Buzz
1. Investing tens of millions of dong to combat dampness
Living on the 16th floor of an apartment building with wooden floors, we don't sweat like those on the ground floor, but this damp weather makes my wife and me feel like nowhere is clean.
'Stepping onto the floor, our feet stick uncomfortably. Crawling into bed, the cold, damp feeling gives us shivers. Clothes left out for days don't dry, and the smell is unbearable. Even freshly washed hair feels like it's been unwashed for a week,' added Mrs. Hoai, Vinh's wife.
Mr. Vinh and his wife invested in a dehumidifier after the 2022 Lunar New Year when the damp weather lasted for a month. Setting the room's humidity to around 60% keeps the air indoors dry, providing a refreshing and comfortable environment. Three days after purchasing the first unit, they spent more money to buy two more for the living room and remaining bedroom.
Last Tet, the family invested over 40 million dong in a washing machine with a dryer. This is what made Mr. Vinh 'twice as satisfied' because clothes are not only dust-free, but also dry quickly, smell fresh, and his wife doesn't nag about drying clothes anymore.
'Last year, I suggested buying a washer-dryer, but my wife disagreed, thinking it unnecessary for just a month of damp weather. Now she admits it would've been better to buy earlier,' he revealed. The total cost for their anti-damp products amounts to about 70 million dong.
Mr. Nguyen Xuan Ha pouring water into the dehumidifier in his family's living room in Ha Dong, Hanoi, on the evening of February 7th. His family keeps the dehumidifier running throughout the damp days.
Living in a four-story house, each floor 38 square meters in Dong Da district, Mrs. Phuong Thao revealed that earlier this week, she had to call for another dehumidifier costing 8 million dong, in addition to one purchased last year. 'I use two machines for the four floors, placing them in the corridors of the first and third floors. Since both machines are running at full capacity, the house stays dry,' she said.
The family is using a drying cabinet purchased for nearly two million dong last year. She is also considering upgrading to a long-term use dryer this year.
In previous years without a dryer or drying cabinet, this weather pattern caused everything in her house to mold, from utensils to food. There were nights when she woke up to drink water, slipping on the wet stairs, wearing slippers that squeaked, looking up at the ceiling, a few drops of 'sweat' falling down.
'In the bathroom, the tiled walls are covered in large patches of mold, requiring thorough scrubbing. The outer walls peel after each damp season,' Thao shared.
Back then, my family often resorted to makeshift solutions to deal with this weather or resigned to the 'live with the flood' situation. The ground floor was the dampest, requiring cardboard sheets to prevent slipping. The tiled staircase was very slippery, so we had to dry it or wipe warm water constantly. Towels, paper towels everywhere, looking messy only added to the frustration.
'I even set up a separate room for clothes, turning on the air conditioner's dry mode to dry them. Sometimes it's too humid to sleep, so I have to turn on the air conditioner, but it only makes it slightly more bearable,' she said.
Dampness is considered a 'specialty of the North' by many. This weather pattern often occurs after the Lunar New Year, characterized by prolonged drizzle, high humidity, leading to the phenomenon of 'sweating houses,' water condensing on floors, walls, slippery roads, clothes not drying, and mold thriving, causing many respiratory illnesses. Dampness is a nightmare for many families, especially those with ground-floor houses and young children.
The National Meteorological and Hydrological Forecasting Center predicts that in the first half of February, weak cold air activity and eastward deviation will lead to frequent drizzle, fog, with air humidity over 80% in the North. Accuweather, a US-based weather forecasting website, forecasts almost continuous drizzle and fog in Hanoi throughout February. Dry weather only lasts for 2-3 days when cold air rushes in.
Mr. Nguyen Xuan Ha, who runs an electronics business in Ha Dong district, said many people still don't buy anti-damp products because they think this weather pattern only lasts for a short time, trying to endure or opting for situational solutions.
People often advise each other to use the air conditioner's dry mode to dry the house, which seems dry in reality, but according to Ha, measured with a hygrometer, it doesn't decrease significantly, only from 80% to 75%. The ideal humidity for health is 50-55%, but Vietnamese people living in tropical regions are accustomed to higher humidity, usually ranging from 60-65%.
'The best solutions are to limit door opening, minimize mopping or only dry mop, and close the bathroom door after use. If possible, it's important to plan ahead and consider purchasing these products to improve our quality of life,' Mr. Ha advised.
Moisture absorbers priced from 35,000 to 45,000 dong are quite effective for enclosed areas like shoe cabinets, closets.
Mr. Le Quang Vu, General Director of the Mytour electronics supermarket chain, said many people think that products like dryers and dehumidifiers only serve short-term purposes. Part of this may be due to electronic companies not clearly marketing their features, leading many consumers to not fully understand the capabilities of these products.
'In reality, these products are long-term devices, usable for many years. For example, dryers are very practical for apartments with little sunlight and limited drying space. The trend of using dryers instead of air-drying is also common in other countries,' he stated.
In recent years, consumer mentality has changed. Some, especially urban dwellers, no longer tolerate damp weather or makeshift solutions, opting for permanent solutions instead. Sales data shows that this year, 'damp weather demons' electronic items like drying cabinets, dryers, and dehumidifiers have been selling rapidly since early February and spiked over the past weekend. It is expected to peak this week.
'Some days, we sell around 2,000 drying cabinets, 1,000 dryers, and 700 dehumidifiers, ten times more than other times of the year,' Mr. Vu revealed.
According to him, to cope with damp weather, if finances are limited, you can use a drying cabinet (1-2 million dong) and a dehumidifier (4-7 million dong). If you're looking for a long-term investment, you should buy a dryer and dehumidifier, with options including steam dryers (6-9 million dong), condensation dryers (7-13 million dong), or heat pump dryers (14-20 million dong).
This year has two leap months, so the damp weather might last longer. Mr. Vu advises consumers to buy early if possible to use the products sooner, taking control from product selection to delivery, installation, and pricing.
In addition to dryers, drying cabinets, and dehumidifiers, the market in recent days has heated up with many other items to cope with damp weather, from dishwashers, chopstick drying cabinets, shoe dryers, to various types of moisture-absorbing boxes, essential oils, scented soaps, or javen water to prevent moisture and mold.
In a 100-square-meter apartment in recent days, Mr. Vinh has been running three dehumidifiers all day. Every night before going to bed, he fills a full water tank. In areas where dehumidifiers cannot reach like closets or shoe cabinets, he also adds some moisture-absorbing boxes, which are quite effective despite being only a few tens of thousands of dong, according to him.
The washer-dryer helps his family, despite having three young children, no longer worry about damp clothes or unpleasant odors. He also turns on the air purifier because during this season, the air is heavy with moisture, causing pollutants like fine dust to linger at lower levels, making it easy to inhale.
'Initially, I thought spending 70 million dong to cope with dampness was excessive, but in reality, my house uses them for much of the year. Life has been better since we got them, at least when we step into our home, there's no longer that damp chill,' he said.
According to VN Express
