Basement Exhaust Fan a Solution?
#1
07-02-07, 05:50 AM
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Basement Exhaust Fan a Solution?
My basement seems to be excessively damp--to the point of some mold developing. I have two humidifiers, and that helps some, but I am wondering if installing an exhaust fan with humidistat is a better option? Is this more energy efficient? Also, how do I prevent disturbing the updraft needed for the hot water flue? Any advice or other options?
#2
07-02-07, 07:56 AM
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2 Humidifiers???
umm, i hope u mean DEhumidifiers - the machines that turns humidity into water and collects it in a collection tank for u to dump out. If you are seriously running Humidifiers - machines which you put water IN and it gets evaporated into the air - that is VERY BAD for your basement. If your basement is very damp and humid you should get the largest residential dehumidifier possible, I believe it's 60 pints which I have and keep it in the middle of your basement and it should do its job. a 60 pint DEhumidifer takes out 60 pints of water from your basement in 24 hrs (equivalent to 28.39 liters in 24 hours).
Adding an exhaust fan would just make your DEhumidifier work harder since exhaust fans throw air out and in the process would bring in new humid air in. It's similar to adding an exhaust fan in a room with an airconditioner and having them both running at the same time. The dehumidifier also conditions the air to make it dry and an exhaust fan would just cancel the work of the dehumidifier out leaving you with a constantly damp basement. Just get a good working DEhumidifier and keep the basement windows/doors closed so it can do its job right.
Usually a DEhumidifier should do its job but it will make the area a little warm. I currently added a cold air vent to my basement from my central air conditioner that's in my attic to compensate for the warm/dry basement of mine. If you don't have a living area in your basement then a dehumidifier is all you need.
Check to see that your dehumidifiers are clean and make sure they are indeed dehumidifiers and not humidifiers =P
1) Make sure the filters of the dehumidifiers are clean
2) If the dehumidifiers are more than 5 years old I suggest cleaning the coils inside the housing of the dehumidifiers with a coil cleaner and a soft brush. Make sure you move the brush up and down and not side to side on the coils as they can get damaged easily.
3) Make sure your dehumidifiers are placed some distance away from each other...they will do a better job this way. If the dehumidifiers are of the same specifications then divide the basement into 2 imaginary equal squares/rectangles and put one dehumidifier in the middle of one square/rectange and the other dehumidifier in the other square/rectangle.
4) I think it's more economical (in the long run) to invest in one large dehumidifier and running it in the middle of your basement....this can save you some money on your electric bill than running 2 dehumidifiers.
5) Make sure you don't have any water leaks somewhere, the sign of mold on a specific area in your basement might mean you had a water leak close by somewhere upstairs.
6) Make sure your basement clothes dryer is properly vented outdoors since it exhausts hot and humid air.
7) Make sure you fix this problem quick because if you store some of your valuables in your basement (ie: books, cameras, memory cards, hard-disk drives, entertainment systems, family photos, clothes etc) they will get damaged by the humid air in a couple of years if the problem isn't fixed.
Exhaust fans are usually made for the attic and should be installed there.
Well that's all I can think of. hope the info helps somewhat.
Adding an exhaust fan would just make your DEhumidifier work harder since exhaust fans throw air out and in the process would bring in new humid air in. It's similar to adding an exhaust fan in a room with an airconditioner and having them both running at the same time. The dehumidifier also conditions the air to make it dry and an exhaust fan would just cancel the work of the dehumidifier out leaving you with a constantly damp basement. Just get a good working DEhumidifier and keep the basement windows/doors closed so it can do its job right.
Usually a DEhumidifier should do its job but it will make the area a little warm. I currently added a cold air vent to my basement from my central air conditioner that's in my attic to compensate for the warm/dry basement of mine. If you don't have a living area in your basement then a dehumidifier is all you need.
Check to see that your dehumidifiers are clean and make sure they are indeed dehumidifiers and not humidifiers =P
1) Make sure the filters of the dehumidifiers are clean
2) If the dehumidifiers are more than 5 years old I suggest cleaning the coils inside the housing of the dehumidifiers with a coil cleaner and a soft brush. Make sure you move the brush up and down and not side to side on the coils as they can get damaged easily.
3) Make sure your dehumidifiers are placed some distance away from each other...they will do a better job this way. If the dehumidifiers are of the same specifications then divide the basement into 2 imaginary equal squares/rectangles and put one dehumidifier in the middle of one square/rectange and the other dehumidifier in the other square/rectangle.
4) I think it's more economical (in the long run) to invest in one large dehumidifier and running it in the middle of your basement....this can save you some money on your electric bill than running 2 dehumidifiers.
5) Make sure you don't have any water leaks somewhere, the sign of mold on a specific area in your basement might mean you had a water leak close by somewhere upstairs.
6) Make sure your basement clothes dryer is properly vented outdoors since it exhausts hot and humid air.
7) Make sure you fix this problem quick because if you store some of your valuables in your basement (ie: books, cameras, memory cards, hard-disk drives, entertainment systems, family photos, clothes etc) they will get damaged by the humid air in a couple of years if the problem isn't fixed.
Exhaust fans are usually made for the attic and should be installed there.
Well that's all I can think of. hope the info helps somewhat.
#3
07-02-07, 08:54 AM
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60 pint dehumidifier
I bought my 60 pint LG dehumidifier last summer for about 220 bux at home depot. If you have a Lowe's home improvement store near you, they have a 75 pint (35.48 liters in 24 hours) dehumidifier for 240 dollars:
http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=253896-46-AD75UST&lpage=none
the buckets on these large dehumidifiers get filled rather quickly so you either have to dump the water out 2-3 times a day or retrofit an external waste water line from your dehumidifier to your basement drain line so all the water from the dehumidifier goes directly into the home's drain line.
There's one problem with draining the water with a hose though; the drain line has to be at the height of the external hose connector of the dehumidifier and not going on an upward incline. If the waste water line from your dehumidifier goes to a drain line at an upward incline then the water will not flow to the drain line since you need a pump for that. Some dehumidifiers come with internal pumps to pump water out on an inclined external drain line but they are quite expensive. I remember in the early 90s they had dehumidifiers with a "natural pump" on the tank. That is, the external drain connector hose was on the bottom of the waste-water collection tank so when the water reached a certain level it would force itself out naturally on any upward inclined drainline. The new dehumidifiers lack that feature and just usually have an external drain line hose connected directly on the 1 inch deep mini-collection area directly below the coils inside the dehumidifier. 1 inch depth of water is not enough to have enough force to push on an external drain incline.
Dehumidifiers are the type of things you should pick up at a local store since shipping
an item this size and weight can get damaged easily. I advise you not to buy this type of item online.
http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=253896-46-AD75UST&lpage=none
the buckets on these large dehumidifiers get filled rather quickly so you either have to dump the water out 2-3 times a day or retrofit an external waste water line from your dehumidifier to your basement drain line so all the water from the dehumidifier goes directly into the home's drain line.
There's one problem with draining the water with a hose though; the drain line has to be at the height of the external hose connector of the dehumidifier and not going on an upward incline. If the waste water line from your dehumidifier goes to a drain line at an upward incline then the water will not flow to the drain line since you need a pump for that. Some dehumidifiers come with internal pumps to pump water out on an inclined external drain line but they are quite expensive. I remember in the early 90s they had dehumidifiers with a "natural pump" on the tank. That is, the external drain connector hose was on the bottom of the waste-water collection tank so when the water reached a certain level it would force itself out naturally on any upward inclined drainline. The new dehumidifiers lack that feature and just usually have an external drain line hose connected directly on the 1 inch deep mini-collection area directly below the coils inside the dehumidifier. 1 inch depth of water is not enough to have enough force to push on an external drain incline.
Dehumidifiers are the type of things you should pick up at a local store since shipping
an item this size and weight can get damaged easily. I advise you not to buy this type of item online.
#4
07-02-07, 12:01 PM
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basement humity
yep--i did mean dehumidifiers! sorry about the confusion. sounds like maybe i need to invest in a hire capacity model. One of them is over five years old, so i will check the coils, etc--good information all the way around. thanks so much.
debbie
debbie
#5
07-03-07, 06:10 PM
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they need space
Hey deb
make sure your dehumidifiers are not near 3-4 feet of any large object like a sofa or table or anything. If they are then reposition them so they are not being obstructed. And reading on another post you said you have a sump pump so i'm guessing your basement leaks when it rains? I used to live somewhere where this was a problem and I didn't add a sump pump in the basement I just hired some people to redo the sides deep within the basement border from the outside. This might be very expensive because it is a pretty heavy duty job.
Don't get me wrong there are alot of people that use sump pumps in their basements so it's quite common. Instead of "bandaging" the problem by sump pumps I would rather fix the problem permanently because it is one reason for a very damp/moldy basement. And as some people said, it will lower the property value of your home and might make it practically impossible to sell since prospective buyers hire engineers to look at the home's condition first and they pay alot of attention to basements and attics for mold and flooding.
make sure your dehumidifiers are not near 3-4 feet of any large object like a sofa or table or anything. If they are then reposition them so they are not being obstructed. And reading on another post you said you have a sump pump so i'm guessing your basement leaks when it rains? I used to live somewhere where this was a problem and I didn't add a sump pump in the basement I just hired some people to redo the sides deep within the basement border from the outside. This might be very expensive because it is a pretty heavy duty job.
Don't get me wrong there are alot of people that use sump pumps in their basements so it's quite common. Instead of "bandaging" the problem by sump pumps I would rather fix the problem permanently because it is one reason for a very damp/moldy basement. And as some people said, it will lower the property value of your home and might make it practically impossible to sell since prospective buyers hire engineers to look at the home's condition first and they pay alot of attention to basements and attics for mold and flooding.
#6
07-04-07, 04:52 PM
Member
debbie -
Where are you located(climate)? Is the basement finished? What is on the walls? Do you run a central AC in the summer?
No matter where you are, the first thing is to correct the cheap logical things to the exterior of your home to eliminate moisture sources. - Gutters, long downspout extensions(10'), proper grade away from the house. When this is done, you can look at the real situation and determine what should be done.
In the mean time, get rid of the mold and mold attractings materials like damp wood and fiberglass. It is easier to throw away materials than to try to get the moisture out of them and still have a mold problem.
This will allow you to look at the situation clearly and not take a shotgun approach with canned solutions. Throwing in a bunch or energy hog fans and dehumidifiers is the "use a bigger hammer" approach if you have not eliminated the source.
Dick
Where are you located(climate)? Is the basement finished? What is on the walls? Do you run a central AC in the summer?
No matter where you are, the first thing is to correct the cheap logical things to the exterior of your home to eliminate moisture sources. - Gutters, long downspout extensions(10'), proper grade away from the house. When this is done, you can look at the real situation and determine what should be done.
In the mean time, get rid of the mold and mold attractings materials like damp wood and fiberglass. It is easier to throw away materials than to try to get the moisture out of them and still have a mold problem.
This will allow you to look at the situation clearly and not take a shotgun approach with canned solutions. Throwing in a bunch or energy hog fans and dehumidifiers is the "use a bigger hammer" approach if you have not eliminated the source.
Dick
