by Ryan Greene
Barcelona is one of the most beautiful cities in the world, and it has one of the most inviting coastal climates in Spain. The temperate weather means you can enjoy a beautiful fall in Barcelona or relax in the summer sun!
On the flip side, Barcelona can have some humid nights. In this article, we provide tips for managing the highly humid air indoors, so you can be comfortable at home.
What Is the Ideal Indoor Humidity in Barcelona?
The ideal indoor humidity for your home or apartment should be between 30% and 50% relative humidity.
The ideal humidity and the colder months is going to be closer to the 30% end of the spectrum. With that said, you don’t want your humidity to dip below 30% as this can lead to dry skin, increased risk of illness, and general discomfort.
Warmer months see the humidity go up towards 50%. Keeping your humidity below 50% is ideal in order to promote a better night’s sleep as well as reduce the risk of mold in your home.
Staying in control of your humidity is actually easier than you might expect.
How to Lower Your Indoor Humidity
You can experience some muggy nights during a hot Barcelona summer. Here are a few tips for lowering the indoor humidity during summer evenings.
Use A Dehumidifier
A dehumidifier is going to be your best friend when it comes to cutting the humidity during damp summer nights in Barcelona.
A dehumidifier is a simple electric appliance that you plug in to reduce indoor humidity. You can find dehumidifiers in various sizes from small tableside models to larger dehumidifiers meant for big homes.
Try a Cold Shower
Cold showers are also great for reducing the humidity in your home.
A cold shower releases less moisture into the air which is going to keep the humidity down in your home overall. This is especially important for those historic Barcelona homes that don’t have modern ventilation technology to help keep the humidity down.
A cold shower can also help you personally feel more refreshed on a humid night.
Let in Some Fresh Barcelona Air
One of the best ways to keep the humidity down is to keep the air circulating in your home.
You should try opening windows on opposite sides of your home to create a breeze that travels through your home. This will help keep the air moving and lower the humidity that’s building up in your home.
You can also add some fans to this equation. Fans help air circulate through your home. You can also use fans to change the air pressure inside your home which can help force air to cycle through and keep humidity in check.
Try Indoor Gardening
Nothing helps fight back against a humid indoor environment quite like a few plants.
Barcelona is the perfect city to get into indoor gardening and grow some plants in your home. Not only will these help improve indoor air quality, but they’ll also help you have a more balanced humidity all year long.
Indoor plants are also a great boost for your decor. They pair perfectly with the historic homes and apartments in the city of Barcelona.
Even if you don’t have a green thumb, easy to care for plants like cacti, succulents, and other choices are a great place for beginners to start growing plants indoors.
How to Increase Indoor Humidity In Barcelona
The winter brings dryer air to the coastal climate of Barcelona. This means you might need to increase the humidity in your home in order to keep things comfortable and stave off those winter chills.
Get a Humidifier
The winter months bring dryer weather, but there is a modern piece of technology that helps put you back in control over the humidity in your home.
A humidifier adds moisture to the air, and it’s the perfect choice for increasing the humidity when things are starting to get too dry.
There are even affordable humidifiers that you can throw on a table or desk which can have a big impact despite their size and affordable cost.
Dry Laundry Indoors
Another simple hack for increasing the humidity during a cold Barcelona winter is to start drying your laundry indoors.
Grabbing a small indoor air rack means that the moisture leaving drying clothes will enter the air in your home. This will have a considerable boost to your humidity if things are starting to get a bit too dry.
You can also let your dishes air dry after washing them to get the same effect.
Take a Hot Shower
A quick shortcut to boosting the humidity is to take a hot shower. This will add plenty of steam into the air which will give your home a temporary boost and humidity.
Hot showers aren’t a long-term fix, but they’re great for dealing with the worst of a dry winter day.
Keep in mind that a hot shower can also try out your skin, so make sure to stay moisturized if you’re using hot showers to fight off dry weather.
Upgrade Your HVAC System
Your heating and air conditioning systems might be causing your home in scenic Barcelona to have either high or low humidity.
If other fixes aren’t working, it’s time to upgrade your HVAC. A direct vent wall furnace is a great way to keep your home warm without worrying about creating humidity problems for yourself down the road.
Staying Comfortable In Barcelona
Whether your home is in the high energy El Raval neighborhood or you live in the scenic outskirts of town, you can make sure that the humidity is always comfortable when at home in Barcelona.
Let us know which of these tips work best for you and if we miss your favorite tip for dodging humid nights in Barcelona.