Portland read so high when inside my apt it's not even close to that? Oh well, looks like everything is okay!

 

[Zahrii]

Okay so I finally got my hands on a thermometer/hygrometer, and it says the humidity is between 40-45% by Mr. B's cage, which I read is good for chinchillas. I have no idea why the local humidity in Portland read so high when inside my apt it's not even close to that? Oh well, looks like everything is okay!

Yay! I'm glad it worked out well.