Defeating damp – take the sting out of taking water out of the air with our buyer’s guide to the best dehumidifiers
Image: Ebac
Many houses suffer from damp and poor ventilation – most commonly in the bathroom, but often creeping into other places too. If it’s not nipped in the bud, you could find yourself with the tell-tale signs of mould – and then things can get really expensive.
While a dehumidifier is only a stopgap solution in most cases, it can still be an important one – here’s our guide to the best buys right now…
Meaco 20L Low Energy Dehumidifier, £244.98
Image: Meaco
Meaco are one of the most reliable brands in home dehumidifier, and this generously-featured model is built to battle condensation.
The Meaco 20L Low Energy Dehumidifier is targeted at medium to large homes and, despite its energy efficiency, it’s extremely powerful and effective. Even better, during the summer months when your home may not experience issues with damp, it can be turned into an air purifier, as it comes with a HEPA filter.
Ebac 3850e 21 litre Dehumidifier, £245.90
Image: Ebac
No-one buys a humidifier for sleek good looks – and a good job in this case. But while it looks clunky, the Ebac 3850e 21 litre dehumidifier is a superbly efficient, UK-made gem.
It works wonders on bathrooms without extractor fans – or with weedy ones that just don’t cut it – and has an automatic cut-off for energy saving. Even better, it has a laundry mode – put it next to your wet washing and it’ll have it all dry in no time.
Pro Breeze 12L Dehumidifier, £119.99
Image: Pro Breeze
For smaller homes, the smaller Pro Breeze 12 litre dehumidifier is ideal. As the name suggests, it can extract some 12 litres a day of moisture into its 1.8l tank, while a useful digital display shows you the room’s humidity level. Add in a timer, sleep mode, auto sensor and laundry mode and it has all the bells and whistles of more costly models.
Delonghi Tasciugo Ariadry DX10, £150.99
Image: DeLonghi
Available in different capacities and – unusually in the robust but unpretty world of moisture removal – a choice of colours, the Delonghi Tasciugo Ariadry DX10 is a solid all-rounder. It’s slimline and portable, capable of hiding away and doing its work in the background.
The tank is on the small-side, but happily you can attach a waste hose directly and run it through to a drain or a sink.
iTvanila 12L dehumidifier, £119.98
Image: iTvanila
It may not be from a household name, but this quiet and energy-friendly dehumidifier has had plenty of thought put into it.
With the iTvanila 12 dehumidifier you can set the desired humidity while it also boasts a leak protector, fullness indicator and it taps into the ‘Internet of things’ era with an app that lets you control it remotely.
So you can be on the way to work and turn it on if you forgot to do so before you left. Well, that might happen…
Which dehumidifier would you recommend? Share your thoughts by tweeting us @granddesigns or post a comment on our Facebook page.