Do de-humidifiers dry the air too much or just to something more comfortable?

powlesY · 9 Jun 2011 at 10:26

I made a topic about de-humidifiers the other day and i was looking to invest in one. I ended up having a cheap desktop dehumidifier bought for me (non-electrical) and in a day it's collected maybe 100ml of water.

This delayed me buying one because it looks to be doing it's job (well my phone didn't have condensation on it this morning anyway).

Now the reason i ask the question in the topic title is that someones offered to lend me a proper de-humidifier (worth £100). Will it dry the air too much (i have sensitive skin) or take the moisture out and put it to a comfortable level? I say this because i'd like to just put it on the top setting of continuous for a few hours to see how much water it gets and then keep using the desktop one.

Paul11 · 9 Jun 2011 at 10:27

most have a control so you can set the level to which it operates

but to answer your question, no i dont think it will dry the air too much

powlesY · 9 Jun 2011 at 10:32

Ah, it's you from the other topic! The proper dehumidifer has no instructions with it (i'm sure i can find some online), but to me it looks like just one thing where it seems the higher you go, the more power it'll use. I'll just go for that, go watch a film and doss about for a few hours then see the results.

I don't think i'd need to run it constantly, just an hour or two a day i think'd be sufficient.

Paul11 · 9 Jun 2011 at 10:46

if it has a dial on it , it should allow you to set the humidity level in the room and it will come on and off automatically

[FnG]magnolia · 9 Jun 2011 at 11:13

Ours has a 16 litre capacity and can be set to a % humidity level. From memory, they suggest 65% is a comfortable level (I should check that). Never had any problems with overly dry air.

They're great things, particularly in the Auckland climate.

yer_averagejoe · 9 Jun 2011 at 11:15

We have one to try and stave off damp. On full whack it can collect 3 litres of water in a night. You won't manage to dry the air out "too much" with any home dehumidifier.

B@Th*nG · 9 Jun 2011 at 11:37

i can't even look at a dehumidifier without shuddering these days.

A mate of mine had one at uni, we all got wasted one night and he left it on in his bedroom. Worst. Hangover. Ever.

B@

Brookert · 9 Jun 2011 at 11:46

I prefer dry air, in egypt, the heat doesn't get you all sweaty as the air doesn't hinder sweat evaporation. In this country, humidity is often high on hot days, so you get sweaty and stay sweaty

Aod · 9 Jun 2011 at 13:16

smoove said:
How come?

dry air increases the rate of water leaving the body with every breath you take.
if it was on all night they'd have lost loads of air over the night, resulting in a considerably worsened hangover as parts of their brains died off

Morte · 9 Jun 2011 at 13:37

Aod said:
dry air increases the rate of water leaving the body with every breath you take.
if it was on all night they'd have lost loads of air over the night, resulting in a considerably worsened hangover as parts of their brains died off

This and also the drunken man sex.

powlesY · 9 Jun 2011 at 13:49

Haha, what Aods saying can't be true, at least not for the decent de-humidifiers. They set the humidity at a comfortable level. I mean surely having air-conditioning on, a fire, a fan or any sort of heating drys the air more than a humidifier. Also, having a couple of windows open helps the airflow and lets you have what's more comfortable anyway.

Anyway, i've had the de-humidifier on for about 2 hours now and it's collected probably just over half a pint over water. Room smells a bit like a swimming pool but i think that's just where the de-humidifier hasn't been used in a while.

Aod · 9 Jun 2011 at 23:49

powlesY said:
Haha, what Aods saying can't be true, at least not for the decent de-humidifiers. They set the humidity at a comfortable level. I mean surely having air-conditioning on, a fire, a fan or any sort of heating drys the air more than a humidifier. Also, having a couple of windows open helps the airflow and lets you have what's more comfortable anyway.

Anyway, i've had the de-humidifier on for about 2 hours now and it's collected probably just over half a pint over water. Room smells a bit like a swimming pool but i think that's just where the de-humidifier hasn't been used in a while.

the dehumidifier that my parents have can be set to constant on very easily, i would assume this is similar.