ALORAIR Crawl Space Dehumidifiers 120 PPD Moisture Removal, Crawlspace Dehumidifiers Commercial Dehumidifier for Basement, Auto Defrost, cETL Listed

Finally a dehumidifier that runs automatically all year without having to be emptied or cleaned. Plus it can handle my entire cellar. Included was a hose that is drained to my sink.I just attached the hose, plugged it in and it has kept my otherwise damp cellar at 40% for over a year. No issues.

We live in a house built in 1940. The walls are rock, and 13" thick, so no moisture barrier or insulation. Same goes for the slab; nothing to stop moisture coming through. The house has always smelled musty. My wife is allergic to mold, so I needed to reduce the moisture inside the house in order to make it an unfavorable environment for mold growth. When I got the unit, it was plug and play: Just route the drainage hose to the outside, plug into power, turn it on, and let it get to work. Even without ducting, the humidity level in the most distant room reduced to 55% (with the humidity level set at 45%).Over the past few weeks, I have been ducting it into my HVAC, which could never bring the humidity below 80% (we live in Florida, near Gainesville). I first plumbed the exhaust (dry air) into the return at the base of the air handler. That move brought the humidity in the most distant room to 50%. Next, I bought 75 feet of Cat 8 cable, and installed the remote control near my HVAC thermostat. That worked perfectly. Finally, I cut an opening to my HVAC return 8 feet above where I connected the output duct, and ran flexible 10" ducting (Rubber-Cal HVAC Ventilation-Flex) to the intake on the dehumidifier. I now have even humidity throughout the house. With the remote set at 45%, the RH runs between 42% and 47% in every room. The unit itself is quiet, especially with the ducting connected. I can't wait for summer, when the humidity is so high, you need gills to breathe.*The remote control is convenient. I mounted it at 60" above the floor, which is the same level as the HVAC thermostat. The screen is readable from eye level, below eye level, and from either side. It is unreadable from above. I'm 6', and I have to read it from an angle, or stoop to see straight on. If you buy the remote, consider mounting it so the tallest user can see it at eye level. BTW, the CAT 8 is backwards compatible with CAT 5a (supplied), and the 75 foot cable works fine.*There are scant instructions on hooking up ductwork. The instructions say to limit the total length of ductwork to 10 feet, but no explanation for this limitation. The instructions offer no recommendations for plumbing the unit in to the HVAC. Aprilaire has diagrams and instructions. Researching various other sites I found enough technical instruction to plumb the unit in to my HVAC.*There are auxiliary electrical connections on the cabinet, but the manual doesn't say anything about them, other than to illustrate their presence.*The controls give you the option of running the unit continuously. I'm guessing this means the fan will run continuously, and the dehumidification function will cycle on as needed.I'm pleased with the dehumidifier. Our home is so much more comfortable! The user manual could stand some improvement.The first photo is the installation into my HVAC system. The next photo is the remote viewed at eye level (with me crouching to view). The next photo is the screen when it is below eye level.

After researching various dehumidifiers for our crawlspace, I went the Alorair Sentinel HD55 based on the positive reviews vs. some of the other makes and models. We've had it for about two months and so far this unit has been a workhorse and is doing exactly what I needed it to do. I don't think a box store type of dehumidifier would have done the job in our situation.ProsAt first setup in the crawlspace the unit read around 70% ambient humidity, and within minutes began to produce a light stream of water which drains into our sump pump pit. The unit is resting on a pair of cinder blocks about 14 inches above the ground and about 2 feet away from the sump pit. There have not been any issues with it properly draining the water with this configuration. It took about two weeks of continuous running (in July) for it to reach the 50% humidity setting and it does now sporadically shut off (usually for no longer than 5 minutes). Note that the manual does list that the unit may read a humidity level of plus/minus 5%. I did not bother with purchasing the WiFi or ethernet connection, but have been checking on it about once a week and there is a significantly noticeable difference in the crawlspace.The noise level is also very tolerable. We only hear the exhaust airflow in the house when it is very quiet and the TV is off. Most of the time we don't hear it at all. I also haven't noticed a large increase in the electric bill, but its hard to tell in the summer with the A/C running.ConsThis unit is heavy. It was not an easy haul from our crawlspace opening to the corner of the house where it needed to go. I equated that to durability, but just be mindful of the weight. This model only allows for gravity draining so be sure it will sit high enough to properly drain. Also note that if you want a live feed of the humidity level you'll need to purchase those accessories separately.

If you set the % point at 50, it will run until 47% is reached and will not turn on until 53%, right in line with the manual, + - 5%Easy setup, make sure it is tilted slightly toward the hose connector and has a clear inlet (filter side) and exhaust. So far so good, 48 hours of clearing the dampness.Nice to see the water running through the clear hose, good tablespoon every 15 sec, it works great so far.Update: Sending it back replacement ordered! Worked great for a short while, then it got stuck at 63% and would not change. Shut it down and started working, then got to 47% and would not change. Even with a steamy hot wash cloth set close to the sensor. Shut it down and again works fine except when it gets to the low set point, then it fails to restart. Replacement ordered and I hope this one works properly.The temporary fix, setup a remote switch to shut it off and restart it manually.Update on the replacement :So far so good, this one tracks and restarts as it should. A bit early in the game but better than the other one. I will fine tune it and see if I am still happy with its performance.Update: The replacement is working as it should, tracks as it should, and is close to the same humidity as a handheld monitor. The moisture has been taken care of!