Not all dehumidifiers are made the same and as a result not all dehumidifiers perform the same. When selecting a crawl space dehumidifier or basement dehumidifier look at three factors to determine the performance and the value.

Price-

Although price plays a significant roll in choosing any item we buy, it should not be the only factor, and here’s why. The reason we are buying a dehumidifier is to remove moisture from the air, NOT to spend as little as possible on an appliance called a “dehumidifier”. With that said, “value” takes the place of price. After all, if you saved $400 and the dehumidifier does not get the humidity down..... did you really save $400? Most often, the art of saving money costs you a lot more in the end.

CFM-

CFM (Cubic Feet per Minute) refers to air flow and it is the most overlooked specification when selecting a dehumidifier. If the unit can not move enough air, the moisture will not go through the dehumidifier, therefor the unit will run all of the time. If the dehumidifier is running all of the time, it is not working. It is not working because it can not get the moisture levels down below the setting on the control panel, which is what we need it to do because that is the reason we bought it. It is useless to purchase a dehumidifier that has the capacity to remove 100 pints of water but can only move 50 CFM. The dehumidifier can not dehumidify the air if the air does not go through the unit. If the dehumidifier does not state the CFM or claims “whisper quiet”  then DO NOT BUY IT.

There are several ways to determine the amount of CFM you will need for a space, but the most accurate way is to speak to someone that has experience with successful dehumidification design.

Water Removal-

The amount of water a dehumidifier will remove from the air is as important as the CFM and is usually reported in pints per day. This is where most people get confused on which size they need, so they get the largest pints per day dehumidifier they can afford, and this usually leads to an increase of $40-$60 a month in the electric bill. In fact, most often the consumer divides the price into the pints per day to somehow get an understanding of value in the sea of dehumidifier claims. Blindly buying the largest pints per day dehumidifier you can afford and ignoring the CFM requirements of your space leads to higher energy bills, short life of the dehumidifier and high moisture because the air is not effectively being directed through the unit causing short cycle run times.

The key is to size it properly-

There is no one size fits all but there is a way to properly size a dehumidifier. If you are dehumidifying a basement or a crawl space that has been encapsulated you need less pints per day but the same CFM requirement for the size of your space. If you have an open crawl space you will need a much, much higher capacity dehumidifier to have any hopes of changing the environment. My advice is to consult with a professional (not a professional salesman) to properly size a dehumidifier for your space. It may seem you are spending more than you need to but you most likely are saving big money (2 to 3 times) in the long run (5 years).

One final thought-

Don’t rely on the square foot the dehumidifier states it will do. That is mostly another way to convince you to buy one dehumidifier over another. If you read the fine print you will see the words “Typical” or “Average” as a way to disclaim the lack of results you about to get if you purchase the dehumidifier.