The humidity levels in North Carolina vary from season to season with the lowest levels in spring and highest in the winter season. North Carolina experiences relatively humid weather all year compared to other parts of the country. The lowest humidity levels are found over southern Piedmont, averaging at 65% all year round. With the highest levels of humidity been experienced along the coast.
The ideal levels of humidity for a comfortable living should range from 40 – 50%. Since most places in North Carolina average humidity levels higher than that, a dehumidifier will be needed. A dehumidifier extracts the excess moisture in the air, hence making the house more comfortable.

Why should you a crawl dehumidifier?

A crawl space dehumidifier has the following functions:

• Lowers the humidity levels in crawl space all year round.
• Decreases the odor in the crawl space.
• Cleans the air off all mold spores and mildew.
• Maintains the structural integrity of the house hence improving its value.
• Low humidity means fewer pests.
• Keeps the crawl space insulation dry thus saves money that would have been used to replace the insulation damaged by the moisture.

Which crawl space dehumidifier should you buy?

Today there are many brands and sizes of crawl space dehumidifiers, it can feel a little overwhelming to choose one. Once you have decided to buy crawl space dehumidifiers, here is a guideline of four major factors that should help you narrow down your search:

1.Measure the size of your crawl space. – This is the first step to get the exact size of your crawl space in cubic feet. This should be an easy task for anyone.
2.Determine the level of humidity in the crawl space – this can be easily done by carrying out a simple inspection of the crawl space. Here is the different level of humidity:

• Moderately damp (50 – 60%) – The crawl space smells musty and feels damp during the humid weather months.
• Very damp (60 – 70%) – the crawlspace remains damp and musty all year round.
• Wet. (70 – 85%) – there are visible water stains on the walls and floor.
• Extremely wet (85 – 100%). – There is water on the floor of the crawl space.

3.Determine how much money you are willing to spend. – determine how much money you are able to not just buy the crawl space dehumidifier, but also how much it will increase your monthly energy bill. Look for the crawl space dehumidifier that consumes the least energy with a high capacity.
4.Must be powerful enough to get the job done! – We all know a homeowner with a crawl space dehumidifier that is always running but never dries up the crawl space. It is important to ensure the capacity and air change per hour of the dehumidifier is enough to completely decrease the humidity levels.

The capacity of a crawl space dehumidifier – refers to the amount of moisture the dehumidifier is able to extract from the crawl space every 24 hours. If the levels of humidity in the crawl space are high, then you need a crawl space dehumidifier with a high capacity.
The air change per hour (ACH) of the dehumidifier – this is the rating of how much each crawl space dehumidifier is able to process be an hour. A moderately damp crawl space will require a dehumidifier with an ACH of 3. An extremely wet crawl space will require a dehumidifier with an ACH rating of 6.

When choosing a dehumidifier, what should you look for?

• Self-draining crawl space dehumidifier – choose a dehumidifier that has a pump and is able to pump the water out to a safe place.
• Auto-humidistat – buy a dehumidifier that automatically turns on and off depending on the humidity levels.
• De-freezing features – humidity is high in the winter months, buy a crawl space dehumidifier that is able to remain operational in very low temperatures.