Plants that decrease humidity levels of your home

Indoor Plants in Daily Life / By /
Maintaining an ideal humidity inside your home is vital for healthy living. Start bringing in these houseplants that can help reduce humidity levels and improve your health and wellbeing.
  • Problems caused by High Humidity
  • Reducing Humidity with Plants
  • Best Indoor Plants to Reduce Humidity
  1. Boston Fern
  2. Peace Lily
  3. Spider Plant
  4. English Ivy
  5. Tillandsia
  6. Orchids (Moth Orchid)
  7. Cactus (Christmas Cactus)
  8. Bromeliad (Silver Urn)
Creating a healthy home is important for a balanced and happy life. Many factors are part of this process, and having a home filled with clean & fresh air is one of them. Now more than ever, as we live in times where we feel like we do not have sufficient time for anything.
Indoor humidity in the form of moisture, mould, unpleasant smell or damp is not the most appealing thing to deal with. It happens in many homes / offices, especially in warm, humid and rainy regions like most cities in India, or, in older buildings lacking proper ventilation.

Problems caused by High Humidity

Maintaining good and proper humidity levels indoors is very significant because it affects the quality of the air. If the humidity level in your home is too high, harmful microorganisms like bacteria, mould and dust mites will be able to thrive.

  • Growth and spread of mold, mildew, fungi, bacteria, and viruses which, will diminish indoor air quality, and, cause various diseases, and also damage your home / office.
  • Asthma and allergies
  • Causes the home to feel oppressive.
  • Damage to furniture and electronic equipment.

There is nothing worse than dealing with excess humidity which may lead to moisture problems in the home.

Reducing Humidity with Plants

If you are facing the same issue at your home, there is a way to get rid of humidity in a completely natural way. Houseplants are the most effective natural dehumidifier you possibly could get.
Some indoor plants will make good use of that humidity you are trying to get rid of. Both high or low humidity can have an adverse effect on your health and property.
Hence, it is important to keep a good humidity level as much as possible. The best way to do this is by using plants that will help you absorb any excess humidity or add extra humidity as required. Let us learn about the plants that reduce humidity levels and how they reduce.
Using plants in the home can be helpful in many ways. One of the more exciting uses is their use as dehumidifiers. What plants absorb humidity? Actually, most plants collect some moisture from the air through their leaves, but a few are extremely efficient at the process and take much of their moisture through their leaves.
You may think how plants can reduce humidity in the home. The answer is found in a plant’s foliar uptake. This is their ability to absorb dew, fog, or other forms of vaporous moisture through the stoma in the leaves. This moisture moves into the xylem and then down the roots.

Best Indoor Plants to Reduce Humidity

1. Boston Fern: It is a popular plant that can flourish in increasingly damp atmospheres, and it will without much effort absorb the air moisture, lowering down the humidity levels and making your home a comfortable place to breathe and live peacefully. Boston fern needs indirect sunlight to thrive inside your home. You may need to mist the plant if your air dries out a lot during winter to protect it from dying. It is one of the best plants for removing harmful air pollutants, especially formaldehyde.
2. Peace Lily: The glossy green leaves of this plant look great and more importantly help eliminate toxins from the air. This air purifying plant can absorb moisture from the air. This plant will help reduce the humidity level as will absorb moisture from the air through its leaves. It thrives in areas of high humidity and are easy plants to care for. They only require water about once a week or when the soil is dry and flourish best in areas with filtered light / semi shade. It is excellent at air detoxifying.
3. Spider Plant: It is a low-maintenance plant, can survive almost any condition. It thrives in areas of high humidity indoors and removes toxins from the air. It can thrive on the nutrients and moisture in the air, which makes it a very effective natural dehumidifier. It is fit for all areas indoors.
4. English Ivy: It is an evergreen plant, retains its green color all the year. It is an excellent air purifying plant & can help absorb formaldehyde found in furniture, household cleaning products etc. English ivy can also remove moulds that are common in humid areas. It is easy to care for and needs little sunlight. All you need to do is keep the soil moist. It would be best to keep it in hanging pots so it can more absorb humidity that rises in the air. Avoid placing them in direct sunlight as they could get burnt.
5. Tillandsia: These tiny treasures are epiphytes that can literally be grown in thin air. These air plants live off the nutrients and moisture in the air absorbing them by its leaves. This means Tillandsia can be used as an effective natural dehumidifier inside your home. It creates an area of calm and helps in relaxing the mind.
6. Orchids: Epiphytes, such as orchids, are plants that flourish harmlessly on other objects or plants. They are the types of plants that help reduce humidity indoors as they get nutrients and moisture from the air surrounding them. There is an endless selection of orchids to choose from when it comes to getting one of these flowering plants, e.g, moth orchid, Nobile Dendrobium, etc. What they all have in common is that they love humidity and absorb moisture from the air. They are well adapted to different conditions and are actually tougher than they look.
7. Cactus: These plants prosper in desert like areas and require low liquid water. They have the capability to grow in harsh temperature areas. These plants (e.g., Christmas Cactus) are commonly known to have thick stems and waxy or hairy leaves. They are useful for catching and keeping water from the air and reducing humidity.
8. Bromeliad: These plants can absorb moisture in the air and thrive well in high humidity, thereby decreasing indoor humidity levels. Once such Bromeliad is Silver Vase or Urn Plant, strikingly handsome sought for its pink bracts and small flowers. It is long lasting, easy to grow & maintain and removes airborne toxins.

The Final Words

Maintaining an ideal humidity inside your home is vital for healthy living. Start bringing in these houseplants that can help reduce humidity levels and improve your health and wellbeing. Using houseplants can be beneficial in various ways. One of the most interesting benefits is that they serve as natural dehumidifiers. Most plants get moisture from the air by their leaves, but some of them are extremely efficient at the process and collect much of their moisture through their leaves.

Reference links used:
1. – Practical Houseplant Book (RHS, Fran Bailey & Zia Allaway)
2. – Other links as given in the blog.

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Know Your Home Air

Gas heating systems, leaking chimneys, fire places emits carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide and other harmful pollutants. Plastics and common household cleaners, paints, paint thinner often placed under the kitchen sink, release Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), when used and stored. Overheating of non-stick cookware releases toxic fumes. Pesticides we use in and around the home also release various chemical and semi-volatile compounds.

Kitchen

Harmful effects
Carbon monoxide causes headache, dizziness and fatigue. These often cause eye, nose, and throat irritation, nausea, and can also damage the liver, kidney, and central nervous system. Fine particles are produced during all kinds of combustion which lead to acute and chronic effects to respiratory and cardiovascular systems.

Pet dander and hair, carpet, rugs, upholstery furniture are main source of dust mites, fungus, and bacteria. A dirty filter of air conditioners acts as a reservoir for dirt, dust and other airborne contaminants that are continuously circulated back into your breathing air. Secondhand smoke from cigarettes, other tobacco products and mosquito coil emits VOC’s and formaldehyde and various particulate matters. CO2 released from our lungs is exhaled in the air which pollutes the air if the place is too crowded or there is less ventilation.

Livingroom

Harmful effects
All these can trigger coughing, nosebleeds, shortness of breath, dry mouth, vomiting,
digestive tract problems, depression, allergy and asthma attacks, and other respiratory illness.

Shower, faucets and other water sources are main cause of humidity and mold. Bathroom cleaners and personal care products like toothpaste, soaps, facial tissues, detergent, fabric softeners, air fresheners, deodorizers, hair sprays, disinfectants, are full of VOC’s and chemicals which emits harmful pollutants.

Bathroom

Harmful effects
Mold can cause allergic reactions, asthma and other respiratory ailments. VOC’s and toxic chemicals released in the bathroom can causes eye, nose, and throat irritation, nausea and respiratory problems. All these products release harmful pollutants while they are used also when they are stored.

A bedroom contains many sources of indoor air pollution. Mattress, pillow and blankets, soft toys, are the reservoirs of dust mites, fungi and bacteria. Furniture, carpets, paints and beauty product like hairspray, nail polishes, perfumes, deodorants etc off gas VOC, formaldehyde and toxic gases into the air.

Bedroom

Harmful effects
These pollutants make the air unhealthy which leads to allergy, asthma attacks, dizziness, headache, fatigue and other respiratory ailments.

Second-hand smoke
Second hand Smoke is a mixture of the smoke given off by the burning of tobacco products, such as cigarettes, cigars or pipes and the smoke exhaled by smokers. Secondhand smoke is also called environmental tobacco smoke (ETS). Passive smoking can lead to coughing, excess phlegm, and chest discomfort. NCI (National Cancer Institute) also notes that spontaneous abortion (miscarriage), cervical cancer, sudden infant death syndrome, low birth weight, nasal sinus cancer, decreased lung function, exacerbation of cystic fibrosis, and negative cognitive and behavioral effects in children have been linked to ETS. Secondhand smoke exposure commonly occurs indoors, particularly in homes and cars. Secondhand smoke can move between rooms of a home and between apartment units.

Guest Bathroom

Central heating and cooling systems and humidification devices
The air filter in your HVAC system is the front line of defense against poor indoor air quality. A typical central heating and cooling system circulates over 1,000 cubic feet per minute of air through the filter. This means the entire air volume in your house passes through the filter multiple times every day. A dirty filter, however, can actually make indoor air quality worse by acting as a reservoir for dirt, dust and other airborne contaminants that are continuously circulated back into your breathing air. In addition to driving up your utility bill, a clogged air filter will allow all that dust and debris that should be filtered out to be re-circulated back into your home. This can cause chronic allergies and especially be dangerous for people with asthma or other respiratory conditions.

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