What's Inside a Dehumidifier?

[@hoonaynay]

I’m 36 and I was staring at our dehumidifier, which has been wondrous, realizing I had no idea how it worked. This was such an easy and fantastic explanation. Thanks!

[@mikem970]

Just got one over the weekend for our bedroom, I’m 59 was laying there looking at ours was wondering the exact same thing!!

[@danielbd4883]

Same here

[@danielbd4883]

Same here

[@Mountain-Man-3000]

That diagram and explainer of the heat pump cycle is probably the best and most concise I've ever seen. Nice work.

[@MuffinKingStudios]

I agree completely

[@carpetjaws]

Thank you, Zach. I'm now educated on how A/C and dehumidifiers work. The next thing I need to know is how to choose a humidifier for a 700' condo in south Florida!

[@Redcell6A]

Just want to take a moment to appreciate the ease at which you completed that hand-drawn circuit at 2:25 to reconnect to the original arrow. Spot on. I would have missed completely.

[@petersamios5409]

This is the best explanation of how an AC and a dehumidifier works that I've seen to date. Thank you for helping me to finally get the process.

[@pvantran82]

You are gifted at explaining how things work. Keep up the good work. Coming from a Hvac technician.

[@FR-tb7xh]

Fascinating! Longtime user of dehumidifiers, and I only surfed to relearn how to ‘deep clean’ one I’m putting back into service to help dry out a kitchen cabinet (due to a pipe leak). Your video explained the workings, which I never knew, plus explained why this one always puts out so much heat! Thank you!

[@gravesucheoma2416]

Best explanation of how dehumidifiers work on the Internet I found. Nice job and thanks for spreading your knowledge sir.

[@Elisummit845]

Great video. Just a correction: the air coming out on the other side is actually hotter then the intake, that is because of the latent heat from within the humidity that is being absorbed into the evaporator coil. So if you have 70°F being pulled you can have 75° blowing out on the other side (all depends on the latent heat). Great work. Thank you

[@bentosan]

More actually. Any watts you put into the system also produces heat. So a 600w dehum will produce for example 610w of sensible heat.

[@Elisummit845]

@@bentosan correct. I was just talking about the latent heat alone, besides for the wattage of the unit.

[@farhadjabbri4331]

you're right, actually right now I'm using one old style using paragon timer that each 8 minutes turn on a normally closed solenoid valve that pass the gas from the coil to evaporator and fan is behind the evaporator. hence passes the air from room through the a mesh at the back of device firs. so eliminate the dust, then pass the condensed coil then pass via evaporator and finally comes out of dehumidifier back to room.

[@RobertLugg]

Great video. A deeper dive would be nice. What does the capacitor do? And what are the other parts? Explaining the signals going into the controller and out would be interesting.

[@moonrich3492]

@@RobertLugg There are often two capacitors: a smaller one (say, 4-6 microfarads) that helps with starting the blower fan and a larger one (say 20-40 microfarads) that helps with starting the compressor. The starting assistance has to do with induction motors -- the simple ones without slip rings -- that spin well but don't start well. They need to temporarily apply a phase shift to the single phase winding to increase torque for starting. If you want to test the capacitance with a multimeter that has that feature be sure to short across the terminals of the capacitor with a screwdriver before disconnecting the leads in order to avoid electrical shock -- the bare terminals are usually accessible. A bad capacitor prevents the compressor from starting, thus no dehumification.

[@nadonadia2521]

Could not believe how is clear your explanations, thank you.

[@lukeWiz44]

Wow. Just wow. This was amazingly produced. I’m in awe. Amazing job.

[@devynhale1623]

Great video and explanations I personally just purchased my first dehumidifying unit didn't know how it works this video was very helpful

[@redrider1940]

You do such an incredible job explaining this!!! I have been meaning to look this up for a long time. It’s amazing what a game changer it is to have one in your home!! Patty

[@jacquesdubord6844]

The best explanation I ever heard on air conditioning and air dehumidifier. Good job

[@PepperStone3]

Dude this video is amazing! Thank you so much, I work with these all day and you really helped me out. Subscribed!

[@jeromeshockley9572]

Thanks for the educational video. Never owned one of these but now that I understand it's basic functions, I'm going to buy one now.

[@charliec.8303]

I have always wanted to know how one of these works. Thank you!

[@loganlogan3539]

Wow, Simple enough to understand and yet still thorough to have a grasp of the underlying principles and processes. Amazing explanation!

[@zzzzander]

Couldn't have asked for a better explanation than this! Thanks!

[@anibalcalvino6898]

Excellent explanation! I'm working on a water generator unit with Solar and Wind power... this is helpful. I would replace the refrigerant with a peltier module to do the "cooling" part and save all that compressor issue. Still working on it...

[@llau7815]

The explanation of the A/C system was very good.

[@geraldwellborn5047]

This was a very informative video. It was straight to the point and thorough enough to understand the principles of dehumidifiers. Thank you

[@brianho6625]

know the thermal exchane principle already. But cannot figure out the exact engineering arrangement until watching this video. Thanks for you detailed explanation.

[@IIGBII]

So what you're saying is, I can buy a box reverse cycle air-conditioner and turn it into a dehumidifier when needed and back to a reverse cycle air-conditioner when heating or cooling is needed... Great! Thanks for this video to explain all this :)

[@yppat]

Awesome video. I have the same dehumidfier but mine is frosting up around the evaporating coil 2-3x the size of the coil and the ice melts but does not drain in the bowl, just goes straight down and leaks under the unit. Once again awesome video. Subscribed!!!

[@jessebrace]

Great explanation for how this works! Other videos made it overly complicated. Thank you.

[@dawnm2647]

Zach you are so awesome! I thought I would try to fix this dehumifier before I threw it out and you helped me fix it! Thanks so much!

[@ZachFields]

You're welcome!!

[@JasonFlorida]

Excellent! Thanks for the great explanation and drawing.

[@weathermannax416]

The freon after it has gone through the cold coil then is dumped into the compressor can where it absorbs the heat from the compressor motor, when it is running. When it is off the compressor gets rather warm. The issue with the newer cheap dehumidifiers is that the compressor is all sealed up, no ventilation to allow for convective cooling. Unlike a refrigerator, chest freezer, window air conditioner, portable air conditioner, water coolers or central air conditioner where the compressor is out in the open allowing for convective cooling. I have a GE brand dehumidifier & I notice the room getting quite warm as it lowers the humidity level. Which is why it was shipped back to Amazon from another customer.

[@jasonlee771]

Perfect explanation. Answer all the questions I have.

[@greatdane3343]

Excellent explanation. Thanks for sharing.

[@endrezalan8462]

Best explantation ever. Thank you very much!!!

[@alialhashmi4736]

Very brilliant explanation way dear. Thank you for your great efforts, if you don't mind can you explain more about HVAC in all from A to Z.

[@ranger178]

wow somebody actually describes the process well most people get it completely wrong .I see so many people thinking the compressor puts out cold freon liquid rather than hot gas the only thing i would add is the heat from compressor actually makes air warmer coming out then when it went in through the condensing coil getting rid of the compressor heat

[@twosawyers]

I wish the exhaust temperatures were the same! I have yet to fine a dehumidifier the has the same entry temperature as them exit temperature. If you find one let me know!

[@marvelmaniac3339]

Superbly instructional video on dehumidifiers!

[@99hammad99]

Quick and simple, thank you so much. Keep the good work :)

[@neelumgilani1707]

Amazing video, very helpful and clear the concept Thanks

[@oby-1607]

Excellent explanation. Thank you for sharing.

[@ZachFields]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@selftaughtkh]

Great explanation. Love it.

[@inductor1.77]

How hot does the compressor usually get? The one I had was almost too hot to touch after running for 2 hours, was wondering if thats normal

[@Sergio-hu6zb]

Thank you very much for your clear explanation

[@davidprasad5613]

Great video. I have the fan working and air blowing but the compressor not heating up and checked the capacitor which as no power. The capacitor has 4.7uf 380vac. Will 6uf 400vac work?

[@vctor6768]

💯% I used to wonder why dehumidifiers don't cool the room until today

[@richm368]

great video! My question is; why does my AC cool my room faster on the dehumidifier setting as opposed to temp?

[@kaushikReddynarra]

Great! Thanks man. You just motivated me to learn new stuff. Please keep doing this

[@f33fifofum]

This is such a good explanation, thank you for this video

[@dillon4813]

If I open up a dehumidifier would I be able to separate and add fans for each coil? and one of those fans is exhausting heat outside? take off the plastic split and insulate each coil and add fans, and the cool side would still dehumidify the air while cooling it? I have a $300 dehumidifier I got for $20. I need another air conditioner though.

[@johnmustol8828]

Great video. Thanks. But how do you clean the gunk out that collects in between the two coils?

[@davidia8000]

Thank you so much Zach I love this video and your explanation I want to build it from scratch with an arduino

[@nitroburn72]

Awesom job explaining how a dehumidifier works. Last one we had stopped working, we moved, and I had to repurchase another one to help keep basement humidity low. Since we've had hot days and been running our heat pump, the humidity has jumped to 65'ish%. Would rather have it between 45-55%. Wasn't expecting the heat from the dehumidifier to warm our comfortable 69°/70° room to 77°! Unit has a Set setting, along with Continuous and Max. How is the exhaust (warm/cold) going to be during each of those settings? Which will keep humidity set at a specific % and limit heat? Thanks, in advance. Loved that you included a real-like example of the frosting of the coils and the melting of the ice.

[@oq17]

Very good explanation So if I have a dehumidifier and I bypass the air after it passes over the cooling coil and force back into the room And if I add an additional fan to draw outside air over the hot coil , and then exhaust it back outside , I would then cool the room and have an a/c ?

[@ErikOdinsvej]

Thanks you for your nice video, I have this kind of unit and wonder how the defrost mode kick in ? - cos I have look inside and there is only one PT sensor for checking the temp. when it get to cold, is the sensor both for shout of compressor when it get to cold AND for detecting that it need defrost ? - I have a woods model 10

[@dustintravis8791]

Pretty cool Zach, thanks for the explanation!

[@jjtrades7186]

Ive always wanted to make an air-conditioner out of one of these just for fun just to see if it can be done. Place the warm coil on one side of a wall with a fan blowing out, and place the cool side on the other side of the wall with a fan blowing in, with a drainage tube for water of course. Seems feasible.

[@ZachFields]

That would be cool!

[@jjtrades7186]

@@ZachFields Im building a travel camper and dont really want to install an ac unit in the roof and dont really want a mini split (although that may end up being the best solution), but Id really like to build my own sort of heatpump with reversing valve using a fridge compressor or something smaller. I know they sell smaller compressors. But I could grab a vehicle fan shroud and an electric automotive fan for both exhausting the hot side, and another one to act as the blower for the cold side. I mostly just think it would be a fun project but I dont have any hvac experience so Im intimidated

[@Leoblier-66]

Thank you very much. VERY well explained and detailed. You should be a teacher ! Or maybe you are ? 🙂👌👍

[@apurbosaha3322]

Not sure about your background, are you a prof or an engineer? this is a high quality explanation done elegantly and many people would be benefitted. Thank you! Also, I have a question, my dehumidifier is 5 year old and recently I noticed - it runs fine but its not making the air dry and so very less water, if any is collecting. is it time to buy a new one? or I should try to tweak anything? what's the top thing inside I should take a look? appreciate your response when you get a chance. Again, thanks for the video.

[@vincd1157]

You are a great teacher

[@ad229]

Nicely explained. Thank you

[@giG_apP_haCks_]

Actually in addition to the compressor getting hot, the air coming out of the dehumidifier is about 10-15°F warmer than ambient temperature due to the release of latent heat. Evaporation absorbs latent heat energy, thus cooling things down. Therefore condensation, which is the opposite and what ends up dripping in the tank, releases it, thereby causing the temperature of a small room to rise significantly when running a dehumidifier. The effect on sensible heat energy (temperature) by the release of latent heat energy is about 970 BTU/lb of water collected in the tank. The heat produced by the compressor, and less so the fans is about 3400 BTU/kWh. If a dehumidifier removes 1 lb of water in one hour and pulls 400 W. (That’s 0.4 kWh). 3400 X 0.4. So there’s about 1,360 BTU of sensible heat from the compressor and fans and 970 BTU from latent heat release. In this case 41% of the sensible heat produced is actually from latent heat release.

[@X862go]

Awesome explanation 👏

[@justinbeathe552]

Good job sir. Keep it up. Enjoyed the video

[@danielbd4883]

Good explanation

[@tee228]

would it be okay to spray down the part behind the removable grill.. the metal part with fins, when its unplugged of course. theres some gooey stuff that I need to get rid of

[@Sharma_167a]

Doo you think we can make some tweaks in this design to make it work like an AC. As dehumidifier are comparatively cheaper than AC. Its is compact and easy in mobility.

[@DidYouReadEULA]

Excellent explanation, thank you!!

[@Tim_Gravy]

Do you have a video how to fix a dehumidifier? Mines not collecting water, the compressor gets warm, the fan works, the coilers arent getting that cold tho, would say just room temp... is the refrigerant possibly not in the unit anymore? Possibly leaked out from being cheaply made lol...

[@lesleyherrmann5145]

This is a great video. Thank you!

[@rel3855]

Great explanation! Thanks for the helpful video.

[@StAnger561to770]

Nice video Zack thanks for showing the internal workings. I noticed my machine it seems to be dripping the parts at the edges for the copper coil winds around. Is that normal? I mean the part that's not covered by the aluminum fins. Also I noticed something strange in my collection bucket the water that comes out has this sort of blackish grayish residue when I pour out the water. I cleaned the bucket but it seems to be coming from the inside of the machine because I can see it on top of the drip tray where the hole is. It wipes off relatively easily with a paper towel and it almost seems more of like a sort of a graphite than it does actually seem like mold but I guess it could be some type of mold. I've had a few other dehumidifiers and they don't seem to have the same problem that this one does so I guess I need to open it up and give it sort of a deep cleaning but I'm not really mechanically inclined so I'm a little hesitant to get too far into it. I'm ready to open it up the next time the bucket is full and see if I can get some extra gunk out behind behind beyond what the filter is

[@CristobalAshton]

How does the dry mode work on a split AC system?

[@GoldRaven-oe4by]

How do small dehumidifiers work then? Ive taken one apart and theres no compressor or coils. Just some sensors, computer parts, a fan and a metal plate

[@MuffinKingStudios]

Perhaps it only uses the cooling to condense the water onto the plate? Similar to the cold water bottle reference in the video. Or maybe it's one of those thermoelectric generators that produces a temperature difference on either side of a metal to condense the water? I'm no expert but I think you raised a great point.

[@micsnz]

great explanation!

[@rockyboy976]

Fantastic video mate. Can a dehumidifier placed in the hallway work for multiple rooms whose rooms are open and connected to the hallway? Will it work that way? Assuming the four or five connected rooms are ranging from 8 to 16 sq.m and it can dehumidify multiple rooms at the same, how large a dehumidifier do I need?

[@adriancentra]

Is it important for effectively dehumidifying that the cold and hot coils are right next to each other? I tried using a mobile AC unit on the dry setting (without the exhaust hose attached), it just heats the room but collects barely any water.

[@judahhorst1673]

Great breakdown of how the system works!

[@rdecook651]

if not using a drain hose, does a cap need to be placed over the orifice provided for a drain hose

[@chrisclift5691]

Great video you answered a bunch of my questions Just wondering if you think a 12 volt dehumidifier for an RV would even work with the amount of power it needs to run?

[@gbouc1536]

I have a 70 pint Honeywell TP70AWKN. It is located in my basement with a temperature of 70 degrees. The Dehumidifier is set at 50 degrees. Sometimes it will go down to 45 for 3 minutes, and then shutoff. The level will go to 55 and then start back up. Other times it will run for days and stay at 46-49 degrees with cool air out the top. Then it will at some point start operating the way it should again. Is this normal ?

[@wdwdHenry9022]

is it the same effect in spray bottle like butane you spray and it gets cold but the bottle is room temperature?

[@georgeskinner2474]

Very helpful video. How do you test/repair the excessive frost switch function? My Frigidaire FFAD7033R1A runs the compressor too long.

[@alleonhard261]

What if the frost doesn't melt away ? Mine has a big round bunch of frost that is 1" thick out the back side and it never seems to be gone.

[@diplod5000]

What is the grills are made out from? I got a new dehumidifier and strapped on an 3M particulate air filer on it and am thinking to UV sterilize the water and drink it, as I do not trust the tap water. You think there would be a lot of heavy metals leaching into the water. My ppm meter measure 19ppm but I dont know of what. Any help will be appreciated

[@EzraBriggsMusic]

Good explanation, thank you!

[@Leoblier-66]

Could it be possible that the automatic switch that defrosts the coil could be defective and the ice builds up higher on the coil ? If so where would it be situated on the unit ? and how can i verify this ? Because i saw the ice build up and simply unplugged it for a while, and after re plugging it i smelled a burning odor... Could this be related ? what else do you think this could be ? Thank you

[@BruceLeef]

My humidifier coils don't get hot or cold and will not collect any water.. the works and capacitor is brand new.. I can feel the compressor turn on but it gets really hot .. does it need a refrigerant recharge ..?? Or is my compressor bad .. ??

[@relearn1]

Excellent, you should be a teacher. Am 70 yrs. old, auto-mechanic 40 years.

[@adamjones9600]

I'm curious, when you see a "commercial dehumidifier" that is say 1700$, and it is rated for up to 18 gallons per day, is that price largely because of the niche market? I see also a '150 pint [~22 gal] (under 95°F,90%RH condition) removal per day' unit rated for 7000sqft, it is 300$ (and also uses a compressor). I assume this is essentially the same core mechanical process in both units, just different packaging. Is there any difference in the refrigerants used in modern systems?

[@edgeeffect]

Explained clearly.... thanks.

[@terryketcham6199]

When I add a drain hose to drain the water as opposed to have the water fall into the bucket, what causes the water to drain into the hose

[@daniellapain1576]

So I technically you could make a 12v-24v dehumidifier by just swapping out the compressor for a boat refrigerator compressor. My goal is to design one that uses the least energy but pumps out the most water so it can run from solar power. So I guess it would have to turn off after icing at 3 quarters of the way for the most water without damage. The knowledge of what the internals do is extremely helpful. With some solid state fans it could run with very little electricity in a slim case too.

[@khalishakhairani4795]

In fact, every single hose portable air conditioners is practically a dehumidifier because the hot coil and the cold coil are just beside each other blow the hot humid air and more effective to remove condensation and not cooling the room.

[@Paragon_Reason]

Great explanation. Me being novice and wanting to learn it leads me to a questions. Is there not a way to cool the air without using a compressor, bc there is heat made by compressor as well as it increased the temp of "coolant" to 200degrees in the example. Does it have to be liquid in order to disperse the coolant at a cold temperature? Is there no way to have a coolant that sits below room temp in a natural state and cycle that in front of the coils/fan to cool the air? Another question would be. Are there any systems that r designed in such a way that the would essentially put the Warn-Liquid compressor coil 'under' the Liquid misting cooling coil, which would drizzle the icey cold water, over the Warm coils to lower the temperature a tad, but keep coolant a liquid, but utilize the off-heat better. I know it sounds like the ramblings of a madman but my mind wanders when it's trying to figure things out.

[@saadomar1101]

thank you man,, explains so well,

[@taramiller70]

Do dehumifers kill mold spores or do they just stop new mold appearing I have mold in my bedroom and I use dehumifers also are small dehumifers ideal for a small bedroom or should I use large or medium dehumifers also do dehumifers work and are they worth using

[@charliec.8303]

I’m sorry, that sucks! I don’t believe dehumidifiers will kill mold spores. They will just lower the humidity to a level that makes it difficult for mold to grow. That will be important over the long run. In the meantime, killing mold where you see it with various cleaners is helpful, as well as using an air filter or good filter insert for your HVAC (air conditioner) system, if you are having allergies to the mold.

[@seanstanley3849]

If your small dehumidifier is not keeping the mold down the you should consider getting a nother small one or a window AC you can also make a dehumidifier, There are other way to purify the air too (search KZbin).

[@Yadilea]

Cool beans! That was a good explaination. Thank you!

[@honestnewsnet]

Probably more information in this one video and all of KZbin it may be all of the Internet to help people understand how a Dehumidifier works.

[@thaidenthach9806]

humans are so amazing in the creations they create. All praise be to allah.

[@commonman2965]

Cab you fix a dehumidifier, I have one that is showinhg Er code 1 which basically the compressor doesn't turn on. The fan works. I was told this may be a senor gone bad.

[@klimicin]

I was thinking right way how it works but I'm still wondering why our dehumidifier blows rather warm than cold air 🤔 it makes sense that the air blown out would be cooled as it passes through the cold coil.