I can't advise on systems, but don't think you'll really need one. If I recall correctly, you are building near Durango and are from Texas. We're from south central Arkansas and have a second home in Steamboat Springs (and will be building there in a couple of years, so I am following your progress closely). Anyway, I do know where you are coming from with the differences in RH. Our existing Steamboat house is pretty tight and at first we expected the dryness to be a factor. We are out there anywhere between 2-6 weeks at least three times a year. We actually do have ductwork with a Hot Water Forced Air system and considered adding central air. In the end we did not have a problem with the humidity (or lack thereof) beyond using a portable room humidifier in our bedroom occasionally. We also decided that central air that would probably only be used during the heat of the day about 3-4 weeks in the summer was not worth it. On hot days, we spend a bit more time in the basement (always stays cool) and on very hot days DH may sleep in the basement, but even on the hottest days, the temp is back in the 40s-50s by bedtime and we sleep with the upstairs winds open. Drink lots of water, use a heavier moisturizer than you do at home and buy a portable humidifier to use in your bedroom at night if you feel the dryness too much. I doubt you will need it often. The thing I see about a whole house humidifier is it is just one more expense and one more thing to go out. Love your lot, makes me jealous a bit. We went back and forth considering larger lots 5-7 miles out of town or smaller lots in a new subdivision in the middle of the base area. Even though the small town lot was more expensive, we finally decided we wanted to be in the middle of the action able to walk or ride bikes almost anywhere. Still when I see lots as pretty as yours I second guess my decision. I also love your plans. Does your architect work else in the state and would he be someone you would recommend? We will probably begin discussions with architects in August. This post was edited by mojomom on Fri, May 30, 14 at 9:12

I can't suggest you any alternative since it would be a direct promotion of a product. But if you are satisfied with the performance of you old device and still want to try other options, the market is open and full of many devices which can suit your need and pocket.

Typical console humidifiers (drum style) can require a lot of care to keep them free of microbe growth. If you are willing to add bacteriostatic chemical to the reservoir, not as much is required. Otherwise, i'd say that the reservoir and pads need to be cleaned and disinfected daily. Hardly anyone has the patience to do that. Think about it, you have a porous surface at room temperature 24/7. It is not unlike a wet towel with one end in a bucket and the other suspended above 24/7. What is going to happen? With a duct mounted model in a force hot air heating system, the most common type, bypass humidifiers (AKA drip, AKA flow through) require only monthly to annual service and it is not difficult for a somewhat skilled homeowner. There is little to no chance of excessive microbe growth if maintained properly. I'd avoid the drum style there too due to high maintenance demands. The best systems, if money is not a problem, are steam injectors, but they are relatively costly to install and run. You really want to make sure that your home is well sealed as a first step. Look up what humidity levels can be maintained in colder weather. If you are hovering at 0 F, you may not be able to go above 25% without condensation on your windows. With even lower temperatures, you are limited to even lower humidity. You have to adjust your settings according to outdoor temps. Don't buy one with unrealistic expectations because of that limitation.

With or without a humidifier, you might have comfort problems Nobody installs a whole-house humidifier unless they're having a problem of some kind. Many people absolutely can't stand having dry skin during winter. It can actually be painful, and a humidifier probably will help your skin from getting too dry. https://www.cooling-heating.net/ In other homes, the air gets so dry that wood furniture cracks and gaps form between floorboards. Pianos go out of tune. Everything just feels off-kilter (or off key). Super-low humidity just isn't fun. Any time your indoor relative humidity dips into the middle-20% range, it's a good idea to increase it. The thing is, humidifiers have problems of their own: They might cause mold to grow in your home. This happens more often than you might think. Since humidity sticks to cold surfaces and your home contains many cold surfaces during winter, the environment is often perfect for fuzzy, black stuff to show up. You might not see the mold: While humidifier-induced mold sometimes clings to ceilings and walls, the mold that results from your humidifier isn't always visible. It might be inside your walls or - and this is pretty common - lining the inside of your ducts. The "moldy ducts" scenario is more likely if you have uninsulated ducts or a lot of your ductwork resides in an unconditioned area (like your attic). It's cold in your attic, so moisture accumulates on the ducts when your humidifier is running. Then mold starts to grow there. Mold, as you well know, can really do a number on indoor air quality. It's bad to breathe it in. And if you've got asthma, a moldy environment can actually be dangerous. The bottom line is that you don't want to grow mold in your home, but you don't want your air to be too dry either. What can you do to increase indoor humidity without increasing the risk of mold growth? Air sealing keeps dry air out How did the air in your home get so dry in the first place? The answer is simple: Cold air from the outdoors infiltrated your home through gaps and cracks in the building envelope. Seal off the points of entry for that dry air, and you'll increase your relative humidity. If you do a good job, you won't need a humidifier at all. Think about it like this: Warm air migrates to colder environments. When you turn on the heat, the hot air generated by your furnace eventually seeps out of your home to the outdoors. To maintain a pressure balance inside a structure, the warm air that leaves your home is continuously replaced by cool air that gets in. This is air infiltration. It's the draft you feel under your front door. It's the cold air that seeps in around your windows. Most of all, it's the cold air that sneaks in through the plumbing, electrical, and ductwork penetrations between your first floor and your crawl space. When you seal off these sources of air leakage, you achieve two things: You close off the "escape hatch" by which warm air leaves your home. You prevent air infiltration from the outdoors, which keeps your indoor humidity from getting too low. Stated more simply, you should strongly consider air sealing your home before purchasing a whole-house humidifier. By doing so, you'll be in a great position to mitigate uncomfortable dryness and avoid all of the problems associated with humidifiers. The best way to discover your biggest sources of air leakage is via a blower door test. That way, you can determine both the air infiltration rate and identify the biggest sources of leakage. If you do opt for a humidifier… Air sealing should always be your first course of action to alleviate problems caused by dry indoor air. That said, there are circumstances when you might want a humidifier anyway. For example, maybe your household activities don't generate enough humidity to make you comfortable, even after you've air sealed your home. You need a humidifier to even things out, so to speak. Whatever your reasons for installing a whole-house humidifier, these best practices will help you avoid potential mold and indoor air quality issues: Get a steam humidifier:Steam humidifiers boil water on their own. Unlike bypass humidifiers, which "steal" a little hot air from your supply duct to generate water vapor, steam models are more efficient. Basically, you get more humidity during a shorter run time. Bypass models also dump hot air right back into your return plenum, which can increase the temperature of incoming air and cause your system to overheat. A proper installation can mitigate this, but it's still a risk. Only run the humidifier when the furnace is on: If your ducts are in an unconditioned space (most people's ducts are), running the humidifier while the ducts are cold increases your risk of mold growth.