Dehumidifier or AC? (apartment, house, buy)

[howyaluvdat]

Hola,
I've been in PR for about 2 weeks now and one thing is for sure- I have to do something about the humidity! OF course I can do nothing about the outside humidity, but I was wondering what I could do for the inside of my house. Not only does the humidity create an uncomfortable environment, but I'm also worried about clothes, shoes, walls, food molding/ mildewing.

(I always feeling sticky. I take a shower because I want to feel cool and refreshed only to dry off and find that I feel just as sweaty as I did before the shower! Don't even get me started talking about sheets. I L-O-V-E the feeling of sleeping on crisp fresh clean sheets. Doesn't happen here though. Every night I have been sleeping on wet feeling sheets. Even after you've washed and dried them they feel wet. I hate lying on sheets that feel like someone else has been sleeping on them. Gross!)

So, I'm wondering what will work best in this situation. Should I buy a dehumidifier, or would it be better to get an air conditioner. I have AC in one bedroom, but I was thinking of getting a window unit and putting it in the kitchen to blow through the entire house. I'm leaning towards the AC. I love the idea of a cool house (it's been a million degrees here lately). But I've also read about having to empty water out of the dehumidifier and that sounds like a pain if you've got to do it around the clock and it has the potential to be messy. I figure that if you lower the temp it will decrease the humidity. No mold and no heat stroke sounds like a great option for me. But, of course, I'm clueless. Can anyone here provide some insight, tips, or suggestions? All are welcomed.

Thanks :-)

[swisswife]

I have a couple of de-humidifiers I used in Asia that you can remove the water collection tank from and fit a tube. I used to do this when I went away and drain it straight into the floor drain. That might be an option. I used them because I didn't like the air con in all the apartment and only had it running in the bedroom - i like sleeping in a cool room.

be particularly careful with any leather shoes or bags etc. also any wool clothes will mold quickly.... or at least these were my first casualties... I bought an extra fridge and stored EVERYTHING in it .

[gemstone1]

"I feel just as sweaty as I did before the shower!"....welcome to the tropics!

We have been here a little longer, and have had no mold/mildew problems, we run a window AC unit in the room we are currently occupying only, in order to conserve power. Seems most homes here do not have central AC, no doubt due to the high cost associated with it's use...

Next to the aggressive/impatient/selfish drivers, the humidity is what wears on us the most.....we just consider it a tax on our patience...a cost of enjoying living on the Enchanted Island....
Hope you find a solution...

Regards
Gemstone1

[infiri]

You can buy the ac, the AC actually take humidity out of the room, not at the same rate but if you have it running 24/7 it will do the job. Just remember that ur electric bill will be high if u have 2 ac running 24/7.
Having a dehumidifier with no AC won't work since u need to open the windows.
When I was young I used to live next to the river, I had both an AC and a dehumidifier in my room, and yes every morning we had to empty the water out.

Central AC will also work, and ur electric bill would be around 750 to 1000 dollars.

[Cruzincat]

Both systems use the same concept of refrigeration to do what they do. The difference is, the AC runs the heat outside and the dehumidifier puts the heat back into the same room. This includes the heat generated by the dehumidifier itself. So, running a dehumifier will make it feel better because it is drier, but the temperature of the room actually increases.

In the winter, you might want to run a dehumidifier, but in the summer you would want to run an A/C. In fact, if you use an A/C in the winter time, using a thermostat to control it. It may not run long enough to remove the moisture.

[PacificFlights]

Originally Posted by Cruzincat

Both systems use the same concept of refrigeration to do what they do. The difference is, the AC runs the heat outside and the dehumidifier puts the heat back into the same room. This includes the heat generated by the dehumidifier itself. So, running a dehumifier will make it feel better because it is drier, but the temperature of the room actually increases.

In the winter, you might want to run a dehumidifier, but in the summer you would want to run an A/C. In fact, if you use an A/C in the winter time, using a thermostat to control it. It may not run long enough to remove the moisture.

Thats some very good points. When living on Hawaii, humidity was a problem, but after an energy comparrision, running an a/c was the same cost as running the dehumidifier. The AC wasn;t some small unit but rather speced to be above what the manufactures said it will cool. Too small a unit and you have to run it harder for longer to do the same thing a larger more energy efficient unit could do in less time. The DH had to run an awful long time as well and didn't have the benefit of cooling the air. The DH needed air flow which came from the outside and brought more humidity in with it that the DH needed to handle as well.

[Poncho_NM]

Originally Posted by howyaluvdat

So, I'm wondering what will work best in this situation. Should I buy a dehumidifier, or would it be better to get an air conditioner. I have AC in one bedroom, but I was thinking of getting a window unit and putting it in the kitchen to blow through the entire house. I'm leaning towards the AC. I love the idea of a cool house (it's been a million degrees here lately).

I would go with the A/C. The units are pretty inexpensive. And probably the same efficiency or better as a dehumidifier...


Rich

[theunbrainwashed]

I actually wouldn't use the A/C too much. You won't adjust to the heat and humidity if you constantly have the A/C running (not to mention why move to the tropics if you're only gonna hibernate in front of the A/C all "summer") and electric rates are very expensive too. I used to live there and gone back every summer to visit family for months when I was in school. We only ever used A/C after 9PM and after a month or 2, the heat and humidity don't have as much of a detrimental effect on you.

[Poncho_NM]

Yes, you can almost get addicted to A/C, to where you won't go outside...