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Remember back in the summer when the weatherman said “the temperature is 85 degrees but the Heat Index makes it feel like 90 or 95.” Well, that same principle can work to your advantage inside your house this winter. If you use a humidifier to increase the humidity inside the house you can make it feel warmer than it really is without raising the thermostat one degree. Some forced air furnaces have built-in humidifiers for this purpose but if yours doesn’t you can buy a stand-alone unit.  However, this isn’t a “more is better” situation. Too much humidity can cause problems like sweating windows and mold growth. Ideally you want to have the relative humidity inside your home at about 30 to 50 percent so use a household hydrometer to help you keep track.