Working in an office with dry air is no fun. Your eyes dry out, your throat gets rough and your sinuses become so dry you feel like you’re burning up. This negatively affects your productivity to the extent that you get slowed down in general. Luckily for you, there are solutions to this discussed in detail below.
You can increase humidity in office by drinking water, introducing plants to the office, using an office humidifier, turning off machines, preventing air leakage, using spray bottles and steam from the water. You should use a hygrometer to keep the relative humidity between 40% and 70% to be comfortable in the office.
With the office humidity at the right levels, you can work without distractions. Most indoor spaces such as offices require between 40% and 70% of humidity to be ideal for work. Any amounts lower or higher than this range will be uncomfortable.
A hygrometer is an instrument used to measure the amount of moisture in the air and it gives readings between 0%RH and 100%RH (Relative Humidity). At 0%, the air is so dry that there’s no moisture in it. At 100%, the air is saturated with moisture that it can’t have any more of it.
Methods of Increasing Humidity in Office
Some of the methods you can employ to make the office more bearable when there’s dry air include the following:
1. Drink water
Drinking water helps hydrate the body making it easy to moisten your eyes, throat and sinuses. It’s recommended that you take about 8 glasses of water (about 2 liters) a day. This also helps you stay healthy and keeps you active each time you take a trip to the water dispenser.
2. Introduce plants to the office
Plants have many benefits to the office as they beautify the place, add privacy, clean the air and increase the humidity through the process of transpiration. Transpiration simply translates to the plants sweating water which adds to the humidity of the office.
You can choose between a small desk plant and a large one placed at a corner or corridor. Make sure the type of plant you go for is the right type such that it can survive dryness and can release moisture. Snake plants are better than succulents for example. Whatever plant you decide on, always water it frequently.
3. Take care of dry eyes
Having dry eyes is one of the most distracting side effects of dry air in the office. You wont find it easy focusing on your work when the eyes are itchy and irritating. Some of the solutions to dry eyes include:
- Blink enough times to lubricate the eyes.
- Choose glasses over contact lenses in a dry office.
- Use eyedrops to moisten the eyes.
- Take water frequently to hydrate the body.
These routines will help keep the eyes moist and allow you focus on your work. They apply whether you do lots of computer work, paperwork or other tasks. Dry eyes are among the most prominent dry air symptoms.
4. Use an office humidifier
An office humidifier has the all-important role of adding moisture to the air when it’s dry. You have the option between a large humidifier that covers the whole room or a small one for your desk alone. You have either bypass or power humidifiers for the large space.
For the small ones, you can get the ones powered by USB cables that you simply plug into the wall or computer and it’ll keep the desk area humid.
5. Turn off machines
All machines emit heat when in use. This heat will lead to a dry indoors as it dries up the indoors. For this reason, turn off the machines when you’re not using them as keeping them in standby mode still leads to the emission of heat. You can also simply move the machines away from the work area.
Most offices will face low levels of humidity during the winter when there is indoor heating. You should thus have a heater that also adjusts the level of humidity to avoid dry air in the home or office.
6. Keep moisturizers at hand
To keep your skin, lips and eyes from drying up. Have some moisturizers at hand. You can use some moisturizing cream for your skin and face, lip balm for your lips and eyedrops for your eyes. Other than that, drink lots of water as stated above.
7. Prevent air leakage
One of the most cited sources of dry air indoors is air leakage. Even with air conditioners, humidifiers and others working around the clock, if you let the moist air escape outdoors while letting in the cold dry air, the indoors will still be mostly dry. You can seal the indoors with properly done caulking, ergo and weather strips.
8. Use spray bottles and bowls of water
If getting humidifiers is too much of a hassle, you can put water in a spray bottle then spray it in the air or carpets frequently to keep it moist. You can also place a bowl of water close to the window or vent to moisturize the air indoors.
9. Use the shower
This solution is best suited for a home office unless your workplace has a shower too. For this one, you simply turn on the hot water shower then open the door for the steam to fill the indoors. You can also put a fan in the shower to increase the spread of the moisture in the house or office.
With these methods, you can easily restore the optimum humidity levels for the office or home. You should consider checking with your workplace rules as some firms don’t allow humidification methods since they might lead to the growth of mold and mildew.
Signs of Low Humidity in the Office
Some of the signs to show the office has low humidity include the following:
- Sore eyes.
- Increased sensitivity to air pollutants.
- Frequent electrostatic shocks and static clings.
- Dry and itchy skin.
- Slow recovery from sickness.
- Irritations in the mouth, throat and nose.
- Sinusitis, congestions and nosebleeds.
- Allergy, bronchitis and asthma attacks.
- Frequent dehydration.
- Increase in transmission of airborne viruses such flu and others.
- Cracks in wooden floors and furniture.
- Sick Building Syndrome: people getting sick from chronic diseases from the building.
- Phantom flea effect (illusory parasitosis): itchy red marks on ankles caused by static electricity.
- Frequent computer equipment failure
In general, these dry air symptoms reduce your productivity and should be prevented as early as possible.
FAQs
- How humid should an office be?
The relative humidity for an office should be between 40% and 70%.
- How do you increase humidity?
You can increase humidity through a humidifier, indoor plants, preventing air leakage and spraying water from spray bottles frequently.
- How can I raise the humidity in my box?
You can raise humidity in your box by using humidifier, indoor plants, preventing air leakage and spraying water indoors.
