As home gadgets go, I never thought a dehumidifier would top the list as my ‘life-changing-you-won’t-regret-it’ buys, but hear me out.
Dehumidifiers stop condensation on windows, help to dry clothes and aren’t that expensive to run (check out how much does a dehumidifier cost to run for all the numbers)
Honestly, I thought my must-buy gadget list this Black Friday would be all Dyson air wrap deals and Nespresso coffee machine deals, maybe even a kitchen aid deal but no, it’s the humble dehumidifier Black Friday deals that you don't want to miss, trust me. I’m a mum-of-one and Family Editor at Goodto.com and I love my dehumidifier. They’re having a bit of a moment aren't they, dehumidifiers, given the tumultuous times we’re in. Times where energy is sky high along with all the simple day-to-day costs of living, such as electricity and food - our my favourite store-bought frozen pizza has gone up from £3.50 to £5 - anyway I digress. This dehumidifier changed my life and here's how...
Top three ways it's changed my life:
- Helps me to breathe - no seriously, I’m asthmatic and when winter hits the damp, that my Edwardian semi-detached house seems to hold onto, is offensive.
- It dries clothes - rather than put the heating or tumble dryer on we just plug in and turn to ‘laundry mode’.
- Dries my walls out - from an interiors perspective this sensible buy means we can redo our dining room in the near future.
The dehumidifier that changed my life:
My husband wasn’t convinced when I mentioned we may need one; ‘we’re managing fine without one why do we need to spend on a dehumidifier’ was his reply. Just to give you a bit of background, we keep our smart metre in our utility room, which has now become my husband’s favourite place to stand when he comes home from work. He walks in there folds his arms and stares at the smart metre, trying to work out why it’s so high.
So he was delighted when I told him that spending on the initial outlay for a decent dehumidifier means we won’t use the tumble dryer as a dehumidifier can dry clothes too. He wasn’t convinced you could dry clothes without a dryer.
But - for all you sceptics our there - a dehumidifier can help you to dry clothes as it absorbs the moisture in the air from your wet clothes and projects warm, dryer air that helps to dry your clothes over time. When it comes to the cheapest way to dry clothes, the cost of running a dehumidifier is much lower compared to a tumble dryer too.
Energy expert Paul Newman says: “Dehumidifiers are an efficient way to remove the moisture from clothes, although the dry-time is estimated at around three to five hours compared to the average tumble dryer at 30-45 minutes. Although the dry-time is marginally higher, the costs are worth it.”
In terms of how much a tumble dryer costs to run, an average 8kg tumble dryer will set you back between £91.80 and £198.90 a year, based on using it twice a week. That’s more expensive than running a dehumidifier all day five days a week (£20 to £143 a year).
So, when the DeLonghi arrived it was gloriously straightforward to use - plug in, keep a 10cm distance around it and switch it on - we were like a bad advert, gobsmacked at the speed of the result. It took just 10 minutes of it on in our dining room - while we watched TV it was that quiet - for it to build up 3 inches of water. I kid you not, 10 minutes and 3 inches. We were so excited to try it elsewhere in the house (this is what happens when you hit 40-years-old.)
To add insult to asthmatic injury, when it gets cold my chest can tighten and I had noticed it happening and then saw the damp and mould in our bedroom, so now we crack the dehumidifier out when the temperature drops to try and stay ahead, and it really does work. Plus when my mum visited she admitted the “air smelled different. Not... damp”. Reader: she had never once said my house smelled damp in the past, so I’m glad to know that it definitely doesn’t now.
So, to summarise this dehumidifier changed my life, I am choosing paint colours, and can now (literally) breathe a sigh of relief that it has stopped my husband's smart metre daily inquisition, for now...
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