Quote Originally Posted by motoguy128 View Post
The rated efficiency is not at 55%RH and 70 degrees. Its' at something like 75F and 80%RH. All units are rated and what I consider "non typical" conditions.

It's a cheap protable unit, what did you expect? The cheap units serve their purpose and cost about 1/5th (or less) what a larger more effecient units cost.

Persoanlly I'd shoot for 60% RH. Trying to maintain 55% in a basement is a bit optimstic without a full vapor barrier all around.

Current AHAM rating standards for all dehumidifiers (portable and whole house) are at 80°F and 60%RH.

I maintain 71° 41% in my 1890's stone foundation basement in SE WI using a 65 pint Perfect Aire portable dehumidifier from Ace Hardware. It draws 570w while running, and removes 2.65 pints/kwh - 35 pints/day under those conditions. (I did have higher numbers when I first started it up at 68° 57%RH)

Looking at the spec sheet for the Hi-E Dry 100 which Teddy Bear posted a few weeks ago, at those conditions the the Hi-E is rated for the exact same capacity that I am experiencing with the cheapie portable unit that is 1/8 as expensive. The Hi-E Dry 100 will perform better at higher temperatures/humidity though.

Granted the longevity might not be there, but that's still up in the air. I have 2 old portable dehumidifiers from the early 80's that still work great (might not quite hold true for current models though).

Michael