Dehumidifiers Working (How Refrigerant & Desiccant Dehumidifiers work)

Last Updated: February 26, 2024

In case of any Humidity related problems, a dehumidifier comes to your rescue. It is the perfect tool to mitigate all your worries. Using a dehumidifier, you forget that without it, the high levels of humidity can be dangerously harmful to your electronics. Also, your other house belongings, such as furniture, clothes, documents, etc., are at risk. Then, of course, there’s your own health. With most modern units, you can determine the room temperature and humidity levels, and adjust them as well.

Dehumidifiers have become a part of modern life. Used all around the world, these tools are available in a variety of types, shapes, and sizes. Still, you may have no idea about how this device works.

This article is all about the workings of dehumidifiers of different kinds. Before going into that, first, let’s answer a few basic questions.

What is a dehumidifier?

A dehumidifier is a device used to reduce and maintain humidity levels of space desired by users. A dehumidifier maintains the integrity of appliances throughout the house. It is also useful for safeguarding other belongings such as furniture, documents, artworks, clothes, and so on. Protection against various allergens and breathing problems such as asthma is also a feature of dehumidifiers.

A dehumidifier makes your space suitable for breathing. It is achieved by eliminating musty odors from the room, and by preventing the growth of mold and mildew by extracting excess moisture from the air. The benefits of a dehumidifier are numerous. Most of all, it lets you carry on with your day without any worry.

Some benefits of the dehumidifier are as follows

Removes Allergens & Dust Mites

A dehumidifier eliminates allergens and dust mites from the air so that you don’t have to worry about allergies or other breathing problems.

Protects Your Possessions

High humidity is a nightmare for your furniture and documents. The same goes for a variety of other things you have in your possession. By removing the excess moisture, which can cause damage to all this in a variety of ways, a dehumidifier helps in maintaining your belongings. For example, due to excess moisture, doors can swell up and don’t close properly. You can also save your documents and artworks from getting soggy and useless using a dehumidifier.

No Mold and Mildew

Thanks to a dehumidifier, you can say goodbye to any mold or mildew growth inside your house. Mold and mildew thrive in high humidity, and by removing the excess of it, dehumidifier ceases the growth.

Fights odor

Along with removing allergens and dust mites, the dehumidifier also removes bad odors from your space, making the air more suitable for breathing.

Now, let’s look at different types of dehumidifiers

Based on functionalities

If we’re talking about the way a dehumidifier functions, we can chiefly separate dehumidifier units into two categories.

1. Refrigerant Dehumidifier

The refrigerant dehumidifiers are the type of dehumidifiers that works by the process of condensation to extract moisture from the air.

Electric or refrigerant dehumidifiers are the most commonly used dehumidifiers. These dehumidifiers use evaporators, which can be the coiled tube, fin and tube, and microchannel technology.

2. Desiccant Dehumidifiers

These types of dehumidifiers use absorbent desiccant material for removing the excess moisture from the air, unlike refrigerant units. The use of these dehumidifiers is not that common, but these have low-temperature applications. Unlike most refrigerant dehumidifiers, desiccant dehumidifiers work under low temperatures and are less noisy and easy to move around as well.

Based on the size, dehumidifiers are mainly of these types.

Small Units

These units are appropriate for slightly damp areas and can remove up to 30 Pints every day. These are appropriate for small rooms (500 Sq. Ft.).

Medium-sized

These units are ideal for very damp areas and remove up to 40- 70 Pints. You can use these in small to medium rooms ( up to 1000 – 1500 Sq. Ft.).
Whole- House/ Industrial Dehumidifiers
These are big units ideal for the whole house or Industrial applications. These units can remove up to 70 – 90 Pints or more, and are ideal for areas up to 1000 -1500 Sq. Ft, and more.

If you are interested in looking for commercial ones, here’s our list of the best commercial dehumidifiers.

How Dehumidifier works

Now, without further ado, let’s discuss how these devices work.

Workings of a Refrigerant Dehumidifier

These are the most commonly used dehumidifiers and work by drawing the air over a refrigerated evaporator, using a fan. In these dehumidifiers, mainly three types of evaporators are used – coiled tube, fin and tube, and microchannel technology.

The cold evaporator coil is used to condense the water, and this water is collected and removed afterward. Then, the air gets reheated by the condenser coil. This warm, dehumidified air now enters the room, and voila!

Refrigerant dehumidifiers are most effective in areas with higher ambient temperature, and a high dew point temperature. The temperature needs to be 20 degrees Celcius or above, with 45% relative humidity( the relative humidity increases with decreasing temperature), for high efficiency. At low temperatures, these units are not as effective.

Since all the components of a dehumidifier are in the room, no heat energy is removed, unlike an air conditioner. Also, in case the water is condensed in the room, the heat needed for evaporation is released back in the room.

An in-room dehumidifier always warms the room while reducing the relative humidity indirectly. It also reduces the humidity directly, by condensing and removing water.

In the working process, firstly, damp air from all over the room is drawn into the dehumidifier. Then the air is passed over a cold evaporator coil, which cools the air below its dew point temperature. Through the process of condensation, it is liquefied and collected in the cold coils. From here, it is removed and emptied by the user, and the process continues. Some of the dehumidifiers also feature hose, using which continuous operation is possible as well.

The dry air in the dehumidifier passes over warm condensing coils, and warm dry air exits the device into the room.

Workings of a Desiccant Dehumidifier

These are not as common as the refrigerant dehumidifiers, but are highly effective in low-temperature areas, unlike the refrigerant dehumidifiers which become inefficient or unusable in the extream cold.

This type of dehumidifier works by way of passing air through a rotor, which contains moisture-absorbent desiccant material. The desiccant material is generally Silica gel, which is the porous arrangement of the granular silica. The internal structure of the gel comprised of a network of microscopic, interconnected pores.

These can adsorb moisture by attracting it within each granule. To release the trapped moisture, you have to apply heat to it. On the application of hearing, the desiccant material releases the moisture by the process of evaporation. This way, the unwanted moisture leaves the space. Dry air is blown back in the room after that, and the desiccant material is once again ready to absorb more moisture, once the water has been ducted out.

The working of a desiccant dehumidifier is quieter, and these are also more portable than their refrigerant counterparts. However, these are not used widely as the refrigerant units. These are the preferred choice in areas that have low temperatures.

Here are some of the pointers you should keep in mind for the longevity of your dehumidifiers

Place your Dehumidifier Properly

The performance of your dehumidifier is also dependent on the placement of the device. If your dehumidifier does not have the top release, avoid placing it against the wall. Choose a spot to position it from where it can cover the entire room.

Handle With Care

Whenever you’re plugging in the device, make sure to be careful. Do not stretch the wire, and use the extension if necessary. Do not switch- on/off the device in quick succession, and allow some time to pass. Store the dehumidifier in a dry location. Do not pile a lot of things around it.

Replacements

The dehumidifier is made up of many different parts, and sometimes these parts can get worn out. It is advised to replace these parts for efficiency. For example, if the filter is past its use, you should get a new one so that the quality of performance is maintained.

Inspect Coils and Clean intake and exhaust grills

The condenser or cooling coils can have ice built up, or frostbite, which can be harmful to them. You should keep an eye out for that, especially in low temperatures. In case your device doesn’t have auto defrost, you should do manual maintenance.
Another part of the dehumidifier that requires your regular vigilance is the intake and exhaust grills. For cleaner air, you should keep these clean.

Periodic Cleaning

You should clean the dehumidifier at regular intervals. It improves the overall performance of the device and the quality of air. It also ensures a long device life.

A dehumidifier ultimately makes your home a safe place to breath, and with a little care, you can enjoy that for a long time.