By Bubba Moore, Mingledorff’s Technical Services Manager, Southeast District

Why do we need a dehumidifier and what is it? A dehumidifier is an electrical appliance which reduces and maintains the level of humidity in the air, by extracting water from the air. Isn’t the A/C a dehumidifier? The A/C also removes humidity out of the air, but it is limited, do to the run time of the A/C. In mild weather, the A/C may not run and the humidity in the space can rise. The dehumidifier’s run time is determined by the percentage of humidity that is needed or desired in the space. Dehumidifiers can be connected to the HVAC system to aid in removing humidity. Or, if cooling is not needed, the dehumidifier can turn on the HVAC’s fan to help circulate the drier air that the dehumidifier is producing.

High humidity in your home or business can wreak havoc on your indoor air quality and furnishings. With high humidity, mold and mildew can grow, and dust mites can thrive, both of which will affect persons with allergies and asthma. A dehumidifier can help address these problems. By pulling moisture from the indoor air, the whole home dehumidifier enhances your comfort, helps protect your furnishings and enhances the quality of the air that you breathe every day. The whole home dehumidifier has other uses other than personal comfort. For example, they can be used in humid climates where sealed attics or crawl spaces can hold humid air. This type of environment can contribute to HVAC duct systems sweating, which leads to other problems.

The whole home dehumidifier, depending on the model, can be installed in a variety of ways. It may have ductwork that connects to the dehumidifier so it can dehumidify just one room. The ductwork can connect to an HVAC system so it can dehumidify the whole house. Also, no duct work has to be connected if used in a sealed attic or crawl space to remove humidity.

The whole home dehumidifier, depending on model, can be controlled in different ways. The DEHCRCDB model that is pictured here has on-board controls and can be used without an external control. If the external control is needed because the dehumidifier is in an area that is difficult to view the humidity settings, it can be added. The whole home dehumidifier can be connected to A/C with gas heat, or heat pump, dual fuel, two stage units, and variable speed systems.

The whole home dehumidifier is a great addition to help with humid conditions and air quality in the home or outside the living space that is sealed and needs help controlling the moisture in that space.