good lord, dehumidifiers are expensive!

[wirednuts]

Amen to that, Speaking of expensive to operate, it's always a pain to mitigate the initial cost with operating cost. I would go for the expensive initial cost just to save on the operating cost, because they are recurring and could easily add up.

with dehumidifiers though, theyre costly up front and month to month. you have to mitigate all of that with the cost of re constructing your basement every 10 years... which can be tens of thousands of dollars so it IS cost effective to run dehumidifiers, but its just expensive to do so in any case.

the real way to fight the dampness is to dig around the outside of your basement walls and install sealer and foam. i would imagine that costs a cool 50k or so though:|

 

[sdifox]

just run ac...

 

[wirednuts]

just run ac...

when you dont want cold air, that is a bit silly.

i have thought about better ways to dehumidify, but im not sure there is anything other then dehumidifiers that even works...

 

[Red Squirrel]

with dehumidifiers though, theyre costly up front and month to month. you have to mitigate all of that with the cost of re constructing your basement every 10 years... which can be tens of thousands of dollars so it IS cost effective to run dehumidifiers, but its just expensive to do so in any case.

the real way to fight the dampness is to dig around the outside of your basement walls and install sealer and foam. i would imagine that costs a cool 50k or so though:|

Cost me about 17k or so to get it done last year. I had a few places where water was getting into my basement, so to be safe I had it completely done. Used a product called Rub-R-wall. Blueskin is another well known product. Only the front was not done, because I have a concrete porch and concrete driveway, and that's the only wall that shows no signs of moisture.

Definitely want a good seal around the house and weeping tiles though or a dehumidifier is just mitigating a problem that should be fixed physically. The floor is where some humidity tends to wick up though.

so if I rig up a hose to vent the air outside, it is essentially an air condioner?

You'd have to keep the air produced by the evap coil indoors, then exhaust the air created by the condenser coil and compressor, and it would essentially be an AC. BTU rating on dehumidifiers aint that high though.

 

[Red Squirrel]

when you dont want cold air, that is a bit silly.

i have thought about better ways to dehumidify, but im not sure there is anything other then dehumidifiers that even works...

Wire the thermostat so the furnace AND AC start at the same time. :biggrin:

 

[mizzou]

Aaaaand cue broken dehumidifier. It lasted 7 years... I suppose that is good for chinese made technology

hmmm...where can i find a mobile one that is NOT made in china??

 

[mizzou]

Well.. I did find some, but the only USA Made ones are "commercial" models or ones used in mansions. ugh

 

[Red Squirrel]

Look at window air conditioners, if you can find one cheaper than a humidifier, just run it indoors. It will basically be a primitive dehumidifier. It wont be optimized for that function on it's own though and probably use even more power... but should work. Be sure to mod it so the water goes into a drain or something though, normally it just drips outside and some might even sit inside an internal pan to help cool the coils. You don't want that as it will just evaporate back in the air. You'd probably also want the compressor to cycle on/off at certain intervals if it depends on water cooling. Personally I would take one apart and mod it in a way where the air just passes through the entire unit, and water drains to a hose that can be lead to a drain.

Though by the time you do all that might just be easier to buy one.

 

[sdifox]

when you dont want cold air, that is a bit silly.

i have thought about better ways to dehumidify, but im not sure there is anything other then dehumidifiers that even works...

Run it when you are not home.

 

[rsutoratosu]

Have you looked into the air exchanger ?

http://www.thermastor.com/Ultra-Aire-65/

http://www2.panasonic.com/webapp/wc...roupId=119516&surfModel=FV-04VE1&displayTab=O

its probably more than what you want to spend but its probably quieter than a dehumidifier

 

[wirednuts]

Have you looked into the air exchanger ?

http://www.thermastor.com/Ultra-Aire-65/

http://www2.panasonic.com/webapp/wc...roupId=119516&surfModel=FV-04VE1&displayTab=O

its probably more than what you want to spend but its probably quieter than a dehumidifier

nice, but from the specs it doesnt seem any more efficient then a dehumidifier.

i would imagine though, once you install that thing you wont have to worry about it for a decade or two at least...

 

[jagec]

Look at window air conditioners, if you can find one cheaper than a humidifier, just run it indoors. It will basically be a primitive dehumidifier. It wont be optimized for that function on it's own though and probably use even more power... but should work. Be sure to mod it so the water goes into a drain or something though, normally it just drips outside and some might even sit inside an internal pan to help cool the coils. You don't want that as it will just evaporate back in the air. You'd probably also want the compressor to cycle on/off at certain intervals if it depends on water cooling. Personally I would take one apart and mod it in a way where the air just passes through the entire unit, and water drains to a hose that can be lead to a drain.

Though by the time you do all that might just be easier to buy one.

Window AC units aren't much more reliable than dehumidifiers anyway.

 

[wirednuts]

after some researching, it appears the only viable alternative to a dehumidifier IS to dig up around your basement walls and put a vapor barrier on the outside.

if only people knew this 100 years ago....

 

[mizzou]

after some researching, it appears the only viable alternative to a dehumidifier IS to dig up around your basement walls and put a vapor barrier on the outside.

if only people knew this 100 years ago....

I wonder what the cost of that is :awe:

 

[wirednuts]

I wonder what the cost of that is :awe:

i was thinking that too... could it be done for around 20K or less? it wouldnt be that hard to dig around the house, but when you get to pipes and drains and such it would be a royal pita.

 

[mizzou]

i was thinking that too... could it be done for around 20K or less? it wouldnt be that hard to dig around the house, but when you get to pipes and drains and such it would be a royal pita.

Yeah I suppose it's the stuff around your house that would make it difficult.

-driveway
-patio
-deck
-walking path
-plants/trees

I doubt they even build homes with vapor barriers anyway, unless you have some special request to do so? I've never seen one.

It cost $5,000 just to dig up and lay a new lateral sewer line

 

[wirednuts]

Yeah I suppose it's the stuff around your house that would make it difficult.

-driveway
-patio
-deck
-walking path
-plants/trees

I doubt they even build homes with vapor barriers anyway, unless you have some special request to do so? I've never seen one.

It cost $5,000 just to dig up and lay a new lateral sewer line

oh no, most new homes are vapor barrier'd on the outside of the foundation/basement.

normally, they just tar seal the concrete. this works OK to stop water coming through.

even better is to tar seal then line with styrofoam.

and the best is the new foam block/concrete pour they do. its a little costlier up front, but what they do is lay down hollow foam blocks to make up the basement walls, and pour concrete inside it. the result is incredible really, something like an r value of 100 and absolutely permanently waterproof. its the best type of basement wall you can buy right now, and the cost upfront is easily mitigated by the lower energy bills and zero humidity problems.

 

[Red Squirrel]

Have you looked into the air exchanger ?

http://www.thermastor.com/Ultra-Aire-65/

http://www2.panasonic.com/webapp/wc...roupId=119516&surfModel=FV-04VE1&displayTab=O

its probably more than what you want to spend but its probably quieter than a dehumidifier

Only works if the air outside is not humid though, which in summer it is.

after some researching, it appears the only viable alternative to a dehumidifier IS to dig up around your basement walls and put a vapor barrier on the outside.

if only people knew this 100 years ago....

That should be done regardless, if it's not done, you got bigger problems than just humidity! Vapor barrier can be another product like tar, blue skin etc... Over time though some of these products detoriate and it has to be redone. Got mine redone last year with weeping tiles. Weeping tiles are cheap... getting to them is not.

 

[wirednuts]

Got mine redone last year with weeping tiles. Weeping tiles are cheap... getting to them is not.

cost?

 

[Red Squirrel]

cost?

Was around 17k if I recall. They used rub R wall rubber membrane product (sprayed on) and standard weeping tile tub for the drainage. Backfill with pea gravel then sand and black earth on top, I grew the lawn back myself.

Definitely worth looking into if you have actual visible moisture in the basement. I had a pretty bad leak once after a torrential downpour in middle of winter. The snow acted as a dam so most of the water went against the house and not slopped away. That's when I realized the foundation was not sealed right. Figured may as well not take chances and get it all done. Only the front of the house was skipped, and the side of the garage. Pretty big job, I contemplated doing it myself but by the time I rent equipment and such, tipping fees to get rid of all the clay etc... was not worthwhile. Pics here of the process: http://gal.redsquirrel.me/?level=album&id=34

Had tar before but it was mostly worn off.

 

[wirednuts]

ok thanks! that is all i wanted to know, a ballpark cost figure.

we were quoted $11k to have a new foundation put in when the new cabin was going up. nobody wanted to fork up the money, so we didnt do it. but knowing that it really doesnt cost that much more to seal the foundation we have it makes me feel better.