This is our buying guide on the best dehumidifiers for water damage in 2023. Below is a quick summary of our top recommendations. Scroll further down to read our in depth, hands on reviews, for each humidifier.
Waykar 70 Pint Dehumidifier
- Thermal resistant materials
- Easy to clean
- 24-hour timer
- Power Outage Automatic Restart
- Air Purifier
- Super-quiet
- 4,5-liter water reservoir
- Easy to place
- Child lock
- Four Air Outlets
- Water Full Alarm
- Auto shut off
AlorAir Commercial Water Damage Dehumidifier
- Optional Duct-Hot air exhaust for focused Dehumidification
- Adjustable feet and handle
- Covers 1200 square feet
- Auto Defrosting Function
- Washable MERV-8 Filter
- Massive extraction capability
- Remote monitoring option
- Built-In humidity sensor
- Easier to move than the competition
- Auto-Restart
- Auto-Diagnosis System
COLZER Water Damage Restoration Dehumidifier
- Settings memory
- Malfunction Detection
- Precision sensors
- Automatic Humidistats
- Dehumidification of areas up to 7000 square feet
- Washable filter
- Dent-resistant Metal Housing
- Power Outage Restart
- Auto shutoff
- Auto defrost function
- Extremely powerful
In this article, we will review the best dehumidifiers for water damage.
Once you’ve managed to remove most of the water after flood damage or after a burst water heater. Walls and flooring in your home may appear dry.
It pays to remember, though, that porous surfaces, such as drywalls, and wood (even your furniture) retain an enormous amount of water even if the surfaces look dry.
This hidden moisture causes secondary damage, such as warped and rotting floors, walls, and furniture.
With this in mind, we brought several dehumidifiers into our testing lab to find the three best equipped to extract hidden moisture from the affected areas of a home with water damage.
We found the AlorAir Commercial Dehumidifier 113 Point to be the best of the bunch.
It extracts 53 pints of humidity per day from areas up to 1,200 square feet and fits easily into crawl spaces and basements.
Scroll down to see how this dehumidifier performed in our tests.
AlorAir Commercial Water Damage Dehumidifier
BEST OVERALL
At a glance
The AlorAir is a professional-level dehumidifier, ideal for use when you’ve had a serious leak, a burst pipe, or after a flood. It has a continuous drainage system and is small enough to use in hard-to-reach areas such as crawlspaces and basements, as well as larger spaces like storage rooms and offices.
It’s a powerful unit that works quickly. It ticks all the boxes for the best dehumidifier for water damage in our tests.
Design
The AlorAir Commercial Dehumidifier 113 Pint has a metal outer casting. This unit really can take the punches when it’s dragged into awkward spaces. It is also rust-resistant.
A feature we liked is the high-density filter which protects internal components against rust and debris and ensures long-term durability.
It is also a maintenance-free dehumidifier. That’s apart from filter replacement, which should happen once every three months, according to the manufacturer’s recommendation.
This dehumidifier has been designed and built to withstand temperatures as low as 36 degrees Fahrenheit without the need to be defrosted.
The one design feature that appealed more than any other, is the compact size. The AlorAir measures a mere 19.2×12.2×13.3 – this is substantially smaller than any other unit in its class. Of course, this also makes storage easy.
Coverage
The AlorAir will extract moisture from areas up to 1200 square feet. You could probably put it to work in larger areas, but the unit will then take longer to dehumidify the area.
Moisture Extraction Capability
It’s designed to extract as much as 113 pints of moisture from the air every 24 hours in spaces of up to 1200 square feet.
It could effectively be used as a whole-house dehumidifier and is excellent for dealing with medium- and large-scale water damage.
Noise levels
The AlorAir 113 Pint works hard, so it’s slightly noisy. The buzz from the unit isn’t disturbing to the point of insanity, but don’t expect a soft and gentle purr. It’s no kitten!
Special Features
This dehumidifier employs a rare earth alloy tube evaporator system. This technology prevents Freon leakage and protects the coil’s heat transfer. It makes the unit environmentally friendly and extends the coil’s lifetime.
This unit can also be monitored remotely. (But bear in mind, the monitor is a separate purchase.) This feature is great when you use the dehumidifier in confined spaces.
The AlorAir is also highly adjustable – the target humidity can be set anywhere between 35% to 90%.
It was undoubtedly the best overall dehumidifier for water damage we had in our testing center for this review.
Pros
- Optional Duct-Hot air exhaust for focused Dehumidification
- Adjustable feet and handle
- Covers 1200 square feet
- Auto Defrosting Function
- Washable MERV-8 Filter
- Massive extraction capability
- Remote monitoring option
- Built-In humidity sensor
- Easier to move than the competition
- Auto-Restart
- Auto-Diagnosis System
Cons
- The crawl space hose is too short
Waykar 70 Pint Dehumidifier
BEST BUDGET
At a glance
This is a highly effective unit. The Waykar reduces humidity quickly and is highly efficient for protecting furniture, drywalling, wood, carpets, clothes, and other homewares against the consequences of water damage.
The Waykar 70-pint dehumidifier works equally well in laundry rooms, living rooms, bedrooms, and crawl spaces – anywhere you have water damage.
And the dehumidifier is easy to clean and store. A wipe-down with a cloth after emptying is all that is required.
Design
Built-in wheels make the Waykar 70 Pint Dehumidifier easy to move around the home. It has handles for lifting and placement.
The air outlets on all four sides of the Waykar dehumidifier improve the dehumidifying efficiency and the speed at which it removes moisture from the atmosphere.
The dehumidifier also has a drain hose (5 feet,) so it can run around the clock.
Water Tank Capacity
If you opt to drain the moisture into the water tank – you have a 4,5-liter capacity. Once the reservoir is full, the Full Tank Alert indicator will light up and the dehumidifier will automatically switch off until the tank has been emptied.
The unit also has a drainage hose, which eliminates the need for emptying the water tank.
Runtime
The runtime on the water tank largely depends on the moisture content of the atmosphere in the space you want to dehumidify, but as a rule of thumb, you can expect around 36 hours between refills.
If you prefer to use the continuous drainage option instead of capturing atmospheric moisture in the water reservoir, you can run the unit all the time.
The extended runtime is ideal for areas with water damage.
Coverage
Of all the units we tested for this review, the compressor unit on this dehumidifier is the most powerful. It gets rid of as much as 9 gallons (that’s 70 pints) of moisture in areas of up to 4500 square feet.
Noise levels
In a brilliant design feat, the adjustable-speed fan is ultra-quiet – silent enough that you can use it without the dehumidifier disturbing your sleep, or even in the office without the usual low-level irritation units like these can cause.
Special Features
You’re able to adjust the setting to your ideal atmospheric moisture preference (around 45% is recommended for most regions) and the device will do the rest. It will sense the current room humidity and from there it will control the humidity according to your settings.
The Waykar protects itself against overflow and will warn you with an alarm when the water reservoir is full. As an added safety feature, all the materials used for the manufacture of Waykar dehumidifiers are thermally resistant.
When the water reservoir reaches capacity, a full-tank alert indicator lights up. The dehumidifier also automatically shuts down until the water tank has been drained.
The Waykar 70 Pint Dehumidifier is covered by a 30-day money-back guarantee and a one-year warranty with the possibility of extending it for a second year. And, like with all Waykar products, you automatically get lifetime tech support.
It has intelligent touch controls on the panel display. They’re well-marked and easy to operate.
The unit also features a 24-hour timer and a standby function that prevents it from overheating and has both a sleep mode and a child lock.
When all is weighed up, this dehumidifier has earned its spot as the best budget unit on our list of the best dehumidifiers for water damage.
Pros
- Thermal resistant materials
- Easy to clean
- 24-hour timer
- Power Outage Automatic Restart
- Air Purifier
- Super-quiet
- 4,5-liter water reservoir
- Easy to place
- Child lock
- Four Air Outlets
- Water Full Alarm
- Auto shut off
Cons
- The owner’s manual is complicated
COLZER Water Damage Restoration Dehumidifier
BEST PREMIUM
At a glance
We did something rather unconventional when we tested the COLZER. We dumped two wooden chairs, a coffee table, and a shaggy carpet into a swimming pool overnight. The next morning, we retrieved them, placed them in our testing area, and set the COLZER 164 Pints Water Damage Restoration Dehumidifier to work.
The first notable performance attribute of this dehumidifier is the exceptionally powerful fan system. It took a little patience, but in a couple of hours, the results were beginning to show themselves.
The carpet had virtually no water retention left, and the wood on the furniture was already bone-dry on the surface.
This unit from Colzer is undoubtedly efficient and strong enough to deal with serious water damage.
It is also strong enough for flood-damage restoration or even structural drying.
Design
A metal outer casing and corrosion-resistant components ensure longevity on this dehumidifier.
It has 80-inch pneumatic wheels that work in concert with flexible front casters and a sturdy handlebar to make this unit a breeze to move around, especially when you’re dealing with large, waterlogged spaces.
The 6-foot drainage hose (included) gravity-drains the condensation – just make sure you have an available drainage option.
The Colzer also features an automatic humidistat. It maintains the optimum moisture levels in the atmosphere at your preset level.
Water Tank Capacity
This Colzer dehumidifier has a 1.3-gallon water tank if you don’t have a readily available drainage option. It also features an auto-off function which will switch the unit off when the reservoir is full.
Runtime
If you opt to drain the moisture into the water tank, you’ll have a runtime of around 24 hours, depending on the moisture levels in the atmosphere.
If you have proper drainage options available, the unit can run until the job is done.
Coverage
During the test, we felt this unit is perfectly suited for flooded basements, wine cellars, garages, or other spaces up to 7000 square feet.
Moisture removal capacity
The Colzer restoration dehumidifier will easily remove up to 20.5-gallons of moisture per day from a space of up to 7000 square feet. And if you have enough patience, you could even run it in larger areas.
Noise levels
With the fan set to the highest speed, the noise can be really disturbing, but you’d probably only use the unit at full power when you’re dealing with serious flooding. And, in that case, chances are you won’t be spending time in the area the dehumidifier is working.
Special Features
The function settings on the COLZER 164 Pints Water Damage Restoration Dehumidifier are stored in the onboard memory. So, there is no need to reset the unit if the electricity supply is interrupted.
The filter is designed to protect the dehumidifier’s components from dust and other unwanted particles. This ensures efficacy and durability.
Also, the filter is reusable, so it doesn’t need to be replaced.
The Colzer autodetects ice on the coils and heats them to melt the frost. Because of this feature, the dehumidifier remains operational in temperatures down to 40 degrees Fahrenheit.
As far as premium dehumidifiers go – especially for water damage – this unit is the equivalent of a Rolls Royce. It is easy to recommend.
Pros
- Settings memory
- Malfunction Detection
- Precision sensors
- Automatic Humidistats
- Dehumidification of areas up to 7000 square feet
- Washable filter
- Dent-resistant Metal Housing
- Power Outage Restart
- Auto shutoff
- Auto defrost function
- Extremely powerful
Cons
- The unit is heavy
