Humidity and Dehumidifiers

Here is an article that will help with understanding Dehumidifiers

Dehumidifiers are used to control the humidity within the atmosphere of a room. They remove the moisture from the air to lower the humidity. The recommended levels of humidity are between 40 to 50%. Dehumidifiers can be extremely helpful in humid places to keep your home or office free from atmospheric moisture.

Dehumidifiers can be used to remove the humidity within a room or a house or a basement or even a closet, and even in commercial circumstances. Humidity can cause a variety of problems such as:

  • Increasing dust mites which can lead to allergies,
  • Causing condensation on water pipes and windows which can lead to pipes rusting and wallpaper peeling or even wall paint blistering,
  • Rusting of metal and warping of wood,
  • Condensation on electrical items which can cause a lot of damage and can be extremely dangerous, and
  • Smelly, musty areas which lead to the development of mold and fungus which can damage health.

How Dehumidifiers Work

Dehumidifiers work on the principle that water condenses on a cold surface. A fan is used to blow warm air onto coils of cold metal. As result, the humidity condenses onto these coils and the water drips down into a bucket. Then this cold air is passed over the warm coils and this brings the air back to room temperature.

Types of Dehumidifiers: Home Dehumidifiers & Commercial Dehumidifiers

There are a variety of dehumidifiers in the market. Each of them has a variety of features and performance levels. Dehumidifiers are broadly classified into two categories: Home Dehumidifiers and Commercial Dehumidifiers. Home Dehumidifiers are used to reduce the humidity in the house. Commercial Dehumidifiers are used in commercial environments such as in factories and offices. These usually are high performance and load bearing dehumidifiers.

Home Dehumidifiers: Buying Tips and Reviews

There are a variety of brand names in the market which make and sell dehumidifiers. These include: Kenmore, LG, and Whirlpool to name a few. It is very important to shop around for the right dehumidifier which will suit your needs.

The box in which the dehumidifier is packed in often contains pertinent information such as the size of the room, the amount of moisture that can be removed etc. Knowing this information can help you decide if you want to buy a single dehumidifier for your whole house or whether to buy smaller ones for each room of your house. Also for this information to be useful, you need to know how much humidity exists in your house in the first place. Also, if you have a leaking roof or a bad plumbing then you need to buy a dehumidifier which will remove more amount of moisture from the air.

There are some other features to look for while shopping for a dehumidifier. They are:

  • An auto shut-off facility when the water storage tray gets full. Some dehumidifiers have a feature wherein the water gets drained off via a floor level drainage system. This can often prove to be a very beneficial feature. Alternatively, a dehumidifier may have some sort of a visual indicator which will tell you when the water tray is full.
  • A good feature to have in a dehumidifier is the presence of a built-in humidistat which is a hygrometer (humidity meter) which controls the amount of humidity in the room. This prevents the room from getting too dry.
  • On the other hand, a frost sensor is also useful because it can shut down the unit automatically when it gets too cold.
  • Often it can be useful to have an on / off switch on the front panel of a dehumidifier for added convenience.
  • Having wheels on dehumidifier units can be useful for mobility purposes.
  • Low noise is one of the most preferred features in dehumidifiers.
  • Also most dehumidifiers have variable speed settings for the fan.

Depending upon the features present in the machine and on your requirement, you can purchase either a whole house dehumidifier or smaller dehumidifiers for each room of your house.

Places such as basements and bathrooms have a lot of moisture. There are special dehumidifiers which can remove a large amount of moisture. These can be useful in such areas of your house.

Some people also prefer having dehumidifiers in their closets so that their clothes do not get the musty smell. These closet dehumidifiers can vary from panels filled with silica gels to electrical dehumidifiers specially designed to be installed in closets. If you are going for silica gel panels which can be mounted in the closet wall, look for those which have some kind of an indicator which tells you when these silica crystals need to be refreshed. The process of refreshing silica crystals is simple: either you can place them in the sunlight or you can put them in the oven on low heat. This ensures that the moisture within the crystals evaporates, making them useful again.

Thus, good dehumidifiers will help remove the humidity from the atmosphere of your room / home and make your home a moisture-free zone for you to live in peacefully and comfortably.
By Madhavi Ghare

Posted in Gardening Tips | No Comments »

Powdery Mildew???

Here is a article about Powdery Mildew that might help:

Powdery mildew is one of the most common and easily recognized plant diseases. Almost no type of plant is immune, however some are more susceptible than others. Lilacs, crab apples, phlox, monarda, roses, grapes, squash and cucumbers are all likely targets for powdery mildew.

Recognizing Powdery Mildew

As the name implies, powdery mildew looks like powdery splotches of white or gray, on the leaves and stems of plants. There are actually several types of powdery mildew fungi, but they all look basically the same. You may not notice a problem until the top surfaces of the leaves turn powdery, but powdery mildew can also affect the lower leaf surface, stems, flowers, buds and even the fruit.Although powdery mildew is unattractive, it is rarely fatal. However it does stress the plant and severe or repetitive infections will weaken the plant. If enough of the leaf surface becomes covered with powdery mildew, photosynthesis is impaired. Infected leaves often fall prematurely. This can be a particular problem on edible crops, since insufficient photosynthesis can diminish the flavor of the fruit or vegetable. If buds become infected, they may not open and mature at all.

Powdery mildew fungi are host specific, meaning the different powdery mildew fungi infect different plants. The powdery mildew on your lilacs will not spread to your grapes or your roses. However all powdery mildews favor the same conditions.

What Causes Powdery Mildew?

Powdery mildew fungi seem to be everywhere. They overwinter in plant debris begin producing spores in the spring. These spores are carried to your plants by wind, insects and splashing water. Conditions that encourage the growth and spread of powdery mildew include:

  • Dampness or high humidity (Not common during rainy seasons or in extreme heat)
  • Crowded plantings
  • Poor air circulation

Controlling Powdery Mildew

  • Choose healthy plants and keep they growing healthy
  • Try and find a powdery mildew resistant cultivar, if your area is susceptible
  • Don’t plant non-resistant varieties in the shade

Once Your Plants are Infected:

  • Remove and destroy all infected plant parts
  • Improve air circulation by thinning and pruning
  • Don’t fertilized until the problem is corrected. Powdery mildew favors young, succulent growth
  • Don’t water plants from above
  • Apply a fungicide: There are many fungicides available. Check the label to be sure they are safe and effective on the type of plant that is infected. Look for ingredients such as: potassium bicarbonate, neem oil, sulfur or copper. There are also chemical fungicides, such as triforine, that can be used on ornamental plants. There is also a home remedy made from baking soda that is effective.Most fungicides will need repeat applications every 7 – 14 days, for continuous protection. Always follow the label instructions for both application and waiting period before harvest
Controlling Plant Fungal Diseses
More Organic Gardening Tips

The Life Cycle of PM spores are about 48-72hrs.  Once you have PM its very very very hard to completely get rid of while you still have plants growing in the environment.  The best you can do in that situation is to try and keep the PM under Control!

Here’s some tips if using a sulphr burner:

A. Sulphur burn 1 hour after lights shut off, don’t burn right after, as the pores on the leaves are still open.

B. Fill cup half way
C. 60 minute BURN/ 3 hour marinade (depending on the size of room) And in my experience, I used to burn very often. Resulting in yellowing of the leaves prematurely, and shriveling of buds. So now I only burn every 5 to 6 days. Usually does the trick.
D. Sulphur being dangerous to humans: You DEFINITELY DON’T want to go into the room right after burning. Unless you’re ready to receive sulphur burns in your eyes and throat/ lungs from breathing it in.
E. It shouldn’t ruin the buds if USED CORRECTLY.

Just some pointers FYI:
1. I would recommend BURNING for only an hour! Let the smoke marinate in the room for 3 more hours. Then ventilate completely.
2. Use a timer, it is quite noxious going into the room to turn the burner off after you’ve filled the room with smoke.
3. Turn OFF ALL fans, oscillating, ventilating, etc… the air movement combined with the sulfur will burn the leaves.
4. DO NOT USE if you’re using in conjunction with an oil based foliar spray i.e. Magik Green, or Neem Oil. The oil residue left behind from these products will SEVERELY burn the leaves if exposed to the sulfur burner. You should pick one treatment and stick with it, meaning, if you’re going to use neem oil and magik green to control mold/ pests, USE THAT. If you’re going to use the sulfur burner, just use it and only it. (The sulfur burner DOES help control mites/ pests)

Hope this Helps!! We sell all the above products mentioned, but the first thing you should do is to get your temp, humidity and ventilation all in the correct ranges. If you don’t it will always be a uphill struggle.

Posted in Announcement, Gardening Tips | No Comments »

Look For a Newsletter

Hahns Will be putting out a Monthly Newsletter containing Growing tips , sales and customer appreciation day info.

Remember to sign up for the newsletter when you come in to Hahns.

Posted in Announcement | No Comments »

Hahn’s New Lower Prices

Hahn’s Has Lowered all of its Prices in the Store.

Come check them out!

Posted in Announcement | No Comments »

Light sale!

All lights on sale when bought as a system (system includes bulb, reflector and ballast).

1000w lights from $225.95
600w lights from $234.95
400w lights from 170.95

While supplies last.

Call or stop by for more details.
(408)295-1755

Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

SOIL SALE!

HAHNS LIGHTING
DISCOUNTS ON ALL FOX FARM SOIL

AND OTHER BRANDS OF SOIL & COCO

Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

Welcome to Hahn’s.

The Shop

Welcome to Hahn’s Lighting and Hydroponics. We are San Jose’s premier hydroponics retailer. Other stores will come and go, but we’ve been supporting south bay growers for over 20 years. We have long standing relationships with our suppliers and customers that allow us to bring them together to achieve a common goal. That goal is the growth of large, healthy, and tasty fruits, vegetables, and herbs for you, your friends, and family. Unlike other stores, we will be here to support your purchases for the foreseeable future. We are in it for the long run, and for that reason we sell brand name, top quality equipment like Hydrofarm, General Hydroponics, Advanced Nutrients, Technaflora, Air King, Phresh Filter and Fox Farms just to name a few. Nothing less will do.

If you’re looking for our location just look over at the contact page for a map link, address, and phone numbers. Also there is a form to drop us a note, ask a question, or for general feedback.

Posted in Announcement | Comments Off

What’s the worlds hottest pepper?

Well apparently it’s the Indian Bhut Jolokia also known as The Ghost Chili.. Wooo scary.. no really listen to this.

“It is so hot you can’t even imagine,” said the farmer, Digonta Saikia, working in his fields in the midday sun, his face nearly invisible behind an enormous straw hat. “When you eat it, it’s like dying.”

I’ll pass.. this pepper has more then 1,000,000 Scoville units.. I don’t even know why anyone would want that..

Posted in Strange Stuff | Comments Off