Dehumidifiers

[yellnpsych]

Well, we have an extra dehumidifier, but it's a bit bulky for my small room. Not sure if the mini portable ones would be effective enough or last long. Also, the price of a decent one is hard to swallow. If there's a will there's a way, so I'm sure I could settle for what I have....buuuut I thought it would be worth asking you lovely owners what you use or if you have any advice.

Peace and scritches,
~Yell

 

[Sandi]

I have a SoleusAir and it works great. I haven't brought it out yet and only needed to use it for 2.5 months last year. My chins are in a finished basement and currently it's reading 49% humidity. I'll bring the dehumidifier out as soon as it reaches above 50%.

 

[Brittany]

I just bought this one from bed bath & beyond. With their 20% off coupon it was somewhere in the $130's. It keeps my bedroom between 47-50% I have to empty it out every other day. http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?SKU=18080320

 

[ChinnyMom]

don't most air conditioners dehumidify as well?

 

[yellnpsych]

Air conditioners do keep humidity down and of course an a/c unit was my first purchase for the chin, but lately the humidity has been over 60%. I'm not sure how crucial a dehumidifier is to owning a chin, but it doesn't seem like an unreasonable buy.

 

[Stackie]

don't most air conditioners dehumidify as well?

Not good enough whenever it's 60-70% humidity outside like it always is here in Indiana and a lot of other states. If chins are in a basement it's almost a necessity.

I bought one at Lowe's but I can not for the life of me remember the name of it. It was around $150 and did an awesome job. I'll have to look at the box when I get home from work.

 

[6Dusters]

While I don't have a basement I thought I would add my information.

Here is Virginia the humidity is very high during the summer months. We have days that are close to being a sauna. And today is going to be one of those days.
Todays temp is going to be 101 and the humidity outside right now at 8am is almost 80%.

My animals are inside with the a/c running. I do monitor the indoor humidity. Not much I can do with central air. So I keep several small buckets of DAMP RID in the chin room. I have two small refillable buckets. This stuff works wonders to pull water out of the air. Simply open and pour the water into the toilet. Refresh the buckets when needed.

I will also add that I have 19 chins.
So its very important to keep the bedding dry. I also use a fungal foot powder added to their dust bath during the summer. At least twice a month.
Hope this helps.

 

[yellnpsych]

Damp Rid sounds like a great alternative if I can't afford the dehumidifier by arrival date, thanks so much 6Dusters. How many refills do you have to buy a month?

 

[designer chins]

I am intrigued by this Damp Rid! Where do you purchase yours?

 

[mrodimer]

They sell it at some hardware/home improvement stores. I know home depot by me has it. Amazon has it priced pretty reasonably too.

 

[yellnpsych]

Come to think of it, any more electricity in my room may blow a circuit...May be the only alternative lol

 

[mishellyshel]

i have my chins in a finished basement as well. the air temp is so cold down there that i wear fleece pants and a sweatshirt and right now the outside temp is almost 100.

i have a dehumidifier down there that i got at walmart and it cost close to 200 bucks. it has a delay on it, so i run it for about 2 hours in the morning, 2 when i get home from work and 2 before bed. it takes several days for the bucket to fill with water.

i also use damp rid and while it does work, it is most efficient and effective in smaller spaces. the bucket is small and you can buy the crystal refills in bigger bags. i purchased mine at home depot. i keep it near the door that is near the cages.

i would not say that damp rid is a replacement for a dehumidifier. it is a good option if you have a slightly elevated humidity level, lets say in extremely unusual weather. But if you are in an area with consistantly high humidity, a portable unit is the way to go. just my opinion.

 

[yellnpsych]

I'm running our spare dehumidifier right now, will have to give it a couple hours to see how it does. I have it sitting right next to the cage, which may be an issue if it gets too hot. My room is a bit small though and with the a/c running it's a decent air flow.

 

[6Dusters]

Damp Rid sounds like a great alternative if I can't afford the dehumidifier by arrival date, thanks so much 6Dusters. How many refills do you have to buy a month?

I keep two 10.5 ounce container buckets in the chin room. I buy a refill bag of it and it lasts several months. Refill bag size is 42 ounces. I will go through it faster in the summer as humidity increases. I bought my last refill at Home Depot. Prior to that I got it at Lowes. Both are big box stores.

I just want to add that I talked to 2 people before the 3rd person knew what it was. They used to keep it in the cleaning supply area. They now have moved it to the paint area. Not sure why it would be there.

 

[Rescue Momma]

They sell Damp Rid at Wal Mart too I believe in the ironing board & irons section.
I have a gauge hanging on the side of my chin cage to tell me temp and humidity.
I got it at Wal Mart for something like $7.00. I don't have a humidifier in the room now but it is a smaller room so I will look into the Damp Rid. My husband uses it in his gun room where he reloads ammo so I know it works good.
The ac keeps it at around 70-72 which they seem to do fine with. Looking into a portable ac unit for the room and found one on CL today.