[Greenbuilding] Humidity

[Norman Feldman]

Hello,
Does anyone know of an energy efficient way to remove humidity from a
house in Brooklyn NY where humidity outside is high in the summer.
 I have a Zehdner ERV but it is not removing enough humidity. Maybe an
inline system for the Zehnder? Or something completely separate?
Thanks!
Gennaro Brooks-Church

Cell: 1 347 244 3016 USA
www.EcoBrooklyn.com
22 2nd St; Brooklyn, NY 11231

**************************

Munters makes commercial dehumidifcation and energy recovery systems. I'm not sure though if they have anything for a residential building.
http://www.munters.us/en/us/Division-start-pages/Munters-DH-Division/

Solar thermal cooling and dehumidification is energy efficient, at least in the sense of not needing fossil fuel to operate, except perhaps to make electricity for the pumps and controls. First cost might be more than an electric or gas powered dehumidification system. The solar thermal system at the Steinway factory in Long Island City provides heating, cooling, dehumidification and steam. A 30 ton solar thermal cooling system described on the NTS-Solar homepage is billed as the largest solar cooling facility in Canada.

The NTS evacuated tube collectors output glycol/water heat transfer fluid at over 300F and are lightweight and relatively easy to install. Maybe other manufacturers are now marketing similar collectors. Last year I worked on a proposed solar thermal system with this kind of collector that would have offset 35% of the natural gas needed by a five story tenement in midtown Manhattan for heating and hot water with collectors on only one third of the building's roof. It seemed like there was a market waiting to be developed, given how many similar tenement buildings there are in the city. At the time I happened to take the Q train through Brooklyn to Coney Island and saw the large number of one and two story buildings that would lend themselves to solar thermal heating, hot water and cooling. 

I will send references for solar thermal heating, dehumidification and air conditioning if you want.