McNair Building Construction, Inc. is currently evaluating new humidistat technologies  installed on Trane and other Heat Pump HVAC systems.  Since we have chosen to live in an environment with normally high humidity levels, conducive to mold and mildew development, we think it is important to maintain lower humidity within the home below levels currently experienced with occasional AC usage in the Fall, Winter and Spring seasons.  The humidity levels during these seasons can easily be affected by outside humidity levels due to sporadic AC usage.  Although we are currently evaluating the performance of the Trane systems with newly installed  and designed humidistats, we are suggesting the installation of a humidistat for Trane Heat pump systems in homes in the Hilton Head and surrounding areas built by McNair Building Construction, Inc..  The Honeywell PC8900 & W8900 HVAC Control can be installed in an  existing homes for $600 per system, or in new construction for $400 per system.  Please contact our service department for installation and scheduling (prices in early 2002 were in the range noted above).

Honeywell Pc8900 and W8900 below:

Humidity levels are important, but the use of outside "fresh-air" to assist in a more positive interior house pressure is equally important.  Aprilaire provides solutions for improved ventilation by providing controls for the introduction of outside air into your HVAC system. Aprilaire Control System allows you to manage the quality of outside air introduced by monitoring the extremes of temperature and humidity allowed into the system. This particular system will not ventilate if the outdoor temperature is above 100 degrees, below 0 degrees or if the relative humidity could rise above 55 percent. Plus, the system will ventilate only with a heat call when the outdoor temperature is between 0 and 20 degrees. Controls are automatic and independent, with cycle times ranging from one to four hours and ventilation time from zero to sixty minutes.  Honeywell and Trane are working on similar systems and will be presented to our customers as options.

Please note, our recommendation of these products, or systems, is only intended to reflect our opinions based on use of the products, or representations made by the manufacturers, and not intended as an expression of additional product warranties or extended representations by McNair Building Construction, Inc.