„Does a dehumidifier cool a room?“ is a question that most people ask themselves when they’re researching the whole dehumidifier thing. Many are just wondering about the effects a dehumidifier has on an average home, while others see a 2-in-1 possibility to avoid getting even more devices and paying a higher energy bill.
It’s a solid question and there is quite a lot of science behind it, but we’re going to be very clear with our explanations. Dehumidifiers are devices that remove extra humidity from your home and there is a big difference between the way your home feels and the real numbers. That’s why we’re doing this step-by-step. Let’s dive in.
What are dehumidifiers and what do they do?
We’re starting with some very basic things. A dehumidifier is a gadget that removes extra humidity from your home. Normal humidity in the air should be at around 60-ish percent, but people who live in warm climates, those who experience quite a lot of rain and those who live near a lake or the sea usually experience much more humidity.
Humid air is bad for people. It won’t make you sick or anything, but those who already have any sort of issue will feel how amplified the issue gets. Asthma, throat infections, colds, coughing and allergies get a lot worse in humid environments, and that’s why many people decide to go ahead and invest in a dehumidifier.
Why do we feel like the temperature is higher when the air is humid?
Statistically, the temperature of the air does not depend on the humidity. If it’s 16°C, it’s 16°C and that’s it. However, our bodies often have weird responses to many things and we are subjective because our skin is contacting a different medium.
Humid air lowers our ability to cool our bodies and systems. Our natural response, when the air is hot, is to sweat and lower our temperature by giving away some of our energy. If the air is humid, our sweat cannot evaporate and we feel as if it’s much warmer than it is.
Does a dehumidifier really make your room cooler?
Nope. It does not. Sadly, the air circulation inside the gadget doesn’t really make it that much colder. In some dehumidifiers, there is a condensation principle that happens, which is essentially the idea of condensation water so it gets out of the air, but this change is not significant and the coldest part, the water itself, gets left in the tray.
If you don’t know which dehumidifier to buy, read the article, what are the types of dehumidifiers?
Can a dehumidifier help with temperature regulation?
Somewhat. If you already own a device that is supposed to cool a room, like an AC or something like that, you will see much better results once you decide to use a dehumidifier. The air conditioners will absorb the water, which is usually the hardest part to cool down, and the air itself will be much more „prone to change“.
Does the fact that my dehumidifier has a hose change this?
No. Even if you have an unconventional device, they all tend to work in the same way, they use the same process. Hose or no hose, portable or not, big or small, industrial or not, they all just take the water out of the air and they let the dry air out.
Wait, what about warmth?
Well, this is tricky and this heavily depends on the amount of efficiency your gadget has. If your device has energy-saving properties, chances are that it’s going to be temperature-neutral. If the device is not really a „smart“ one, it may have an older mechanism and release more warmth than a regular dehumidifier would.
This essentially means that there are some dehumidifiers out there that can warm a room up, especially if they’re running all of the time.
Do I need an air conditioner if I have a dehumidifier?
Yes. Since we just realized that not only does a dehumidifier not cool a room down, we also now know that there is a possibility that it warms it up. So yeah, if you ask us, having an AC is mandatory for those that are battling with temperature changes all of the time.
Summary
Dehumidifiers are devices that remove extra moisture from the air you breathe. They’re a great tool for those who battle with certain respiratory issues. However, they do not change the temperature in your room to a lower one. They can create a slight difference in the other direction because of the way the mechanism heats up.
You should definitely get an AC if you’re battling warm temperatures, and the dehumidifier will amplify the work the AC does.
