If your basement is properly constructed with the right amount of air conditioning and ventilation, then it ought to be a dry area. Because they are poorly designed, there are tons of basements that suffer from a lingering dampness that is uncontrollable. Dampness like this is a perfect breeding ground for mold and mildew, especially in basements where old books, magazines, clothing and suitcases are stored.
After the humidity in your basement goes over 50%, then you run into things like warped furniture, condensation on the walls, as well as fungus and mold growth. All that moisture will also make any would you have down there rot quicker. If any of your family members suffer from allergies related to mold and mildew, then investing in a basement dehumidifier is an absolute no-brainer. Before you go off and spend a bunch of money and buying any basement dehumidifier for this problem, you really should think about finding out why your basement has such a high humidity problem. There really shouldn't be that much of a difference between the temperature of your basement and the temperature of the rest of the house, as it shouldn't have its own temperatures zone. Adding weather stripping to any of the windows and doors in your basement might help a little. If in the unfortunate situation that the basement doesn't have any insulation, you have to consider the cost of adding insulation against the price of running a basement dehumidifier constantly.
You will need to do a little bit of research before buying any basement dehumidifier. Know the cubic footage of the basement space that it will be going into. You also want to take into consideration whether you need a permanent unit versus a portable unit. One more thought for consideration when shopping for a dehumidifier is whether or not the unit will fit into the space that you want it to. You also need to take into consideration the noise levels that dehumidifiers make, as some are quite noisier than others. Either ask for a demonstration if buying in the store, or read the reviews of them if buying online.
Air conditioners and refrigerators work on the same principles as a dehumidifier. The humid air is drawn over a series of cold coils which works to extract a good deal of the moisture from it via condensation. As the condensation builds, it will drip off into a collection bucket found inside the dehumidifier. This process slightly elevates the temperature of the air after the moisture is extracted from it and it is then blown back into the room.
A lot of folks forget to maintain their basement dehumidifier as it is out of sight and out of mind. It is really important that you make sure to empty and clean the collection buckets inside these as if you don't they can develop a bacterial growth. Some companies manufacture basement dehumidifiers which have no inner collection container, but simply a hose that can be run to a floor drain, and these are a perfect solution to the problem.
Dehumidifiers are an effective way to help get rid of the problem of moisture in your home.A basement dehumidifier is built specifically with the demands of a basement in mind. If you would like more information on these then you can get it by going to http://www.dehumidifiersforsale.net/basement-dehumidifiers.php
Posted under Allergies
This post was written by Frank Froggatt on December 18, 2009
