While emptying your portable dehumidifier once a day is most common, the size of your dehumidifier and your home humidity level may increase or decrease that need.
Whole-home dehumidifiers and certain portable models with drain hoses can be set up so they don’t need to be emptied as often. However, in many cases, the portable unit’s drip pan will need to be regularly emptied by hand, or else the unit will automatically shut off. That said, every home and dehumidifier is different. So how do you know how often to empty it and how best to maintain it? We’ve answered your common questions about the everyday use of dehumidifiers.
Will a Dehumidifier Always Collect Water?
If you’re dealing with a humid home and have your dehumidifier settings correct, it will always collect a certain amount of water. But how much water should a dehumidifier collect in a day? The water volume will vary depending on the humidity level and the capacity of the collection tank. On average, a home dehumidifier collects five gallons of water per day.
When a dehumidifier fills up quickly, you may have excess humidity in your home or an issue with the dehumidifier itself. Conversely, a consistently empty dehumidifier is also a sign of system malfunction. If either of these issues persists, repair services or other humidity control options may be needed.
Related Topic:How to Use a Dehumidifier
Do Dehumidifiers Turn off When Full?
Yes, most dehumidifiers have an auto-turn-off switch that will turn the unit off either when the collection tank is full or when your space reaches the set humidity level. If your dehumidifier is overflowing, it’s likely an issue with your humidity settings or auto-shut-off function.
Should a Dehumidifier Run Constantly?
No, your dehumidifier should not have to run constantly to regulate the air humidity. An optimal humidity level to shoot for is between 30 and 50 percent. Your dehumidifier should reach this in 8 to 12 hours. However, if the unit’s capacity is more than the space requires, you may find it reaches your desired humidity in only a few hours. Similarly, if the dehumidifier’s capacity is less than the space needs, it may constantly run to try to keep up.
Related Topic:What Is the Best Humidity Setting for a Dehumidifier?
How Else Can I Control Humidity in My Home?
If high humidity is an issue in your house, you can talk to your local Aire Serv service professionals about whether to add a whole-home dehumidifier and work out a solution for the excess humidity in your home.
You can also reduce or eliminate common humidity sources by:
- Installing fans. Your kitchen, bathroom, attic, and basem*nt are all prime areas for humidity to collect and linger. By installing exhaust fans, ceiling fans, or whole-house fans, you can help improve air circulation and ventilation in your home.
- Reducing hot showers. While hot showers are relaxing, the steam they produce fuels the air with excess humidity. Even if you can’t bring yourself to take cold showers, reducing the heat can make a big difference.
- Fixing pipe leaks. Now, you may think pipes can’t leak into the air—which is correct. However, warm air will evaporate the water from a leak, increasing air humidity.
- Avoid hang-drying laundry indoors. The moisture from the clothes will evaporate into the air, increasing humidity levels.
- Maintaining your HVAC system. If your HVAC system isn’t operating efficiently due to improper maintenance, it cannot properly maintain airflow and temperature in your home. Having your system regularly inspected and cleaned and your air filters routinely changed allows excess home humidity to be better controlled.
Need Help Maintaining Your Dehumidifier?
Your dehumidifier works hard to keep your home’s humidity under control. Maintaining it can mean a world of difference when it comes to the comfort of your home. If you notice that your dehumidifier fills up quickly, is constantly running, or is not collecting any water at all, contact your local Aire Serv experts for dehumidifier services. We have the experience and training to identify and correct the problem quickly. To get started, give us a calltoday or request an appointment online today!
FAQs
While emptying your portable dehumidifier once a day is most common, the size of your dehumidifier and your home humidity level may increase or decrease that need. Whole-home dehumidifiers and certain portable models with drain hoses can be set up so they don't need to be emptied as often.
How often do you need to empty a dehumidifier? ›
All portable dehumidifiers have a water collection container, often called a tank or a bucket, to collect the water extracted from the air. These buckets are quite small, to keep the overall size of the dehumidifier down, and need to be emptied at least once a day.
How often should I service a dehumidifier? ›
The air filter is crucial in protecting the parts inside the dehumidifier and cleaning the dry air in the room. If the air filter is dirty or covered in dust, the dehumidifier will not do its job as the air will not be able to pass through. "We recommend cleaning the filter every two weeks," suggests Chris.
Why does my dehumidifier fill up every few hours? ›
If your dehumidifier's water basin is filling up too quickly, you probably have extra water in the air due to an issue like a cracked pipe, water leak or open crawl space. If you're hardly getting any water in the basin, you may need to simply turn the control to a drier setting.
How often do you empty a dehumidifier on Reddit? ›
It usually needs to be emptied once or twice a day.
What happens if you don't empty your dehumidifier? ›
You should know that when the tank is full the dehumidifier will stop operating. So, it's important to check it regularly so it can continue to operate.
Is it OK to leave a dehumidifier on overnight? ›
It is perfectly safe to sleep with a dehumidifier on in your bedroom every night, especially if humidity levels are consistently above 50%. Sleeping with a dehumidifier can improve the quality of your sleep.
Is it expensive to run a dehumidifier all day? ›
Mini models can use as little as 22 watts, while high-volume dehumidifiers go up to around 500 watts. An example dehumidifier that can extract up to 20 litres a day, with a wattage of 480W would use 0.48 kW every hour. meaning that an hour's usage would cost just 12p.
Should you run a dehumidifier day or night? ›
When you first operate your dehumidifier, it would be good practice to run it continuously until the RH falls below the 60% mark or fills up the water tank, whichever comes first. Once RH is below 60% you can then use the dehumidifier during the day and off during the night.
How often should a dehumidifier fill up with water? ›
The water volume will vary depending on the humidity level and the capacity of the collection tank. On average, a home dehumidifier collects five gallons of water per day. When a dehumidifier fills up quickly, you may have excess humidity in your home or an issue with the dehumidifier itself.
Should you keep your dehumidifier running all the time? In order to achieve the ideal indoor relative humidity levels of 35 to 50 percent, it is recommended that you run a dehumidifier for 12 hours a day.
How much water should a dehumidifier collect in a day? ›
A dehumidifier should collect a certain amount of water each day - generally, around 10-20 pints of water per 24-hour period. This should require you to empty most dehumidifiers daily or bi-daily when in operation.
Can you overuse a dehumidifier? ›
Leaving your dehumidifier on all the time can result in dehumidifying too much, leading to a dry indoor environment. It can cause dry air, leading to respiratory issues, dehydrated skin, and static electricity.
Should I turn my dehumidifier off in the summer? ›
Running a dehumidifier in the summer months is one way to improve indoor air quality and help lower the occurrence of allergy symptoms and asthma attacks. By removing excess moisture from the home's air supply, whole house dehumidifiers help reduce allergens such as mildew and mold growth in the home environment.
Does a dehumidifier use a lot of electricity? ›
Let's take a standard model that operates at 280 Watts-hour. If the current power rate is 15 cents/kW, an electric dehumidifier uses 4.2 cents of power per hour. Therefore, if you run it for 10 hours a day, the cost is 10 hours * 4.2 cents = 42 cents/day or about $153.30 per year.
Does a dehumidifier help with mold? ›
If the humidity in a room increases, mold will start growing in patches on walls, clothes, and more. So, to answer your question, dehumidifiers do NOT kill mold, but they do prevent it by reducing humidity. If you have a mold problem in your home, don't wait. Mold spreads as long as it has a water source.
How do you know when dehumidifier is full? ›
Do Dehumidifiers Turn off When Full? Yes, most dehumidifiers have an auto-turn-off switch that will turn the unit off either when the collection tank is full or when your space reaches the set humidity level.
When should you throw a dehumidifier? ›
When all the solid salts have dissolved, the humidifier won't absorb any more moist and should be disposed of. The used dehumidifiers all end up in the domestic waste.
Where does all the water come from in a dehumidifier? ›
The water the dehumidifier collects is actually very clean water; comparable to distilled water. Let's consider for a minute how a dehumidifier works. Think of it as a refrigerator with the cooling coils exposed to the air. Water vapour from the air condenses on the coils and drips into a tank.
