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In the Yokosuka City and Miura Peninsula areas, the end of May and early-June is when several weeks of generally wet weather begin.  This "rainy season" is called TSUYU (梅雨), and in addition to frequent precipitation, temperatures get warmer and humidity levels rise.  In our staff blog, you can read more about TSUYU at the link pasted below.  Also, we published a short advisory article about how to prepare/clean your Japanese air conditioner (also linked below).  One problem which can emerge during Japan's humid weather is the appearance of mold and mildew.  There are several ways to prevent the build-up of mold or mildew in Japanese-style houses.  First is the practice of doing KANKI (換気), which means ventilating or airing-out your rooms.  Typically, KANKI is done the morning and evening hours, when the temperature is cooler -- all the windows or sliding doors in the house are opened and the "old" air is replaced with "fresh" air.  Of note, constantly using the air conditioner, set at a very low temperature, and without doing KANKI, will almost guarantee that mold or mildew will grow inside the house.  (* Ideally, when used for a long period of time, the air conditioner thermostat should be set at around 25 degrees Celsius.)  The next method to combat humidity is to circulate the air using electric fans (called SENPUKI 扇風機), and over the years, Japanese consumer electronics companies have developed all kinds of ingeniously designed electric fans which can be attached to the ceiling, affixed to a wall, or placed on the floor.  There are other electric appliances called JOSHITSU-KI (除湿器), or dehumidifier fans, which are designed to remove moisture from the air.  In fact, most Japanese air conditioners will have a JOSHITSU setting, which works really well to both dry and cool the air.  Finally, there are moisture absorbing products (in small packets or cup-like containers) which are cheap and can be placed in closets and clothes drawers (see the link at the bottom for more information).  We hope you will be successful in preventing mold and mildew from building-up in your Japanese house -- and if you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask us! 

Written by Goodfield

LINKS:

Rainy season

https://us.iino.cc/blog/blog.html?eid=00034

Air Conditioners

https://us.iino.cc/blog/blog.html?eid=00037

Moisture Absorbing Products

https://cotoacademy.com/dealing-mold-japan-rainy-season-dehumidifying-agents/