Learn The Source Of The White Dust In Your House (It Isn't What You Think)

Dusting is a chore that many people loathe. It can seem never-ending, causing individuals to seek out new time-saving dusting hacks. Depending on the size of your home and how much stuff you have, it can be pretty painstaking. While you're focused on the chore of cleaning the dust, you probably haven't spent too much time concerned about the typical dust colors for your home. That is, until you see white dust. It might sounds strange, but white dust in your house usually comes from the use of hard water in ultrasonic or impeller humidifiers.

Home humidifiers, which can be either portable or large enough to humidify a whole home, are an absolute necessity in the winter when running your heat often. A dry home leads to dry skin and respiratory issues and can even damage wood furniture. However, it's important to fill them properly. Many homeowners fill up their humidifiers straight from the sink, which isn't necessarily a problem, unless they have hard water, which contains an abundance of dissolved minerals like calcium and magnesium. Below, we discuss how hard water in a common humidifier can lead to white dust in your house, if it's dangerous, and how you can prevent it.

Ultrasonic humidifiers send vibrations through a diaphragm at the bottom of the water reservoir, turning the water into a fine mist. It's important to note that these humidifiers do not heat the water, only vibrate it. Because of this, anything in the water will naturally be expelled from the humidifier and into the air — including the minerals from the hard water. Once the tiny water droplets have evaporated, you're left with the impurities from the hard water, visible as the white dust plaguing your surfaces.

This white dust caused by hard water minerals is not harmful or dangerous for most individuals. However, those with asthma or allergies might notice an uptick in symptoms with the presence of too much dust. While white dust isn't likely to put your health at risk, there are other horrors that hard water can cause in your home, such as foul smells and corroded faucets that no one wants to have to deal with.

To prevent the white dust from taking over, make sure to use distilled water in your portable humidifier. This water has had impurities removed from it, ensuring there are no lingering minerals. If you have a whole-home humidifier, consider installing a water softener, which helps to remove minerals like calcium and magnesium from your hard water for your entire home. Another option in conjunction with these solutions is to couple your humidifier with an air purifier to remove dust more efficiently, cutting down on dust of all sorts.