So, you’re thinking about getting a dehumidifier but you’re worried about the electricity bill. You’re not wrong about that, dehumidifiers can use a lot of energy. Fortunately, manufacturers offer energy-efficient dehumidifiers.

Like every smart person would do, you want to do a little research about these dehumidifiers. Hearing ‘energy-efficient’ isn’t enough. That’s what we’ll be doing today. We’ll go over the electricity usage of EE dehumidifiers, and some other things you may want to know.

The energy usage of a dehumidifier depends on its power capability. The cost depends on the state you live in. On average, the cost is $150 per year.

As you can see, the short answer isn’t exactly clear. We need to dive deeper.

What does energy-efficient mean?

‘Energy-efficient’ is a misleading term. Many dehumidifiers can be energy-efficient depending on how you use them. So, let’s see what actually makes a dehumidifier energy-efficient. Hopefully, this will clear things up for you.

Dehumidifier size

Now, you can’t run the average dehumidifier in every room. The bigger the room, the bigger the dehumidifier you need. Commercial dehumidifiers come in three different sizes: 30-pint, 50-pint, and 70-pint. For instance, the 30-pint dehumidifier is only efficient in rooms up to 1000 square feet.

Obviously, the 50-pint dehumidifier uses more energy than the 30-pint one. But there’s a catch here. Although it uses more energy, it will clear out the moisture way faster than the 30-pint one. That means that the 50-pint dehumidifier won’t have to run as much.

You don’t want to get a dehumidifier that is too big for your house. For instance, if you’re planning on dehumidifying only the small basement, a 30-pint will do. However, if you’re planning on dehumidifying more than 1 room, a 50-pint will be better. Even if the house is smaller than 1000 square feet, the 50-pint will be more energy efficient. Seeing as how it will eliminate the humidity faster.

Keep this in mind, it will make sense in a minute.

Power usage

Another important factor that contributes to energy consumption is the power of the dehumidifier. Of course, the bigger the size, the bigger the power usage. However, there are some 50-pint models that don’t differ much from the 30-pint ones. In terms of power usage. And, some 70-pint models are relatively the same as the 50-pint ones.

Among homeowners, the 30-pint models are the most popular. On average, models come with 250-310-Watts. Although it looks like these kinds of models don’t use that much energy, the time it takes for them to eliminate moisture is longer. Therefore, they will use the same amount of energy, if not more.

Stay focused, one more thing to go over.

Eliminating moisture efficiency

The most important thing you have to take in consideration is how well the dehumidifier clears moisture. The power usage and the size of the dehumidifier affect the efficiency of eliminating moisture. However, some features contribute to eliminating moisture. So, some 30-pint dehumidifiers can be more efficient than 50-pint ones.

For instance, dehumidifiers use a coil to extract the moisture from the air. Some coils are more effective at doing that. So, even if they use less power, they can extract the moisture more effectively.

All in all, dehumidifiers are together with sump pumps one of the best ways to pretect your house against water damage and mold.

Energy-efficient models

Here are some models that are considered to be the best of the best. They will paint a good picture of how an energy-efficient dehumidifier should look like.

Ivation 4500 Sq Ft Energy Star Dehumidifier *

This is a dehumidifier with an average price. It is quite energy efficient. Originally, made as a 70-pint dehumidifier but with recent changes it is considered to be a 50-pint.

It has a power of 500-Watts, quickly dehumidifies rooms from 3000 to 4000 square feet. It also comes with some cool features like a built-in humidistat and auto shut off.

Haier Energy Star 30-Pint *

A small dehumidifier made for rooms smaller than 1000 square feet. This dehumidifier does really well in small rooms. It eliminates moisture faster than many other 30-pint models. Seeing as how it won’t have to work that much, you’ll save energy.

Waykar 70-Pint Dehumidifier *

* = affiliate link to Amazon.

This is a Waykar model that I really like. Compared to other 70-pint models, it uses less energy. Its power consumption is 400-Watts. Regardless of the low power usage, it eliminates moisture as well as other efficient models do.

For those that love some smart tech features, the Waykar has them too. Timers, auto shut off, 2-way drainage, and humidity settings.

Now that you know what a good energy efficient dehumidifier looks like, you may be wondering how it differs from normal dehumidifiers.

Energy Star dehumidifiers vs. normal dehumidifiers

Energy Star isn’t some advanced technology, it’s just a symbol. It validates the dehumidifier as energy-efficient. What does that mean?

Well, with the initiative to preserve the environment and its resources, we don’t want units that waste energy. A unit is considered wasteful when its function is ineffective compared to the energy that it uses.

Take into account the things we said in the first section about dehumidifier size, usage, and efficiency. A dehumidifier is considered to be energy efficient when all its power goes to good use. If a 500-Watts dehumidifier works like a 300-Watts dehumidifier, it can’t be considered as energy-efficient.

The point of Energy Star is to stop wasting energy. The power that the unit uses needs to be justified. If a 500-Watts dehumidifier eliminates moisture like a 500-Watts dehumidifier should, it is considered energy-efficient. Some dehumidifiers even do more than a 500-Watts dehumidifier should.

I don’t mean to define normal dehumidifiers as bad. According to the new standards they are just considered wasteful. Because of the increased consciousness about smart energy usage, it’s hard to find units that don’t have the Energy Star. It’s the standard today, people want energy-efficient units.

Now, just to expand your options, let’s see how to calculate the energy usage of a unit.

How to calculate cost of dehumidifier’s energy use?

I think this would be a useful formula to know even if you aren’t thinking about buying a dehumidifier. It’s actually quite simple, you can do it by hand or get a calculator. For those that are lazy and hate math, you can find electricity bill calculators online.

So, what you need to know is the dehumidifier’s wattage, the hours per day the dehumidifier is going to be running, and the state’s kWh rate. Once you have that, calculating the bill is quite easy.

Start by multiplying the dehumidifier’s wattage and the running hours per day. Then, divide that number by 1000. This will convert the estimate into kWh. Now you know how much energy the dehumidifier uses per day.

The estimate that you converted into kWh now needs to be multiplied by the state’s kWh rate. The number you’re going to get is the cost of the energy used in a day. You can multiply that by 30 if you want the monthly estimate.

Let’s see an example. A 500-Watts dehumidifier that runs 6 hours a day. We multiply 500 by 6 to get Watts per day. 500 x 6 = 3000. We divide that by 1000 to get the kWh. 3000 / 1000 = 3. Now, all we need to do is multiply 3 by the rate which we will go with 12 cents per kWh. 3 x 12 = 36. Therefore, a 500-Watts dehumidifier running 6 hours per day will cost 36 cents per day. Per year, it comes down to 120 dollars.

Well, that’s a nice trick you learned today, it’s time to finish up. Just one more thing to go over.

Additional information

These are things you may want to know before making a decision on energy-efficient dehumidifiers.

Dehumidifiers help HVAC units. Besides the air being more pleasant, dehumidifiers cut the energy usage of HVAC units. ACs and heating units are way more efficient when they work in 30%-50% humidity. So, an energy-efficient dehumidifier will also make HVAC units more effective.

Choose dehumidifiers that will run less hours per day. No matter the unit, you always want it to run less. It’s best if you take into account the volume of humidity that the dehumidifier needs to eliminate. Then, compare that with the dehumidifier that you want to buy, and see if it suits you.

Dehumidifiers use energy while on stand-by. Because of the tech features like timers, LED indicators etc, the dehumidifiers use energy even when not running. Even if you don’t think this is insignificant it will round up. So, if you don’t need some of the tech features, search for something else.

This is where we end it today folks. Good luck with your dehumidifier, may it serve you well. I hope I answered your questions.

Related questions

Can I leave my dehumidifier running all day?

Only if that’s what your home requires. More precisely, only if the high humidity levels are persistent. Leaving the dehumidifier to work all day while it doesn’t need to will bring the humidity below 30%. Consider a dehumidifier with auto shut off.

Should I use my dehumidifier every day?

Running the dehumidifier every day would be best. Measure the hours needed for the moisture to be gone. Using a dehumidifier every day is advised but only the amount of hours that is needed.