Which desiccant dehumidifier?

2

2copplane

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Easy one. I want to replace my current dessicant dehumidifier with one that has a continuous drain plus can actually run continuously. My current one stops after about 8 hours and has to be restarted. I'm looking for a well priced one.

It must be desiccant as they are whisper quiet.
 
Meaco DD8 got a lot of support sometime ago in a forum thread. It also has an air filter and ioniser both of which are Good Things.
 
How about a Ruby Dry. I have the older Amber Dry which is still going strong after years of use in the winter. Also if mine did fail then it would be a fixed price of £60 for an out of warranty repair/service.
 
Carmel2 said:
+1
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DD8 regular is great. It remembers the settings in case of a power outage as well. Plus, once the required humidity level is reached, it effectively goes to sleep and checks the air once every 30 minutes.
Only downside is that on a warmish day the boat can get quite warm as the unit exhausts hot air as part of the desiccant recycling process. However, unlike compressor models it will work in ambient temperatures down to a few degrees.
 
This EcoAir has been with us for two years now, being used a lot in two UK winters or for drying the laundry in high-power mode. Also provides nice dry warm air on chilly autumn evenings :)

Does run for as long as you keep it on, and if power fails and later returns, it remembers its settings and continues where it left off. Forgot to lash it on once and it smashed around the boat under sail, but survived even that with only minor damage (the plastic nipples limiting the turn of the vent outlet snapped off). I did open it up a while ago to lubricate the bearings as it got a bit squeaky after non-stop use living aboard for two UK winters - manufacturer offered repair, but I didn't wanna be without it for a week. Reasonably serviceable I'd say and pretty pleased with it.

Drains either into included tray or plumbed into sink via hose (also included). Quiet enough to run at night on low mode.
 
My EcoAir has been excellent.

Either that or a Meaco I think.
Yngmar said:
This EcoAir has been with us for two years now, being used a lot in two UK winters or for drying the laundry in high-power mode. Also provides nice dry warm air on chilly autumn evenings :)

Does run for as long as you keep it on, and if power fails and later returns, it remembers its settings and continues where it left off. Forgot to lash it on once and it smashed around the boat under sail, but survived even that with only minor damage (the plastic nipples limiting the turn of the vent outlet snapped off). I did open it up a while ago to lubricate the bearings as it got a bit squeaky after non-stop use living aboard for two UK winters - manufacturer offered repair, but I didn't wanna be without it for a week. Reasonably serviceable I'd say and pretty pleased with it.

Drains either into included tray or plumbed into sink via hose (also included). Quiet enough to run at night on low mode.
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2copplane said:
Thanks, do any forumites have a dd8 junior and can confirm it will run continuously? The standard one looks great but perhaps the output a big big for my needs.
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Yes I do - it must be about 18 months to 2 years old now and has been on most of that time. It restarts correctly after a loss of power i.e. in the settings in which you left it. I leave it on the slowest fan speed and the one 'drip' relative humidity setting (60%).
 
Steve_N said:
Yes I do - it must be about 18 months to 2 years old now and has been on most of that time. It restarts correctly after a loss of power i.e. in the settings in which you left it. I leave it on the slowest fan speed and the one 'drip' relative humidity setting (60%).
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Same with mine which is 3 years old and I use it mostly over the winter and have left the boat for 5 months unattended and found the junior working fine and all bedding and clothes dry and fresh. I use the same minimum settings when leaving the boat but last week when we had to take in a lot of dripping washing then leave the boat closed up for four days I used the higher settings. We came back in to dry towels and sheets hanging in the cabin and a dry floor even though the clothes were dripping vigorously. The junior is powerful enough for a roomy 42 footer.
 
Another vote for DD8L. Amazon have it with Prime (so free next day delivery if you have it). We use ours all the time including for clothes drying in the winter on the boat. Works an absolute treat and drains into a sink .
 
Another vote here for the DD8L junior. I have taken mine back on to the boat this week as have felt the bedding slightly damp in the mornings of late. Pulled 2 litres of water out in the first 12 hours of use (on clothes drying setting). Now ticking away on low fan and 1 drip setting. Boat feels great now. Added bonus is that on full whack it churns out good heat for a chilly evening.
 
We also use a Meaco DD8L Junior. I previously used a compressor dehumidifier on a timer for a few hours per day through the Winter, supported with a small oil filled radiator. I was initially concerned when I bought the Meaco to find that it couldn't be used with a timer and that it had to be left on permanently without any control over how long it runs for. However, it has proved to be a superb unit and miles ahead of the previous compressor type. Even on the lowest of settings it throws out a small amount of heat which eliminates the need for the oil filled radiator. As others have said, it switches on and off and samples the air in accordance with the humidity so it's actually much more efficient than using a time switch as long as the boat is kept relatively air tight. I also like the fact that the settings resume after a power cut.
 
And there's me just starting to think about buying a replacement dessicant based dehumidifier to replace my old compressor one that died last winter... Thanks 2copplane for opening the thread! Looks like the DD8 for me too!

Mind you, online prices are interesting, Appliances Direct are £169.97 +£4.95 delivery, and another half dozen are £174.92 +free delivery... Yeah, get your calculators out!
 
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One seller https://www.airconcentre.co.uk gives a 3 year warranty on Meacos plus good prices. Have bought three from them - one boat and two in house. Warranty useful as whilst Meacos very efficient they and other dessicant makes appear to be less long-term reliable than good compressor units like Ebacs. However dessicant is so much better than compressor ones in cold conditions.
 
We have a DD8L and it is very effective. My only criticism is that the drain pipe to dump the water into the sink does not seem to be 100% effective - if we leave it running for more than a week unattended, we often get back to the boat and find that the tank has filled up and tripped the cut-out. It does not matter too much to us - we use the boat all the year round, so it just means that it may not be running for a day or two. If you want to leave it running unattended for longer periods, it may be more of an issue.
 
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