As the name suggests, a whole-home dehumidifier is an indoor air quality device designed to remove moisture from the air throughout your home. Besides the whole-house models, there are other types of dehumidifiers, and each type has benefits and drawbacks.
Understanding how a whole-home dehumidifier works and the advantages you can expect from installing this model will help you make an informed decision about whether it’s the right choice for your home. Our HVAC and indoor air quality specialists at Xtreme Heating & Cooling LLC are happy to share expert advice and answer your questions.
How a Whole-Home Dehumidifier Works
Whole-home dehumidifiers work with your central HVAC system to treat the entire air volume in your home. The dehumidifier is installed along the return duct that leads to your air conditioner. This strategic positioning ensures that all air flowing through your home to be cooled also gets dehumidified.
The humidifier is equipped with built-in sensors that detect the moisture levels in the air. Your whole-home dehumidifier is triggered into action when the humidity in your spaces rises above a preset value. It draws hot and humid air through the return duct into its evaporator coil. The humidity or moisture from the air in your home will condense on the dehumidifier’s evaporator coil, thanks to the refrigerant.
This condensed liquid falls out of suspension and is directed into the dehumidifier’s reservoir tank or led directly through a dedicated drain line into the nearest drain and out of your home. Your air conditioner unit then cools the dehumidified air before it is circulated back into your living spaces.
To sum up, whole-home dehumidifiers operate in the same way as an air conditioner. The difference lies in the objective or end goal of the process. While an air conditioner’s focus is temperature control, a dehumidifier’s main purpose is humidity control.
Advantages of Whole-Home Dehumidifiers
By balancing the humidity levels throughout your home, whole-house dehumidifiers ensure all your living spaces are comfortable at any one time. Your family members can enjoy breathing fresh air throughout the house. The dehumidified air is also healthier, and you don’t have to worry about allergies and respiratory problems commonly aggravated by high humidity levels.
Effective whole-home dehumidification also provides your entire home with adequate protection against several dangers. These include mold and mildew growth as well as pest invasions. You can prevent the warping and rotting of furniture, floorboards and other elements around your home.
Whole-home units dehumidify your home better than an air conditioner. You can reduce your air conditioner use, which will no doubt come with some energy costs. You can also run the dehumidifier any time to improve indoor air quality, including in winter and spring when it may be too cool to run your air conditioner.
Whole-Home Dehumidifiers vs. Portable Dehumidifiers
Whole-home dehumidifiers will reduce the humidity in the air throughout your home. You can enjoy the benefits of improved air quality throughout the home. On the other hand, a portable model can only dehumidify one room or living area at a time.
While buying a whole-home dehumidifier will certainly cost you more, these whole-house units are cheaper to run than a portable dehumidifier. With the superior efficiency of whole-home dehumidifiers, you can expect to recoup your initial investment relatively quickly. Whole-home dehumidifiers also last longer than room dehumidifiers, so it will be a while before you have to worry about replacement costs.
With portable dehumidifiers, you have to empty the unit every day or every other day manually. Doing this can be a hassle, not to mention that you’d have a mess to clean up if you accidentally spill the water while emptying the dehumidifier. On the other hand, whole home models are not as demanding, and you can look forward to your dehumidifier running efficiently if you schedule an annual maintenance check with a qualified HVAC technician.
Whole-home dehumidifiers stay out of sight, tucked away with your HVAC unit in the basement. These models generally operate quietly. You may, however, see and hear your portable dehumidifier as it works.
Enjoy Better Indoor Air Quality With a Whole-Home Dehumidifier
A whole-house dehumidifier uses a relatively straightforward mechanism to deliver efficiently and effectively remove excess humidity in the air in your home. Contact Xtreme Heating & Cooling LLC for professional installation, maintenance and repair of whole-home dehumidifiers.
Turn to us to provide other indoor air quality solutions such as dehumidifiers and humidifiers, air purifiers and UV lights. We’ve remained committed to keeping the homes in Omaha and surrounding areas extremely comfortable since 2012, offering professional cooling, heating and air quality improvement services.
