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 piece, I’m going to dive into a review of the top dehumidifiers for water damage.
You’ve gotten rid of the bulk of the water after a flood or a burst water heater. Your walls and floors may seem dry on the surface.
However, let’s not forget that porous surfaces, like drywalls and wood (including your furniture), can harbor an immense amount of water even when they look bone-dry.
This concealed moisture can wreak havoc, causing secondary damage like warped and rotting floors, walls, and furniture.
Keeping this in mind, we’ve put several dehumidifiers through their paces in our testing lab, to pinpoint the top three that are best equipped to draw out that hidden moisture from areas in your home affected by water damage.
We crowned the AlorAir Commercial Dehumidifier 113 Point as the king of the pack.
It pulls out 53 pints of humidity daily from areas as large as 1,200 square feet and slips effortlessly into crawl spaces and basements.
Read on to find out how this dehumidifier aced our tests.
AlorAir Commercial Water Damage Dehumidifier
BEST OVERALL
Taking a quick look
The AlorAir stands as a professional-grade dehumidifier, stepping up as the perfect companion when facing serious leaks, burst pipes, or post-flood scenarios. This tiny yet mighty unit possesses a continuous drainage system and is compact enough to fit snugly in those tricky spots like crawlspaces and basements, along with larger expanses such as storage rooms and offices.
This robust beast is designed to swiftly kick into action. In our evaluations, it checked off every requirement to be crowned the best dehumidifier for water damage.
Design and Build
When it comes to its outer shell, the AlorAir Commercial Dehumidifier 113 Pint doesn’t shy away from showcasing its metallic muscles. This sturdy piece of equipment can withstand the tough love of being hauled into the most inconvenient corners, all while resisting the clutches of rust.
A standout feature that caught our attention is the high-density filter. This guardian shields the unit’s inner workings against rust and debris, promising longevity.
To my delight, this dehumidifier requires no pampering. Other than switching out the filter once every three months, as per the manufacturer’s instructions, it’s basically self-sufficient.
Another applaud-worthy aspect of this dehumidifier’s design is its resilience in low-temperature settings – it can hold its own in chilly environs as low as 36 degrees Fahrenheit, sans any defrosting requirements.
Now, what had us swooning over the AlorAir was its compact design. Measuring a tidy 19.2×12.2×13.3 inches, this unit outshines its competitors in the space-saving department. Needless to say, it tucks away with ease when not in use.
Coverage
The AlorAir flexes its muscles, pulling moisture from areas stretching up to 1200 square feet. While you could indeed push it to handle larger zones, it would take a bit longer to dry out the space.
Moisture Extraction Capability
Built with the intention to guzzle down an impressive 113 pints of moisture from the air every day in spaces up to 1200 square feet, it stands as a potential whole-house dehumidifier. It’s definitely a champ at handling medium and large-scale water damage.
Noise levels
Let’s not beat around the bush; the AlorAir 113 Pint is a hard worker, and it’s not silent about it. While the hum from the unit won’t drive you mad, don’t anticipate a whisper-quiet operation – it’s a dehumidifier, not a kitten!
Special Features
This dehumidifier boasts a rare earth alloy tube evaporator system. This innovative technology wards off Freon leakage and shields the coil’s heat transfer. This not only makes the unit an eco-friendly choice but also bolsters the coil’s lifespan.
Another perk is the remote monitoring capability (though you’ll need to shell out extra for the monitor). This comes in handy when you’ve nestled the dehumidifier in confined spaces.
Lastly, the AlorAir offers supreme adjustability. You can dial in your desired humidity level anywhere between 35% to 90%.
No surprise, it emerged as the undisputed champion among the dehumidifiers for water damage that we put to the test.
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
First Look
I was blown away by the Waykar’s effectiveness in reducing humidity speedily and efficiently. This is a powerful guardian for your homewares like furniture, drywalling, wood, carpets, and clothes against the damaging effects of water.
The versatile Waykar 70-pint dehumidifier pulls its weight in different spaces – be it your laundry room, bedroom, living room, or even crawl spaces that are suffering from water damage.
What’s more, cleaning and storing this unit is as easy as it gets. A quick wipe with a cloth after emptying is all it needs.
Design Features
With built-in wheels, the Waykar 70 Pint Dehumidifier is a breeze to move around the house. Plus, it sports handles that simplify lifting and placement.
The dehumidifier’s design caught my eye with air outlets positioned on all four sides, a clever feature that amps up dehumidifying efficiency and its speed at moisture removal.
With a 5-foot drain hose, this dehumidifier can keep running non-stop, showing no signs of slowing down.
Water Tank Capacity
If you choose to collect the moisture in the water tank, you have a decent capacity of 4.5 liters at your disposal. The moment the tank fills up, the Full Tank Alert indicator lights up, and the dehumidifier automatically powers down until the tank is emptied.
To top it off, the unit also boasts a drainage hose, which does away with the need for frequent tank emptying.
Runtime
The runtime with the water tank largely hinges on the atmosphere’s moisture content in the area you’re looking to dehumidify. However, a handy rule of thumb to remember is that refills usually come around every 36 hours.
For those preferring the continuous drainage option over capturing atmospheric moisture in the water reservoir, you’re free to run the unit all day long. This extended runtime is a godsend for spaces with water damage.
Coverage
Among all units we put to the test, the compressor in this dehumidifier emerged as the most potent. It impressively extracts up to 9 gallons (that’s 70 pints) of moisture in spaces spanning up to 4500 square feet.
Noise levels
A round of applause is in order for the adjustable-speed fan. In a brilliant design move, it operates ultra-quietly, silent enough not to disturb your sleep or cause annoyance even in an office setting.
Special Features
The Waykar allows you to dial in your ideal atmospheric moisture setting (around 45% is generally recommended), and the device takes over from there. It senses the room’s current humidity and adjusts itself to meet your settings.
For protection against overflow, the Waykar comes armed with an alarm that goes off when the water reservoir is full. Plus, all materials used in its construction are thermally resistant for added safety.
Once the water reservoir is filled to the brim, a full-tank alert indicator lights up, and the dehumidifier automatically powers down until the water tank is emptied.
With a 30-day money-back guarantee, a one-year warranty extendable to a second year, and lifetime tech support included with all Waykar products, you are well covered.
On the front panel, the unit flaunts intelligent touch controls, well-labeled and a cinch to operate. In addition, it features a 24-hour timer, standby function to prevent overheating, sleep mode, and child lock.
After assessing all these factors, I firmly believe this dehumidifier has rightfully earned its title as the best budget unit on our list of top 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
First Look
When I put the COLZER to the test, I did something quite out of the ordinary. Imagine two wooden chairs, a coffee table, and a shaggy carpet submerged in a swimming pool overnight. The next morning, I fished them out, arranged them in my testing area, and set the COLZER 164 Pints Water Damage Restoration Dehumidifier on its mission.
The first thing I noticed was the might of its fan system. It took a dash of patience, but a couple of hours in, the magic began to unfold. The carpet was almost entirely free of water, and the surface of the wooden furniture was bone-dry.
This dehumidifier from COLZER is, without a doubt, efficient and robust enough to tackle serious water damage. It has the power to handle flood-damage restoration and even structural drying.
Design Features
Encased in metal and packed with corrosion-resistant components, this dehumidifier is built to last.
It sports 80-inch pneumatic wheels that team up with flexible front casters and a sturdy handlebar, making the unit a breeze to maneuver around, especially in large, water-soaked spaces.
The included 6-foot drainage hose gravity-drains the condensation – just ensure you have a drainage option at hand.
The COLZER comes equipped with an automatic humidistat, maintaining the optimum atmospheric moisture at your preset level.
Water Tank Capacity
This COLZER dehumidifier hosts a 1.3-gallon water tank, handy if a drainage option isn’t readily available. Plus, it has an auto-off function that kicks in when the reservoir is full.
Runtime
Choosing to drain the moisture into the water tank will give you around 24 hours of runtime, depending on the moisture levels in the atmosphere.
However, if you have a proper drainage option, the unit can work non-stop until the job is done.
Coverage
During my test, I found this unit to be a perfect fit for flooded basements, wine cellars, garages, or other spaces up to 7000 square feet.
Moisture Extraction Capacity
The COLZER restoration dehumidifier has the ability to effortlessly remove up to 20.5-gallons of moisture per day from a space of up to 7000 square feet. And if you’re patient enough, you could even use it in larger areas.
Noise Levels
With the fan set to its highest speed, the noise can be quite bothersome, but realistically, you’d only run the unit at full power in cases of serious flooding. And, if you’re dealing with that, chances are you won’t be lingering in the area where the dehumidifier is working.
Special Features
The COLZER 164 Pints Water Damage Restoration Dehumidifier stores its function settings in onboard memory, eliminating the need to reset the unit in the event of an electricity interruption.
The filter is engineered to safeguard the dehumidifier’s components from dust and other unwanted particles, ensuring efficacy and longevity. Plus, it’s reusable, so no need to replace it.
The COLZER is smart enough to detect ice on its coils and heats them to melt the frost. Thanks to this feature, the dehumidifier remains operational even in temperatures as low as 40 degrees Fahrenheit.
When it comes to premium dehumidifiers – particularly for water damage – this unit is akin to a Rolls Royce. It’s easy for me 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
