Can a Basement Dehumidifer Make My Whole House Smell Better?

September 27, 2018 8:27 PM

It's been a wet past few weeks and there's a musty smell in my small house. Plus, the whole house is humid--towels left out to dry smell of mildew and mold has grown on a few places on the walls (there's no fans in the bathrooms.) I'm wondering if much of this could be coming from a very humid basement? (And, so, if a dehumidifer is the best next move.)
posted by Jon44 to Home & Garden (9 answers total)

We have a basement dehumidifier. When it randomly decides to turn itself off*, we can definitely smell musty basement, so it does seem to help.

*Don't get an aprilaire dehumidifier.
posted by monotreme at 9:14 PM on September 27, 2018 [3 favorites]

Yes. When you run it the first time, I would also open a window (if possible/practicable) and set up two oscillating fans to help circulate out some of the stale air, at least for about an hour. If there aren't pets around and/or you aren't sensitive or allergic, might be good to run an essential oil diffuser for part of that hour, too. I have had to do this a couple times in my basement and it makes everything a whole lot better.
posted by nightrecordings at 10:47 PM on September 27, 2018 [1 favorite]

The first summer after I moved into my house, I noticed the basement smelled musty and felt damp. I didn't think it was much of a problem, after all it's a basement. Then my leather tool belt and baseball mitt started getting moldy.

So I got a dehumidifier, but that didn't seem to do much good, as it needed emptying every couple of hours, and I was only doing it every couple of days. I ended up installing a slop sink with a sump pump, and setting the dehumidifier on top of the dryer, so it would drain into the sink.

This fixed the smell and the mold problems. But it sucks as much power as an air conditioner, and I can hear the sink pump going off every couple hours at night.
posted by Marky at 11:29 PM on September 27, 2018 [1 favorite]

Here in the UK it's pretty common to have dehumidifiers in houses (esp. near hanging laundry.) You can put one in the basement, but also in your house. They are pretty bulky though, but some of the larger sized ones don't need emptying that much. I've heard the Meaco brand is very good. Definitely better than mold (and in the longer run, fans in the bathrooms can make a huge difference, or opening a window after every shower, if there is a window.)
posted by heavenknows at 1:50 AM on September 28, 2018

Dehumidifier is a huge help in my not that damp basement. Things smell better and it's nicer in summer. Keeping a fan running helps, too. Long term, I would look into better resolution for a wet basement. There are products that can be painted on walls and floor to help reduce moisture seeping in. Even so, it was so humid this summer I dried towels outside a lot.
posted by theora55 at 6:11 AM on September 28, 2018 [1 favorite]

You may want to look into an air exchanger instead of a de-humidifier. The air exchanger sucks air from the floor level of your basement and vents it outside. It neither needs a drain nor does it have to be emptied manually. However it does need to vent outside and it doesn't work well in a crawl space.

The air exchanger should also cut down on your heating bills by countering the effect of rising heat so it costs less to heat your place in winter and makes it cooler in summer.

If you are looking for a one time (or once a year) solution turning on the heat in your basement or bringing in a plug in heater (on extension cords?) will help dry it out and bringing in fans will help air it out. If the peak dampness you need to tackle occurs in midsummer heat when a heater sounds like it will make the house unbearable, you can have the heater on only a night when (if) the temperature drops, or plan a day long expedition to some place like an air conditioned mall or library. You can also consider renting the de-humidifier and/or fans from a place that does fire and flood damage recovery.

How effective your humidifier or any system will be will depend on how much moisture is leaking in and the layout and air circulation of your basement. A big soggy basement would likely need more than one de-humidifier or air exchanger. If there is mold a heater is a good idea as it means less of the mold will survive in the air or on surfaces. You may also want to consider if there is any ground water leakage and doing some sealing, or redirecting water away from your foundation.
posted by Jane the Brown at 8:14 AM on September 28, 2018 [1 favorite]

Dehumidifier, and some desiccant tubs as well. My superintendent told me about desiccants and I swear by them now (they're also comparatively cheap).
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 8:32 AM on September 28, 2018 [2 favorites]

Dehumidifier should help, you may also want to run an air purifier with an ionizer. I really like the coway AP series.
posted by evilmonk at 9:42 AM on September 28, 2018

Don't just get a portable unit that has to be emptied every few hours. Some of the more capable (and more costly) units allow for passive drainage to a floor drain, if available, and for pumping to a higher level, if needed.

Check the entries on Wikipedia and on Wirecutter for more information.
posted by megatherium at 1:07 PM on September 28, 2018