Dehumidifiers

[shananigans]

Does everyone have dehumidifiers in their basements? I mean if you have a tank(s) down there. We've noticed some mold in our house and I think it's due to the 125 in our basement. I was just curious! We just got a medium sized dehumidifier and I don't know if it's going to cut it. (not sure the exact size)

 

[Fishcrazy06]

I run a dehumidifier in my basement plus I have my AC vents open in the basement.

Eric

 

[jlinzmaier]

I run a dehumidifier in my basement plus I have my AC vents open in the basement.

Eric

Me too!

Jeremy

 

[Bri Guy]

I was just going to start a thread about this! crazy. But I was going to ask how people deal with humidity, is a dehumidifier the best choice, or would a fresh air intake be a better option?

Right now I run a old dehumidifier and was going to buy an energy efficient one, but was wondering if that was the best way. Should I buy one thats rated for way over what the specs recommend since I have tanks? Or just go with a basic one, and also the fresh air intake hooked to my furnace? My basement has been between 60-80%

 

[Fishcrazy06]

I don't even know what the perday is on my unit. don't take my word but I think if you don't use the container the catch what is taken out the per day pint usage doesn't mean anything. IE if you run a 40 pint unit that is how much the container will hold. I run a hose from mine into my floor drain.

I think a combination of the two is the way to go. Just my .02 hopefully more will chime in.

Eric

ON a side note I did notice mine is taking a lot out of the basement the last few weeks.

 

[jlinzmaier]

I was just going to start a thread about this! crazy. But I was going to ask how people deal with humidity, is a dehumidifier the best choice, or would a fresh air intake be a better option?

Right now I run a old dehumidifier and was going to buy an energy efficient one, but was wondering if that was the best way. Should I buy one thats rated for way over what the specs recommend since I have tanks? Or just go with a basic one, and also the fresh air intake hooked to my furnace? My basement has been between 60-80%

IMO, go with an energy efficient dehumidifier rated appropriately for the space you want to keep it in. If your total evap is more than 3-4 gallons per day then you may want to go with a bit larger unit. I run a faily small dehumidifier in my basement (my evap is about 5 gallons per day), and I'm able to control the humidity very well.

Keep in mind, if your planning on using fresh air intake through your furnace, your ventilation system needs to have some way of dehumidifying that air before circulating it or you'll likely end up increasing humidity.

Jeremy

 

[MSU Fan]

Jeremy is right on it - it's summer in WI, so that means humidity. If you keep your house opened up then the humidity will come in and your dehumidifier will pull double duty.

I have one upstairs (turtle tank and reef) and I have one in the basement (2 SW tanks, 2 FW tanks, 1 Turt setup).

 

[PrisonCityReef]

I have one up on a shelf in the basement with the outlet hose running right down the drain of my wash bin. I also have a vent open in the side of the furnace. I don't get much evap from the tank, but when it rains a lot the walls get damp down there.

Don't mess around with that mold. Get some bleach / water solution on it! After seeing the things I saw last June it is definitely worth a bit of elbow grease.

 

[MrSquid]

I got a call from my wife saying she found mold on some of our windows yesterday.

We've got a dehumidifier upstairs by the tank and one in the basement. Plus we've got central air. Our house doesn't FEEL humid, but apparently it is. Anyone know where I could send her to get a humidity-meter? (humiditometer? )

 

[customcolor]

i have a bathroom fan pushing air out of my fish room...granted its pulling in fresh air from out side through windows and doors and other leaks in the house but its so minimal from just one location so it realy dont feal like out side air is comming in.

 

[customcolor]

I got a call from my wife saying she found mold on some of our windows yesterday.

We've got a dehumidifier upstairs by the tank and one in the basement. Plus we've got central air. Our house doesn't FEEL humid, but apparently it is. Anyone know where I could send her to get a humidity-meter? (humiditometer? )

is there any air flow by the windows? if the blinds are down always it will trap the humidity...it has happened to us.

 

[jlinzmaier]

I got a call from my wife saying she found mold on some of our windows yesterday.

We've got a dehumidifier upstairs by the tank and one in the basement. Plus we've got central air. Our house doesn't FEEL humid, but apparently it is. Anyone know where I could send her to get a humidity-meter? (humiditometer? )

Does you dehumidifier have a meter on it? I've got a faily cheap one and mine gives a reading and has settings for when to turn on and off.

I would think lowes, menards, home depot and other similar stores would have a monitor to check humidity.

Jeremy

 

[customcolor]

Does you dehumidifier have a meter on it? I've got a faily cheap one and mine gives a reading and has settings for when to turn on and off.

I would think lowes, menards, home depot and other similar stores would have a monitor to check humidity.

Jeremy

i think he should check lowes first :canny:

 

[MrSquid]

Lowes doesn't have them (that I know of). I'll have to have her shop around.

The dehumidifier does have a meter - I told her to adjust it and see if that helps.

The blinds are open and I told her to turn the A/C down too.

 

[reefpoor]

Do a search on energy recovery ventilators or ERV's. This is good long term solution. ERV's will exhaust indoor stale humid air and bring in fresh air. It uses the outgoing air to condition the incoming air with an air to air heat exchanger. The installation cost is around $2000 if done by a contractor, a little pricey, but much cheaper to operate than dehumidifiers. You will also have a healthy home since you are not breathing the same old air every day. Also if you have a/c you can install returns near your tank and run your fan in the fan on position. A central air system is a giant dehumidifier, keeping the air moving will help it pick up the excess humidity

 

[Fishcrazy06]

I think the thing your looking for is a humidistat!

 

[Fishcrazy06]

Just check your facebook chatting with you there now!

 

[Fishcrazy06]

I think Ideal indoor Humidity levels are around 40 percent!

 

[customcolor]

Lowes doesn't have them (that I know of). I'll have to have her shop around.

The dehumidifier does have a meter - I told her to adjust it and see if that helps.

The blinds are open and I told her to turn the A/C down too.

yea maybe you had the house to cold and the water was condencing on the windows just like a cold soda in a glass..

 

[MrSquid]

yea maybe you had the house to cold and the water was condencing on the windows just like a cold soda in a glass..

I don't think that was it. It was 79 in the house when I was home. I think it was more that that dehumidifier wasn't set low enough, the air wasn't running much because it had been cooler out and the tank was open a lot because I'd been doing a lot of work with it while I was home. A bit of a "perfect storm".