Humidifiers and dehumidifiers for museums and galleries

Q: How does humidification benefit art galleries and museums?

Humidification offers key benefits for art galleries and museums. It preserves artworks by preventing both drying and excessive moisture, reduces the risk of mold, protects exhibits and visitors, and creates a more pleasant and comfortable museum environment.

Q: What are the consequences of inadequate humidity control in art galleries and museums?

Improper humidity in museums can cause materials to warp, crack, or develop mold, leading to irreversible damage. Humidity fluctuations accelerate deterioration, making proper humidification essential for preserving art and artifacts.

Q: What should the relative humidity be inside an art gallery or museum?

The relative humidity for art galleries and museums will fluctuate depending on the art work and artifacts in the building. An RH between 40-60% is typically optimal.

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Benefits for museums

Museums have the task of preserving treasures of humanity and art. The countless, often unique and irreplaceable exhibits are worth billions of Euros and must therefore be permanently protected from any possible damage, especially from environmental influences.

Artefact protection

Prevents drying or over‑hydration of exhibits, minimizing stress and cracks in sensitive materials.

Stable environment

Keeps relative humidity within tight margins to prevent material fatigue and deterioration.

Damage prevention

Protects paintings, textiles, paper, wood, and other hygroscopic materials.

Heritage, museums and galleries

Benefits Solutions Use Cases References Testimonials FAQs

Climatic Fluctuations

Seasonal and daily changes in temperature and relative humidity affect indoor environments, transferring external climate fluctuations directly into museum spaces. Sudden or frequent variations stress sensitive materials, causing warping, cracking, or surface damage. A responsive and reliable humidity control system minimizes these effects, stabilizes the indoor climate, and protects collections from long-term deterioration.

Excessively dry air

Excessively dry air extracts moisture from sensitive materials, causing shrinkage, warping, and stress in wood, paper, textiles, and paintings. Repeated exposure accelerates cracking, splitting, and pigment damage. Maintaining stable humidity prevents these effects, protects delicate collections, and preserves the structural integrity and appearance of objects over time.

Humidity control technologies

Humidity control in museums and galleries relies on technologies such as resistive steam humidifiers, mobile evaporative units, and condensing or desiccant dehumidifiers. These systems raise or lower humidity levels as required, provide precise, responsive control and can be adapted to centralized ducted air treatment or in-room installations to protect collections and maintain stable indoor environments.

Use cases for museums

Prevent evaporative losses

Organic materials have an internal moisture content and will lose moisture to the atmosphere when exposed to air with a low humidity. Humidifiers are used to create an environment with perfect balance between the material’s internal moisture content and the air’s relative humidity.

Managing humidity for long-term preservation

To protect and preserve materials, a stable environment is essential. This includes avoiding extremes of humidity and, more importantly, rapid fluctuations.

Discover Condair in action

Projects and references

Henry Moore Foundation, UK

Two Condair RS steam humidifiers have been installed, by Ceilite Air Conditioning, at the prestigious Henry Moore Foundation in Hertfordshire. Henry Moore was a renowned artist, best known for his figure sculptures.

National Army Museum, UK

The National Army Museum is the leading authority on the British Army and its impact on society past and present. Condair has supplied and installed three Condair RS resistive steam humidifiers to maintain the humidity around the exhibits and archives.

Ashmolean Museum

The Ashmolean is the University of Oxford's museum of art and archaeology, founded in 1683. Its world famous collections range from Egyptian mummies to contemporary art, telling human stories across cultures and across time.The Ashmolean was Britain's first public museum. Its first building was erected in 1678&ndash1683 to house the cabinet of curiosities that Elias Ashmole gave to the University of Oxford in 1677. It is also the world's second university museum, after the establishment of the Kunstmuseum Basel in 1661 by the University of Basel.Condair mobile humidifiers are helping maintain the ideal internal humidity for the preservation of the exhibits on display andin storage.

Durham History Centre

The Durham History Centre, known as "The Story at Mount Oswald," is a new local history center and registration service for County Durham, UK. It is housed in the Grade II listed Mount Oswald manor house. It aims to centralize the history and heritage of County Durham through historic records, photographs, and objects. The project includes enhanced registration facilities for weddings and civil ceremonies, free entry to permanent and temporary exhibitions, and an education program for local schools.A Condair DA desiccant dehumidifier is maintaining the ideal indoor humidity and preventing damage to exhibits and artefacts from mould and damp.

Factory International

The Factory International is a cultural, arts and events venue in Manchester. It focuses on innovative and forward-thinking new work that reflects the spectrum of performing arts, visual arts and popular culture.Every two years, Factory International runs the Manchester International Festival (MIF) &ndash the festival of brand new artistic work known world-over. The organisation is also training the creative workforce of the future through the Factory Academy, supporting artists to realise their potential, and working with local communities to build our programme.Condair RS resistive steam humidifiers are maintaining the ideal indoor humidity in the venue for the health and wellbeing of occupants, to maintain the integrity of wooden instruments and interiors, and to ensure singing voices are not affected by a dry atmosphere.

Knole House - National Trust

Knole is a country house and former archbishop's palace owned by the National Trust. It is situated within Knole Park, a 1,000-acre park located immediately to the south-east of Sevenoaks in west Kent, UK. The house ranks in the top five of England's largest houses, under any measure used, occupying a total of four acres.A Condair RS resistive steam humidifier is providing direct room humidity control, with a blower pack, to protect valuable works of art and antiques from the damaging effects of dry air.

Momart

Momart specialise in the storage, transportation, and installation of works of art. A major proportion of their business is maintaining often delicate artworks in a secure, climate-controlled environment. The company maintains specialist warehouse facilities adapted for this task.Condair mobile humidifiers are helping maintain the ideal humidity for the preservation of fine art and antiques in Momart's east london storage facility.

Museum of Scottish Fire Heritage

The Museum of Scottish Fire Heritage is dedicated to celebrating and preserving the history of firefighting in Scotland. Its collection includes fire appliances, uniforms, and operational equipment dating back hundreds of years.Condair RS steam humidifiers and Condair DA desiccant dehumidifiers are helping protect the exhibits and artefacts by maintaining the ideal indoor humidity.

National Archives

The National Archives is a government department and an executive agency of the Ministry of Justice. It incorporates the Office of Public Sector Information and Her Majesty's Stationery Office. As the government's national archive for the United Kingdom, it holds over 1,000 years of the nation's records for everyone to discover and use.Condair evaporative and resistive steam humidifiers are maintaining the ideal conditions for the preservation of the UK's historic documents and history.

Quotes from our customers

Ceilite Air ConditioningTim CheshireApplications Engineer Technical Manager

We required an efficient and effective method of humidification that could safely raise relative humidity (RH) in a large archive store for priceless artwork – vital requirements that were successfully met by Condair. There were some challenges posed by the space to work in and the infrastructure of the building, but the excellent installation team overcame the issues without any complaint.

Would I specify Condair’s humidifiers again? Yes, without hesitation.

Frequently asked questions

How does humidification benefit art galleries and museums?

What are the consequences of inadequate humidity control in art galleries and museums?

What should the relative humidity be inside an art gallery or museum?

Get free expert advice

If you want to explore your options for humidity control, Condair's expert sales engineers will visit your site, review your project and talk you through their recommendations.

Alternatively, if you would prefer a call or online meeting, our team are always happy to discuss possible solutions and offer free technical advice.