Please explain the difference between “square footage capacity” and “container capacity”. This is totally unclear to a newbie, and the 50pt Frigidaire (for example) does not seem to provide the former. Is “sq ft capacity” actually a silly number? If so, why do people publish it, and should I only use pint capacity as a measure of what size I need? Is that the real measure? Also, how does this relate to how humid my area is? Thanks.
We recommend you buy the highest capacity (given in pints) dehumidifier you can afford, regardless of the size of the space or the humidity level of the space. We explain our reasoning in our general buyer’s guide.
KE Chow
April 6, 2022 7:20 pm
Are their any SAFE options/specific dehumidifiers that will allow me to control a dehumidifier ( turn on/off adjust humidity ) if I am away from home ? I’m a snowbird & must run a basement dehumidifier in my Georgia home when I’m up North for the summer. Otherwise I will have to run it unattended for months on end.
Rafael
February 27, 2022 3:43 am
Hello ,I’m looking for a Honeywell smart Dehumidifier with pump if you can let me know if they make it on that way Thank you
Tom M
August 6, 2021 12:39 am
Looking for a dehumidifier to remove moisture in a small area where wood is stored. Want to get the RH down to 30% or less. Ideally the unit would have the ability to run in temps above 100 deg F. Not concerned about cold temp operation as I can heat the chamber. Do you have any recommendations or equipment type?
Brian Anderson
July 23, 2021 11:13 am
This website is amazing! I have a 5ft by 5ft well pump room in my home basement that also has water softener in it. In Michigan summer the room is constantly at %80+ RH. All the water piping condensates very bad. I tried a small room dehumidifier and it did not lower RH. Can I use a more powerful 50 pint dehumidifier in such a small room (25 sf)? Or is it a fire hazard? I put a vent in the door of the room and it did not help. Can you please offer me advice for this small room with high humidity
Ann
August 4, 2020 5:25 pm
Hi, I have a Frigidaire Model FAD704DWD 70 pint dehumidifier.
I have had this for 2 months now.
But, a few days ago it started to display 88 on the display.
Sometimes a number 99.
What does that mean?
Thank you
Ann
August 3, 2020 2:40 pm
why does the Dehumidifier FAD704DWD keep showing a 99 and a 88 code?
those codes are not shown in the owners manual??
thanks
rick
July 29, 2020 4:20 am
Thanks for the info on your website! The question I have is regarding the amount of water that a dehumidifier can remove.
I want to install a dehumidifier in a small bathroom with no ventilation. The bathroom gets mold on the walls because of this. What size should we be getting? There is not a lot of space, but the smaller units do not extract a lot of water (measured in ounces and not pints), and I’m concerned that the smaller units won’t extract enough water.
Sorry, what I was I was trying to get at with that poorly-phrased question was that I’m trying to come up with a very rough idea of cost per day to run a dehumidifier. If dehumidifiers pull an average of 570 watts when running, and let’s say I assume it runs 8 hours per day on average at that 570 watt level, and my electricity costs 15-cents per kwh (kilowatt hour), can I translate that into cost per day with this equation?: [(570 X 8) divided by 1000] X fifteen cents = ~ 69 cents per day. I realize from your articles that there are many variables that make actual cost to run impossible to calculate, but I’d like to at least estimate it using those assumptions.
That is for an instance in time with the unit’s compressor fully cycled on.
Al Pollack
May 5, 2020 4:31 pm
Hello. You have a great, informative website here! I have a 2014 Frigidaire FAD504DWD unit that I brought over from my parents house. It worked well last summer but now it always seems to have the compressor on and generate heat whether the fan is on or not. I turn it on and set the humidistat to 50. The fan runs for a brief time, then shuts off and the digital readout is “30”. Am I just now noticing the auto-defrost capability, or is this unit malfunctioning? Thanks for your assistance!
-AJP
It sounds like your unit is malfunctioning. I advise calling the manufacturer to troubleshoot the issue.
Carla Hoskins
April 4, 2020 6:00 am
I read & comprehend why using a larger than needed 70 pint for the size room is more efficient to run and less costly than the 50 pint Frigidaire. I want to determine if this concept would still apply to only roughly 310sf space with medium to high summer humidity. It is a storage style building made livable efficiency. Due to age of building the construction materials and insulation is poor and shower area not adequately ventilated. This and Oklahoma summers lend to its humidity issues.
Yes, we would still recommend a high capacity unit for your application.
Christopher Chin
January 27, 2020 2:21 am
Hi,
You have an awesome blog here, convinced me to get a 70 pint over 50 pint.
My question is what is the energy-efficient and proper way to use the dehumidifier every day? I don’t want to leave it on 24 hours/day and don’t feel the need to. However, should I set the 70 pint dehumidifier to 50% and leave it on for 1 hr every day? I’m not sure what’s the best way to use the dehumidifier.
The dehumidifier will automatically shut off when the room reaches the desired humidity level so you can leave it on 24/7 and it will only run at full power draw when necessary.
J Sanchez
January 13, 2020 1:47 am
Hi,
I’m using the Frigidaire 70 pint degimidifier to dehumidfy an area of 1,100 SF. The equipment took a lot of time to go from 80% to 55% RH. Once it reach the set pint it shuts off for about 10 minutes when RH rises to 60% and keep workong for about 25 minutes. It seems that in an hour it is working for 50 minutes. If I project these to a 24hr period (please, correct me if I’m wrong) the equipment is on for 20 hrs. That represent a lot of consumotion. Here in Puerto Rico the kwh cost is 22 cents and is expected to increase. If I put another 70pint dehumidifier what energy consumption should I expect having both working together? Half less (say 10 hours on?) if so, the cost would be the same as there is the double of energy consumption. Please advise. Thanks in advance.
In your case we would look towards better insulating the environment where the dehumidifier is being used and/or working to remove the source of the humidity if that’s applicable here.
RALPH CARTER
May 29, 2019 4:42 pm
I question the effectiveness of packaged desiccant dehumidifiers used in clothes closets and similar closed spaces. These spaces are clearly air permeable. They leak around doors and possible through their walls. Outside humid air intrusion will be a continuing action. The desiccants will rapidly reach their saturation point and lose any possible effectiveness. I find the recommendation and advertising of these products misleading. In a hermetically sealed enclosure they would be expected to work.
Yes, humid air will leak through but not fast enough to make much of an impact. Small desiccants do work effectively in very small spaces like closets.
george shaw
March 26, 2019 4:55 pm
Our new house is on top of a cross space. The cross space is large. I myself are able to access it. I have a HISENSE UNIT. SERIAL# K-GG1YJ0580.
I was going to place the unit in the cross space to dry it out. In the cross space is sealed with heavy plastic. Would it be advisable to use the unit for that purpose?
Thank You
George
Carolyne
September 13, 2018 7:08 pm
I am so grateful to have found your site. We designed and had our small (1650 sq. ft.) home built just 10 years ago. There have been problems since the beginning of the second year with incorrect air conditioning installation resulting in mold in nearly every corner and ceiling in the house. The a/c duct work and the handler have all been replaced brand new TWICE!. Mold inspector/s have thoroughly tested the entire house for evidence and all had the same opinion … lots of mold everywhere behind gypsum walls and ceilings. Did not have the option to move out after the financial investment so have cleaned and tried everything reasonable recommended to us. Ceiling fans, return airs and light fixtures have mold accumulation and have to be cleaned very frequently.
We should own stock in the DAMP RID company because we keep two hanging ones in every closet and several in the containers in each room. (They are dated when placed and very seldom do they go past 4-5 weeks without requiring new ones!
The master bedroom, closet, bath and laundry on the north side; kitchen, living & dining in the center and the guest room, bath and office on the south. Just this week it was pointed out that we really needed to get a couple of dehumidifiers (one for each side of the house). Do we get two 50 pints or one 70 put just in the center?
I’m sorry to be so “wordy” we just need to resolve the problem as best we can. The house cannot be leased or sold until the problem is completely eliminated.
Thank you for your wonderful guide, but I still need more specific direction. Carolyne
We always recommend buying one dehumidifier to start and then buying more only if you find you need more.
Adam R
May 15, 2018 2:40 am
Gravity drainage I am getting the bucket filling up same time as the drain to floor. IS this possibly caused by lack of fall or gravity?
Elaine
May 4, 2018 8:27 pm
We live in coastal Carolina. Our house is 3000 sq feet built with a crawl space. crawl space iis currently enclosed (previous owner did this) and the Advance dehumidifier just broke.
What would you recommend to replace it? Someone said to get a unit with ducting….. very confusing.
Brian Pellerin
May 2, 2018 9:25 am
Hello,
I have two young children under 4yo and they love pushing buttons and shutting off the deep freeze etc. Do you recommend a dehumidifier with a “child proof” feature so they can’t shut off the unit? Or a wall mounted dehumidifier?
Have a question or comment? Let us know below.
Please explain the difference between “square footage capacity” and “container capacity”. This is totally unclear to a newbie, and the 50pt Frigidaire (for example) does not seem to provide the former. Is “sq ft capacity” actually a silly number? If so, why do people publish it, and should I only use pint capacity as a measure of what size I need? Is that the real measure? Also, how does this relate to how humid my area is? Thanks.
We recommend you buy the highest capacity (given in pints) dehumidifier you can afford, regardless of the size of the space or the humidity level of the space. We explain our reasoning in our general buyer’s guide.
Are their any SAFE options/specific dehumidifiers that will allow me to control a dehumidifier ( turn on/off adjust humidity ) if I am away from home ? I’m a snowbird & must run a basement dehumidifier in my Georgia home when I’m up North for the summer. Otherwise I will have to run it unattended for months on end.
Hello ,I’m looking for a Honeywell smart Dehumidifier with pump if you can let me know if they make it on that way Thank you
Looking for a dehumidifier to remove moisture in a small area where wood is stored. Want to get the RH down to 30% or less. Ideally the unit would have the ability to run in temps above 100 deg F. Not concerned about cold temp operation as I can heat the chamber. Do you have any recommendations or equipment type?
This website is amazing! I have a 5ft by 5ft well pump room in my home basement that also has water softener in it. In Michigan summer the room is constantly at %80+ RH. All the water piping condensates very bad. I tried a small room dehumidifier and it did not lower RH. Can I use a more powerful 50 pint dehumidifier in such a small room (25 sf)? Or is it a fire hazard? I put a vent in the door of the room and it did not help. Can you please offer me advice for this small room with high humidity
Hi, I have a Frigidaire Model FAD704DWD 70 pint dehumidifier.
I have had this for 2 months now.
But, a few days ago it started to display 88 on the display.
Sometimes a number 99.
What does that mean?
Thank you
why does the Dehumidifier FAD704DWD keep showing a 99 and a 88 code?
those codes are not shown in the owners manual??
thanks
Thanks for the info on your website! The question I have is regarding the amount of water that a dehumidifier can remove.
I want to install a dehumidifier in a small bathroom with no ventilation. The bathroom gets mold on the walls because of this. What size should we be getting? There is not a lot of space, but the smaller units do not extract a lot of water (measured in ounces and not pints), and I’m concerned that the smaller units won’t extract enough water.
Thank you
I would recommend a 22 pint compressor based unit for your application.
Very informative analyses, but you do not mention Santa Fe or Aprilaire units.
Any reason?
Simply because the focus of the website is portable dehumidifiers and both companies do not make portable units.
When you say a dehumidifier draws, for instance, 570 watts of power, is that per hour?
Sorry, what I was I was trying to get at with that poorly-phrased question was that I’m trying to come up with a very rough idea of cost per day to run a dehumidifier. If dehumidifiers pull an average of 570 watts when running, and let’s say I assume it runs 8 hours per day on average at that 570 watt level, and my electricity costs 15-cents per kwh (kilowatt hour), can I translate that into cost per day with this equation?: [(570 X 8) divided by 1000] X fifteen cents = ~ 69 cents per day. I realize from your articles that there are many variables that make actual cost to run impossible to calculate, but I’d like to at least estimate it using those assumptions.
Your math and line of thinking that got you to that math is correct.
That is for an instance in time with the unit’s compressor fully cycled on.
Hello. You have a great, informative website here! I have a 2014 Frigidaire FAD504DWD unit that I brought over from my parents house. It worked well last summer but now it always seems to have the compressor on and generate heat whether the fan is on or not. I turn it on and set the humidistat to 50. The fan runs for a brief time, then shuts off and the digital readout is “30”. Am I just now noticing the auto-defrost capability, or is this unit malfunctioning? Thanks for your assistance!
-AJP
It sounds like your unit is malfunctioning. I advise calling the manufacturer to troubleshoot the issue.
I read & comprehend why using a larger than needed 70 pint for the size room is more efficient to run and less costly than the 50 pint Frigidaire. I want to determine if this concept would still apply to only roughly 310sf space with medium to high summer humidity. It is a storage style building made livable efficiency. Due to age of building the construction materials and insulation is poor and shower area not adequately ventilated. This and Oklahoma summers lend to its humidity issues.
Yes, we would still recommend a high capacity unit for your application.
Hi,
You have an awesome blog here, convinced me to get a 70 pint over 50 pint.
My question is what is the energy-efficient and proper way to use the dehumidifier every day? I don’t want to leave it on 24 hours/day and don’t feel the need to. However, should I set the 70 pint dehumidifier to 50% and leave it on for 1 hr every day? I’m not sure what’s the best way to use the dehumidifier.
Thanks,
Chris
The dehumidifier will automatically shut off when the room reaches the desired humidity level so you can leave it on 24/7 and it will only run at full power draw when necessary.
Hi,
I’m using the Frigidaire 70 pint degimidifier to dehumidfy an area of 1,100 SF. The equipment took a lot of time to go from 80% to 55% RH. Once it reach the set pint it shuts off for about 10 minutes when RH rises to 60% and keep workong for about 25 minutes. It seems that in an hour it is working for 50 minutes. If I project these to a 24hr period (please, correct me if I’m wrong) the equipment is on for 20 hrs. That represent a lot of consumotion. Here in Puerto Rico the kwh cost is 22 cents and is expected to increase. If I put another 70pint dehumidifier what energy consumption should I expect having both working together? Half less (say 10 hours on?) if so, the cost would be the same as there is the double of energy consumption. Please advise. Thanks in advance.
In your case we would look towards better insulating the environment where the dehumidifier is being used and/or working to remove the source of the humidity if that’s applicable here.
I question the effectiveness of packaged desiccant dehumidifiers used in clothes closets and similar closed spaces. These spaces are clearly air permeable. They leak around doors and possible through their walls. Outside humid air intrusion will be a continuing action. The desiccants will rapidly reach their saturation point and lose any possible effectiveness. I find the recommendation and advertising of these products misleading. In a hermetically sealed enclosure they would be expected to work.
Yes, humid air will leak through but not fast enough to make much of an impact. Small desiccants do work effectively in very small spaces like closets.
Our new house is on top of a cross space. The cross space is large. I myself are able to access it. I have a HISENSE UNIT. SERIAL# K-GG1YJ0580.
I was going to place the unit in the cross space to dry it out. In the cross space is sealed with heavy plastic. Would it be advisable to use the unit for that purpose?
Thank You
George
I am so grateful to have found your site. We designed and had our small (1650 sq. ft.) home built just 10 years ago. There have been problems since the beginning of the second year with incorrect air conditioning installation resulting in mold in nearly every corner and ceiling in the house. The a/c duct work and the handler have all been replaced brand new TWICE!. Mold inspector/s have thoroughly tested the entire house for evidence and all had the same opinion … lots of mold everywhere behind gypsum walls and ceilings. Did not have the option to move out after the financial investment so have cleaned and tried everything reasonable recommended to us. Ceiling fans, return airs and light fixtures have mold accumulation and have to be cleaned very frequently.
We should own stock in the DAMP RID company because we keep two hanging ones in every closet and several in the containers in each room. (They are dated when placed and very seldom do they go past 4-5 weeks without requiring new ones!
The master bedroom, closet, bath and laundry on the north side; kitchen, living & dining in the center and the guest room, bath and office on the south. Just this week it was pointed out that we really needed to get a couple of dehumidifiers (one for each side of the house). Do we get two 50 pints or one 70 put just in the center?
I’m sorry to be so “wordy” we just need to resolve the problem as best we can. The house cannot be leased or sold until the problem is completely eliminated.
Thank you for your wonderful guide, but I still need more specific direction. Carolyne
We always recommend buying one dehumidifier to start and then buying more only if you find you need more.
Gravity drainage I am getting the bucket filling up same time as the drain to floor. IS this possibly caused by lack of fall or gravity?
We live in coastal Carolina. Our house is 3000 sq feet built with a crawl space. crawl space iis currently enclosed (previous owner did this) and the Advance dehumidifier just broke.
What would you recommend to replace it? Someone said to get a unit with ducting….. very confusing.
Hello,
I have two young children under 4yo and they love pushing buttons and shutting off the deep freeze etc. Do you recommend a dehumidifier with a “child proof” feature so they can’t shut off the unit? Or a wall mounted dehumidifier?
Thank you for all your thorough reviews.