Dehumidifier where fan is NOT always on - Is there such a thing?

[Paul]

Hi All,

I just purchased a Danby dehumidifier from Costco & have the following beefs;

- the fan is always on. Customer Service tried to tell me that it's actually more energy efficient to run the fan constanly - an argument I find somewhat demeaning.

- even the the humdity is lower then the set-humidity, the compressor kicks in periodically.

I'd REALLY prefer a dehumidifier that "shuts down" when the desired humdity level has been reached - can anyone advise if there is such a product out there?

I just replace all the light bulbs in the house with compact floresent sp? - I a little miffed that this dehumidifier will now such as much power out of the grid as I'd though I was saving.

Thanks!

[Joseph Meehan]

I think the problem in part is they are using the fan to circulate the air and to get the more moist air past the humidity sensor. If you don't move the air the dehumidifier would not be very responsive.

[Paul]

My preference is to let the normal diffusion of humidity handle this, not the fan.

I d> Paul wrote:

[Edwin Pawlowski]

Given the location of the sensor, it is very possible to have a large variation in humidity. If there is enough of a draft or air movement, you are somewhat correct. In a closed bathroom, there is going to be little current to trigger the sensor, thus greater swings in humidity. Tolerable? Maybe, but since you are so much in the minority the makers won't be taking the added cost of that type of unit into consideration.

[Bob]

This is just a guess, but my thought is that the moisture on the heat exchanger and the output bucket would cause the unit to cycle back on too frequently if the fan turns off when the compressor does.

Bob

[Joseph Meehan]

In addition the whole unit would tend to be warm for some time after shutdown and that would tend to cause an apparent low humidity reading. It might however also increase some ventilation. Might be fun to test it out. However I think I will just leave mine like they are.

[mm]

Silly maybe, I don't know for sure, but demeaning? Don't take these things personally.

I'll bet it isn't too hard to rewire this one (although I suppose that voids the warranty.)

I had a room ac where the fan ran all the time, all night even it cooled down during the night, and it was right next to my bed, to boot.

All the wires inside had slide on connectors, so I just rearranged 3 of them. (two wires won't be enough, but iirc, you only have to take off one end of each wire. In this case it took about 15 minutes. Of course I had the whole thing in my head when I started, and I'm not sure if you do or not.) I made it so the thermostat (in your case the humidistat) controlled the power to the compressor and the fan, instead of the fan current not going through the thermost. Make a sketch of the way it was so you don't get lost, and so if you do need service, and you probably won't, you can put it back the way it was before you bring it back. Use a quality phillips head screwdriver so you won't leave traces that you've been inside. (How else do they know?)

Why the comprssor kicks in when it is not humid, I don't know. Before you do the above, call them and make sure it is meant to do that. Maybe yours is broken (although I don't think it would be able to do that if they didn't provide a part to make it happenn.)

[DT]

I have never had one that operates with the fan always on. I currently have a Goldstar and a GE and they both shut off the fan. They come back on for a brief period every so often to sample the air and and see if the compressor needs to run.

-- Dennis

[Paul]

Thanks to everyone for the intelligent responses. I think this internet thing is gonna be a hit.

Hmm...hadn't considered opening up the hood & doing some rewiring, but I am somewhat of a tinkerer. I promise to post the result if I try it.

Based on responses it seems like I will NOT find a new dehumidifier that turns the fan off when it's "resting", although geez, didn't the old ones work this way?

The dehumidifier itself is currently in a small bathroom in my basement, there is frequent traffic but no other circulation other then the exhaust fan. Have already tried running exhaust fan constantly, but that does not do the job.

My primary concern is energy consumption, although the dehumidifier running constantly in the small bathroom is a mild annoyance to my renter, and I really like to keep her happy.

I could put the dehumidifier in the furnace room (beside the bathroom)

- although I think to make the bathroom dry, it would mean "venting" the bathroom to the furnace room somehow.

Does anyone know a good place to get energy consumption stats - I just replaced nearly all my light bulbs with compact fluorescent. I'm not really trying to save money, just to minimize my energy consumption. (save the planet, not the money ;o)

Thanks

mm wrote:

[Paul]

[Edwin Pawlowski]

I'd bet that no matter how many facts they give you, nothing would change your mind. Yes, under many circumstances they are correct.

[DT]

Not sure what the Depot carries, but I know I got the Goldstar at Walmart. By the way, the Goldstar has superb accuracy, keeps the humidity within a few percentage points, is continuously adjustable and is very easy to get the water container back in. The digital GE goes up 5% at a time, although it works well also. The GE water bucket is a pain, it is in back and takes 3 or 4 tries to get it properly hung so the 'full' switch doesn't trip. Both have real hose connections directly to the water container if you want to leave them hooked up. From another dehumidifier thread a few weeks ago, some units just have a goofy way to hang the end of the hose under the water spout.

-- Dennis

[mm]

I don't know. About either question.

Interestingly enough, they now make room ACs the way I made mine with a swtich to make the fan always on or on auto. Strangely, they call this the power saver, when I would call it the noise saver.

[Mike S.]

Ditto the LG and Sears/Kenmore models (which are manufactured by LG).

[nicksanspam]

Yes. You might add an external humidistat like this one ($32, with a 4.4A contact rating):

Nick

[garlander]

I have the same issue with Danby's not turning off the fan and so am probably going to return it to Costco since I have not opened the box. I found one dehumidifier that turns off the fan when the dehumidifier shuts down. It is Edgestar Model DEP701EW and is available online only as far as I am aware. I have been using it for about 3 weeks. It has performed very efficiently and has kept my basement dry. The only issue I have is my concern about its durability. This model seems to be a replacement for the discontinued model DEP700EW-1, which also worked well while it lasted but which lasted only for one season, after which time it stopped working properly. I took a chance on what I understood to be this redesigned Model DEP701EW. All I can say right now is that it is performing very well. I am not using a drain hose and have had to empty the bucket 2 and 3 times a day in this warm, humid, and sometimes rainy weather.

[clare]

Of all the dehumidifiers I have ever owned or worked on, they ALL shut off the fan when the compressor was not running.. I've had several old electrohome units, several old GE and the current one is a

5 or 6 year old GE. I usually end up ditching them when they are over 12 years old - several have been significantly over 12 years. This one looks like it will likely last another 10.

[Davej]

A fan is insignificant compared to the compressor. The Soleus I have seems to shut down.

[gregz]

My LG dehumidifier always starts up the fan and compressor every once in a while. It's annoying, yet energy compliant. Without a fan running, the true humidity can't be measured accurately if the tank is seeping vapor. Many asked why compressor always started up, but got no answers. I find the timed setting 2 or 4 hours max, useful. My bigger dehumidifier sometimes sticks on, with the mechanical switch. With drain hose it will just keep running.

I wonder if my LG just turns on both fan and compressor, because it only has one output control function.

Greg

[trader_4]

I thhink that's probably the reason most of them keep the fan running all the time. With air circulating, the humidifier is going to get a better representation of the typical air in the room.

I'd prefer if they had a mode where you can set an on/off duty cycle, like on 4 hours, off 4 hours. The ones I've seen have a timer that will shut it off after 2, 4, 6 hours, but won't start it up again.