Want to know the cost to run a dehumidifier? Being someone who is budget conscious and does their research before buying something, it’s important to know the cost to run dehumidifiers in your home.
You’ve been shopping around for a dehumidifier but you’re not sure of the running costs involved.
Are you wondering about the following:
-Do dehumidifiers use much electricity?
-What is the cost of running a dehumidifier?
-What are other dehumidifier running costs?
Cost to run dehumidifier: everything you need to know
To save you time and effort, I’ve done the research for you and this blog will answer these questions and give you all the information you need to know about the cost to run dehumidifier.
Dehumidifier running costs: things to consider
There are many different sized dehumidifiers on the market as they are made in different sizes for different rooms. Smaller dehumidifiers are used in bathrooms while larger ones are better suited to high humidity areas and spaces such as a basement or garage.
When calculating the cost to run dehumidifier, you will need to know the watts used by the dehumidifier. This differs from model to model and you can find the information either on the product label on the appliance, or in the product information.
As an example, the Pro Breeze Mini Dehumidifier available on Amazon is small and suitable for bathroom use. It uses 23 watts per hour.
On the other hand most average-sized to large-sized dehumidifiers have between 280 to 480 wattage.
The cost of running a dehumidifier also depends on how you use it. You have control over the settings which will influence how much power the dehumidifier uses.
How much electricity does a dehumidifier use?
First step in calculating the cost of running a dehumidifier: input power
Once you’ve decided on a suitable dehumidifier, find out how much input power it uses in kilowatts (kW). This will help you calculate how much electricity a dehumidifier uses.
If 1kW is equal to 1000 watts, you need to take the input power that the appliance uses and divide it by 1000 to convert the watts into kW.
So if the appliance input power is 280 watts, this equals 280/1000=0.28kW.
Second step is to find out what you pay for electricity per kW hour
Your electricity or power company will charge you at a rate per kW hour. Check your latest bill to get the correct price (or do some research online).
For this example, we’re going to use a made up price of 35 cents per kW/hour.
Final step is to multiple the kW by the rate per kW hour
0.28kW x 35c per kW hour= 0.098 cents per hour
You can now multiple this per hour cost by the number of hours you will run the dehumidifier for in a day, to give you the daily cost.
The above example shows that the cost of running a dehumidifier is quite low compared to other appliances in your home. The total cost will depend on how you use the dehumidifier and what your power company charges you per kilowatt hour.
You can use the above formula to calculate the power usage of any electrical appliance you have in your home!
And now you’ve worked out the cost of running dehumidifiers in your home!
Do dehumidifiers use a lot of electricity?
Compared with other electrical appliances such as heaters and air conditioners, dehumidifiers do not use a lot of electricity.
For most people, a dehumidifier would only be used for short periods of time or only seasonally during warm, humid months.
If you’re worried about leaving your dehumidifier on for too long, look for a model that has a timer or other settings that allow you to set it for a certain time and then it shuts off.
Also invest in a digital hygrometer to keep track of the humidity levels so that you don’t leave your dehumidifier on unnecessarily.
How to choose the most efficient dehumidifier for your home
To keep running costs low, make sure you choose the right sized dehumidifier for the room you want to use it in.
There’s no point buying a 70 pint dehumidifier to use in a bathroom. Your bathroom only needs a mini dehumidifier at most, and you can also reduce the humidity in natural ways such as by opening the bathroom window after a shower.
For a large space such as a basement, it’s better and more cost effective to buy a large dehumidifier to suit the large space. A small dehumidifier will have to be emptied often and will fill up quickly and auto shut off a lot. Switching an appliance on and off usually uses more power than when it is running!
Be smart about the dehumidifier you choose for your home- think about where you need to use it and how humid that room or space gets (again, use a digital hygrometer to test the humidity of the room).
Read more about dehumidifiers and humidity:
Best dehumidifier guide
Best dehumidifier to use in your bathroom
Dehumidify your bathroom in 10 easy steps
How to remove humidity in a room without using a dehumidifier
