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cymraes

Best brand of dehumidifier?

cymraes
16 years ago

Our basement is very damp and we need to get a dehumidifier. Can anyone recommend a good brand?

Comments (15)

  • jasper60103
    16 years ago

    There are several threads on this topic. Just do a search for "dehumidifier".

  • mikie_gw
    16 years ago

    santa fe comes to mind.
    cost 3x as much as your name brand portables but removes more water per kwh... and none remove that water for free.

  • lonegreyrabbit
    16 years ago

    i bought a sante fe basement dehumidifier this summer.i really am happy with it. i could feel and smell the difference in less than a day.

  • blue_fastback
    16 years ago

    Soleus is suppose to be a good brand from the research I did in the Fall.

  • Roeland
    16 years ago

    An important thing to look out for is that the dehumidifier works at low temperatures. Upstairs in the Summer, warm temps are no problem, but regular units stop operating at about 65 degrees. Most basements will hover between 50 and 60 all Summer. Low temp units keep going down to about 45 degrees. That will make more of a difference than brand or capacity.

  • David B
    16 years ago

    I have a Maytag I bought at Home Depot a few years ago that works great. It replaced a real crummy Sears job that only lasted a few years. This Maytag is a lot quieter, and works at low temperatures, and gives me the impression I'll get a lot of years out of it. It was a bit more expensive than the real cheap brands, but not a lot, and well worth it. FWIW.

    David

  • swongco
    16 years ago

    I have a SaniDry (sold by Basement Systems). It's great - removes up to 100 pints of water a day - it drains directly into my sump pump - and filters the air as well. It'll operate in cooler areas. The unit plugs into a regular outlet. I had a flood a couple of summers ago, ending up with about 3" of water in my finished basement. After installing a sump pump (the previous owners didn't have a water problem when they owned the house, so they never had one installed) and this dehumidifier, my basement's been dry and very comfortable.

  • tom_p_pa
    16 years ago

    I have a Kenmore (sears), too noisey. I saw last week Costo is selling one made by DeLonghi?

  • luckyparker
    15 years ago

    I like my SaniDry very very much EXCEPT that it is quite noisy. THe company that installed it tried adding the muffler that is made for it, but it did nothing.

    This unit drains from a rubber tube out of my home. I wish they had run the tube out the side of my home, where it would be less visible and would water my plants. They ran it out the front of the house, swearing that it wouldn't be that much water, but it is a lot of water, and runs across my walkway, where everyone walks through wet before entering my home.

    It has made a big difference in our lives to have the unit though.

  • sniffdog
    15 years ago

    Check iaqsource.com and look at the Honeywell and Sante Fe units. They have some good reviews on each.

    I bought the Sante Fe large capacity unit this summer when we noticed spots on the basement floor. Bought the unit and within 2 days the spots were gone and the humidity in botht he basement and main level dropped remarkably.

    Make sure you get a small humidistat (cost about $20 on amazon) for the basement so that you can measure the baseline and the improvement after you turn the unit on.

    The one thing I wasn't carzy about about the Sante Fe unit is that out of the box, it has a control dial on the back of the unit that has one of those lines as an indicator that get's thicker as you turn the dial (real helpful - not). I set the knob right in the center and then read the potbale humidistat. Once I saw the humidity drop below to 50% in the basement, I adjusted the knob to make the unit to turn off. My goal is to keep the basement humidity between 45 and 50%. When I started it was up between 70 and 75% on very humid days.

    When I first hooked it up, the thing ran 24x7. I wanted to make sure it would eventaully turn off when the humidity was acceptable. If you don't set the knob right , it will keep running.

    They do make an external humidistat control for the Sante Fe, and when I finish the basement off I will probably put that in.

  • macysmom
    15 years ago

    I followed Consumer Reports' suggestions and went with the Danby in my basement at our lake house. Wow! What a difference and almost right away... definitely within the first weekend. Our walk-out basement is nearly 80% finished and has two bedrooms in it so keeping it as comfortable as possible is critical for our guests. Almost right away it was easy to notice the moisture difference in the carpeting and bedding. It just doesn't feel like a basement anymore. We set up the automatic drain so it runs all the time and it runs nearly all the time. We haven't noticed much difference in our electric expenditure since we started using it... no crazy spike in the electric bill. Our guests don't complain about the noise level and it seems to make the same amount of noise as a window air conditioner. A little noisy, but the results far outweigh the noise in my opinion. I bought the unit online at Costco for around $200 and have been more than happy with my purchase. Good luck! :)

  • tom_silanmercer_com
    12 years ago

    For a basement operation, a 70-pint mid-range dehumidifier is a good option. Don't go too cheap with Sante Fe, but something midrange $200 - $300 will probably handle your needs. Here's a midrange on Amazon for 40% off:

    Here is a link that might be useful: Frigidaire Dehumidifier, 70-pint capacity

  • dgmarie
    12 years ago

    We have been very happy with our Kenmore.

  • househunterz
    12 years ago

    Seems a few alreday commented but we had santa fe in our old house and for an old and musty basement I have to say it really got the job done My husband says for the new house he will buy another one.
    There are a lot of good articles and resources online too.

  • PRO
    Razu Ahammed
    6 years ago

    I’ve used several dehumidifiers from different brands over a span of 20 years and I can assure you that Frigidaire is the best brand you can rely on. Their products are known to be durable and they sport top-notch features for ultimate customer satisfaction.