I am looking into options to dehumidify a basement in a home that I recently bought.
The basement is about 25'x30' with a high ceiling, has poured concrete walls, and two basement windows that are currently sealed shut (I just ordered replacement windows that I am waiting to come in). The basement is dry but it does have a sump pump that keeps it that way. I do know that before the sump pump was put in, the basement used to sometimes get water in it, but the sump pump fixed that (I know the prior owner). The house is located in Eastern Pennsylvania.
The only problem is that the basement feels just slightly damp and musty. A friend suggested putting a dehumidifier down there and I am in the process of searching the Internet for general info about dehumidifiers. One thing I just ran across was an ad for a Humidex system, but that looks like all it really does is bring whole house air into the basement and vents air to the outside.
Here's what I am wondering. Would one possible option be to just make sure the HVAC has an air intake in the basement so the basement air will get circulated throughout the whole system along with the rest of the house air? The way it is set up now, the basement is pretty much isolated from the rest of the air circulating throughout the house. The house has central air and an electric heat pump for heating.