Whole house dehumidifier: How does it work

Meast21

Well-Known Member
Thinking of installing in my basement. Can it run constant or does it only run when the furnace is on? (cold air or heat)
 

Meast21

Well-Known Member
Only during the heat cycle with blower running
Well there goes that. My furnace is barely on it the winter bc my basement air of 69 degrees works its way upstairs.. We had all the rain in Western NY about 2 months ago and it compromised my humidity down there. Any type of wetness outside and the humidity goes from like 50% to like 55%... Also I got some water inside a tent and I had some mold on buds even thought the humidity in the basement was 55%... Would sitting water (maybe 1/2 gallon) inside a 4x4 tent cause mold most likely??
 

Herb & Suds

Well-Known Member
Well there goes that. My furnace is barely on it the winter bc my basement air of 69 degrees works its way upstairs.. We had all the rain in Western NY about 2 months ago and it compromised my humidity down there. Any type of wetness outside and the humidity goes from like 50% to like 55%... Also I got some water inside a tent and I had some mold on buds even thought the humidity in the basement was 55%... Would sitting water (maybe 1/2 gallon) inside a 4x4 tent cause mold most likely??
Sure but just go buy a decent size portable with a compressor and humidistat
You’ll be able to control the humidity in the basement if it is large enough to fend off the added heat
Mine has a pump so I don’t have to empty a tray cause I pump it up to a drain
But if you have a floor drain or sump pump a gravity drain model will work just fine
 

Meast21

Well-Known Member
Sure but just go buy a decent size portable with a compressor and humidistat
You’ll be able to control the humidity in the basement if it is large enough to fend off the added heat
Mine has a pump so I don’t have to empty a tray cause I pump it up to a drain
But if you have a floor drain or sump pump a gravity drain model will work just fine
I got a bigger 70 pint dehumidifier running 24/7/365 and it only gets the humidity down to 55% when the outside ground is wet... I now just put a another dehumidifier in the opposite side of the room facing the opposite way. You would think this would help a ton, but I don't think it will, but I will post back.... Anything else I can do? Will fixing the outside grading by my house make a big difference if I slope dirt away from the foundation??
 

Herb & Suds

Well-Known Member
I got a bigger 70 pint dehumidifier running 24/7/365 and it only gets the humidity down to 55% when the outside ground is wet... I now just put a another dehumidifier in the opposite side of the room facing the opposite way. You would think this would help a ton, but I don't think it will, but I will post back.... Anything else I can do? Will fixing the outside grading by my house make a big difference if I slope dirt away from the foundation??
Yep
 

Meast21

Well-Known Member
Take a guess how much it would lower the humidity if I fixed the grading just in the front (only 1 side of the house) where the water came in the most when we got record rain-fall.. Keep in mind that the basement stays dry 99% of the time it just has high humidity... Is there any type of moisture barrier I could put on the basement walls? All I want to do is get the humidity from 55% to 45%.
 

Meast21

Well-Known Member
@GarageGardener69 @Herb & Suds

Do you guys think when I had standing water in my actuall 4x4 tent bc the basement got a little water (from record rainfall), that I got mold on a few buds... The humidity in my basement for 55%, but I'm thinking the standing water in my tent that was there for 2 days gave some buds mold/mildew, etc.
 

GarageGardener69

Well-Known Member
I mean.. that’s pretty crappy to have and that situation sounds super wet..
My tent right this moment it RH 50%. 78*F
Garage. 55*F. Humidity is 90%…. Just found some white mold on a sheet of plywood I have in there So yeah. Could definitely see some mold happening to you too
 

Meast21

Well-Known Member
You sure it was only 55% with a good bit of standing water?
My basement was 55%, I don't know what the humidity in my tent was... There was probably over 1/2 gallon of standing water in the 4x4 tent for 2 days... Would standing water in a tent raise the humidity?? U shouldn't get mold at 55% humidity right??
 

farmerjoe420

Well-Known Member
My basement was 55%, I don't know what the humidity in my tent was... There was probably over 1/2 gallon of standing water in the 4x4 tent for 2 days... Would standing water in a tent raise the humidity?? U shouldn't get mold at 55% humidity right??
you need humidity over 60% for mold to have a chance to grow. Get rid of standing water if mold is a concern
 

MyBallzItch

Well-Known Member
Take a guess how much it would lower the humidity if I fixed the grading just in the front (only 1 side of the house) where the water came in the most when we got record rain-fall.. Keep in mind that the basement stays dry 99% of the time it just has high humidity... Is there any type of moisture barrier I could put on the basement walls? All I want to do is get the humidity from 55% to 45%.
Bout a pound... Maybe two
 
Top