# Dehumidifier wanted without continuous fa



## macman44 (Sep 5, 2011)

I am looking for a new dehumidifier for my basement, in the 40-50 pint range. I have had a similar one before, and it would run anything between 0% and 75% of the time depending on season, weather conditions, etc.

Trouble is that many (if not all) of the models I have looked at seem to leave the fan running all the time, even if the compressor isn't required to remove humidity. Reviewers all mention this as an undesirable feature, but it isn't something that manufacturers' web sites specify one way or the other. I do not want this to happen - when the compressor turns off I want the fan to turn off too, and the unit to remain quiescent until next needed to remove humidity. Leaving the fan running 24/7 when not required is (a) noisy, (b) a waste of electricity, (c) going to cause the unit to wear out and fail prematurely.

Comments I have seen suggest that this is done to keep air moving through the unit, so that it can better sample the room air humidity, but I can't believe that there isn't a better way to achieve this. The Maytag unit I previously had didn't have this issue, and it worked just fine, but I haven't been able to find Maytag dehumidifiers available in Canada.

Does anybody know of a model or range of dehumidifiers that only runs the fan when the unit is actually dehumidifying?

Thanks for any thoughts on this.


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## Marqed97 (Mar 19, 2011)

I bought a SoleusAIR (by Gree) 2 years ago and I like it very much. It has a digital humidistat and multiple fan speeds...and yes, the fan does cycle off about 60 seconds after the compressor. I believe it's the 70 pint (maybe the 65 though). It does wonders for my basement. I have a hose hooked up to the threaded side port so I don't have to empty the bucket. I keep meaning to put my datalogger on it to find out the average cycle times and electrical usage but haven't yet. 

Hope this helps out...

Andy


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## macman44 (Sep 5, 2011)

Thanks Andy.

I went to look up SoleusAir units, and discovered there is a recall notice out on them, so none seem to be available. You might want to check whether yours is affected.

This business with the continuous fan seems to be a recent development, so trying to buy a DH might be like trying to hit a moving target. Given the negative reaction in many reviews, I would hope that manufacturers will change, but unfortunately I need mine now.


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## joecaption (Nov 30, 2011)

http://www.cpsc.gov/en/Recalls/2013/Gree-Recalls-12-Brands-of-Dehumidifiers/


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## djlandkpl (Jan 29, 2013)

Not all of the Gree's are covered by the recall. If you get one today, it will have a build date outside of the recall. I have a family member that this applies to.

I recently bought a GE. After the compressor kicks off, the fan will run for a brief period then shut off until it needs to run again. Same applies to the Gree.


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## Marqed97 (Mar 19, 2011)

Interesting. I just checked what I believe is the date code on the unit and its not included in the recall. Good to know regardless.


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## hardwareman (Oct 9, 2010)

check out the Frigidaire units, I'm pretty sure they do not run continuously


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## macman44 (Sep 5, 2011)

Thanks, Hardwareman, I will. Living in Canada, i don't have anything close to as wide a choice of products that you do, but Frigidaire does seem to be OK. I have sent a query to them to see what they say.

Unfortunately the SoleusAir and GE units don't seem to be available here.


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## Scottg (Nov 5, 2012)

macman44 said:


> I am looking for a new dehumidifier for my basement, in the 40-50 pint range. I have had a similar one before, and it would run anything between 0% and 75% of the time depending on season, weather conditions, etc.


We have an LG Model LD450EAL we got from HD we keep in a basement, with an out feed hose that goes into a sump pit. It was a bit over $200. Does the job just fine with humidity setting at 30%. The basement is generally not too humid in the first place, but I haven't measured it. The space is about 200 square feet.

One problem: After about 1.5 years, it was shutting off automatically. After online research, I determined the humidity sensor had failed. The only place around that would MAYBE fix is was a Sears authorized service center. Which would have cost $100 just to look at it, which could be applied to the hourly labor charge, then plus whatever parts cost. Using PartSelect.com, I was able to find schematics and the part number. It was about $20. I figured I couldn't make it much worse. It was a bit of a pain to replace, but not too bad.

So... tough call on recommendation. This unit definitely gets it done. Though yeah, I was **** when the part failed.


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