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What is the optimum indoor humidity level to prevent condensation on windows but still not be too dry?

Hi. I am currently living in a 5 year old end-unit townhouse in Saskatoon, SK, Canada. Currently it is about -15 degrees C outside. We leave our thermostat set at about 20 degrees C. I've been sick with a bad cold followed by a chest infection and felt like our house was really dry lately since we started using our furnace more. So we turned on a portable humidifier in our bedroom and it has a built-in humidity reading and when we turned it on it was about 28%. We did have condensation on the windows even then but my skin was so dry and so were my lips despite lots of water. We set the humidifier so it would be about 45% in the bedroom so that I could sleep at night. We now have condensation on all of the windows in our two story townhouse yet it still feels dry throughout the house. Also, we have problems with feeling lots of cold air in some parts of the house. The basement is the only area where I don't feel some drafts. The main floor is usually cold, and I think it is relate to drafts. The windows on that floor all feel really cold and almost feel like they are letting in outside air. Our front door is not properly sealed (there are gaps so big between the door and frame that we can see light from outside) yet our landlord tried to just use cheap weatherstripping to fix it. So we have lots of cold air coming in from the front door (also, our landlord apparently had issues with the lock freezing, though it doesn't help the dryer vent is right beside the front door. On the 2nd floor both of our windows in the master bedroom are super cold, but not the big window in the other bedroom (which doesn't really have much for condensation). We do have upgraded accordian blinds in our master along with heavy black curtains over the windows and we have had insane amounts of condensation and ice forming on the windows. We also have a problem with cold air coming in from the attic access in the closet. The closet is always quite cold. What would be the optimum humidity level in our house for now? We don't have a built-in humidifier in our house. I'm not too worried, we are only there for a few more weeks. Our landlord is selling the place though and not being able to see outside from the master bedroom due to ice is not a real selling feature. Today, we had ice covering the windows completely and yet humidity in the room is only about 32%

Public Comments

1. The ideal range is between 35-40%. To much lower and you will static electricity. To much higher and you get condensation on the windows. Each house and person is different. Start with these setting and then adjust accordingly to your surroundings. Hope this helps
2. I would imagine that the windows are all single pane windows with or without storms ?! Single pane windows have a tendency to build up ice no matter what humidity level you set your humidity. In fact they steal the humidity you are putting in the air to be comfortable, hence the ice build up on the windows. The answer: Install some energy efficient windows to end this however I read you have a landlord and he may not do this unfortunately. Best of Luck !!
3. We like 50 the house likes 30 so you go about 40