posted on
December 18, 2009 at 05:49PM
There are a number problems with any dehumidifier currently on the market from any retailer. The first one is that the information given in the website or in catalogs is very insufficient to know what you are buying, or what you should expect, which probably causes a lot of returns and customer annoyance. The number of negative comments right on this page clearly supports this.
Traditionally, dehumidifiers in the $ 200 class, such as Kenmore 30-40 pint models of the 1990's, had a "humidistat" which would turn everything off when a pre-set humidity level was reached, and then cycle the machine back on when it was needed. Not necessarily anymore! Now, the descriptions make lame comments about LED humidity indicators and blower speeds and fail to mention whether a humidstat is used which shuts the whole thing off when the cycle is complete. Apparently this is because virtually all of these machines are now produced in China to a Chinese design, most of which shut the compressor off and on yet leave the loud fan running. If you have one of these new machines inside a dwelling area, it's extremely annoying to have to go manually turn it off when the pre-set humidity level has been reached. What on earth was the big deal about having a humidistat which turned the whole thing off when done, and turned it on again as needed? That sounds more "Green" to me than the "new" ones!
Next, the reason the majority of these fail is because the refrigerant leaks out due to failures of the tubing seals and failures of the compressor internal connection to the external plumbing. The compressors are not designed to be repaired or refilled. The older Kenmore compressors were usually made in Brazil and lasted 8-10 years. The new ones in anyone's dehumidifier last about 3 years because they are made in China. Therefore plan on your dehumidifier lasting just three years. The extended service contracts usually end before then...what a surprise!
Although all dehumidifiers are noisy, fans in these are not noisy because they have to be. They are noisy because the manufacturer has tried to make the fan blade and motor smaller and cheaper. The faster a fan turns, the louder it is. The other thing is that in the past few years the fans have changed from a metal blade to plastic squirrel cage design, and the squirrel cage is louder. None of the descriptions state how many pints are removed per 24 hours per blower speed. My guess is that it only happens at high blower speed, and then only if you are lucky.
If you want to know how much power the dehumidifier uses, go to the Grainger website and look at a comparable machine with equal pint capacity, which will state the number of Amps. The Sears should be comparable and costs less.
Another issue - the dehumidifiers currently on the market typically use cheap plastic tactile switch control panels with bubble-like pushbuttons, which are fastened to the housing with a sticky-back adhesive. Several examples I examined had bubbles in the adhesive backed laminate panel, suggesting that the whole thing would start peeling up in due course.
The bottom line is to get a machine with as large a pint capacity as you can afford, insist on one one with a humidistat which will turn it off totally when the pre-set humidity level is reached, and don't expect it to last longer than three years.
As far as this web page goes, Sears should have its legal department review the rules. Recent FTC regulations provide that it is illegal for persons employed by a manufacturer or retailer of a product to appear on blog or forum sites and make comments in support of a product without clearly identifying themselves as such. In this case, there are consumers mixed in with Sears employees and in some instances it isn't clear which is which.
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