Buyers Guide

There are so many different types of dehumidifiers and they all come with different features and capabilities.This buyer’s guide will explain all the main features you are likely to find on a modern dehumidifier and how they work in plain language.

This will make it easy for you to choose the right dehumidifier for you with the features you actually need.

Remember: The optimum humidity is somewhere between 30% and 50% in the home.

Features Explained

Extraction Rate: The extraction rate is basically how much water a dehumidifier can draw out of the air in a 24 hour period. Generally, the higher the extracting rate the more efficient the dehumidifier is.

Automatic Humidistat Control: The more advanced dehumidifier models use a hygrometer to automatically maintain the desired level of humidity that you specify, and will adjust itself accordingly. Cheaper models rely on the user to judge when the desired humidity and switch the unit off and on accordingly.

Bucket Size: Each dehumidifier has a bucket to collect the water it collects from the air. The bigger the bucket the then the less it will need to be emptied.

Drainage Hose: A drainage hose is a small pipe which drains the water from the dehumidifier and can be placed inside drainage point such as a drain or sink. This is ideal if you don’t want to have to empty the bucket regularly. However you have to make sure that the drainage point is not high above the water tank as the water will find it difficult to flow upwards. To achieve this you would need a dehumidifier with a hose pump.

Hose/ Drainage Pump: The hose pumps the water through the drainage hose so you can have your drainage point higher than your water tank as the pump creates enough pressure to allow the water to move upwards against gravity and move the water over a much further distance.

See Our Top 5 Dehumidifiers CLICK HERE

Full Bucket Indicator: Most modern dehumidifiers will have an LED light which conveniently flashes or displays when the water bucket needs emptying.

Automatic Restart: If there is a power failure or power cut, this feature will makes sure that the dehumidifier runs at the same settings that it had before the power cut. This means you don’t have to re programme the dehumidifier each time it is switches off as it remembers its settings.

Automatic Shut off: This feature switches off the unit when the water collection bucket gets full. This stops the unit from overflowing and spilling water. This is a really useful feature if the dehumidifier is in a place where you are not likely to notice when the bucket is full. You can rest assured that the collected water will not overflow and spill.

Anti-Microbial Filter: Some dehumidifiers come with an anti-microbial filter which removes air born germs and microbes which can cause illness, spread disease, such as dust mites. This function is especially useful for people who suffer from allergies or asthma.

Washable Filters: If the dehumidifier you choose has an anti-microbial filter it is worth making sure that they are washable, this saves the extra expense of buying replacement filters when they have run their course.

Fan Speed/ Settings: If you are going to use your dehumidifiers in a bedroom or living room, then you will want to look for a dehumidifier which has adjustable fan speeds to control noise level, as the fans on some units can be very loud for some people.

Auto defrost: This Feature defrosts the unit stopping it from seizing up in colder environments and during the winter months when temperatures drop below 12 degrees Celsius (approx.)

Low Temperature Operation: In cooler climates dehumidifiers run the danger of breaking down due to low temperatures that can cause them to frost over. If you have compressors based dehumidifier and are planning to use it in temperatures below 12 degrees Celsius (approx.) then you will need a dehumidifier that can operate at low temperatures.

See Our Top 5 Dehumidifiers CLICK HERE