FDXAg said:
Have a two-story 3,000sq house with a single stage AC unit. Wish I had been able to afford a dual stage unit 5 years ago when I had the system replaced, because i'm dealing with uncomfortable humidity levels in the house during the summer. What are my options? Could I use a couple portable dehumidifiers to help? I didn't know how much hot air they expel or if they could be a viable option.
I've heard of whole home dehumidifiers but I have no idea how much that could cost to buy and have installed. Would I be looking at $2k to $3k?
Any other ideas? I know we have an old dryer that probably needs replacing as it's very inefficient. We have to run up basically all day long on laundry day. Didn't know if that's something that could drastically help.
A single stage unit will work just fine if it's sized properly and set up properly. Unfortunately, most AC companies use a 'rule of thumb' which is not only outdated, but lazy as hell. The same companies don't do much in terms of setting up anything either, which means your system may be defaulted. Generally the contractor grade stuff I see has a 4 ton air handler mated to a 2 ton system all defaulted out. It runs like crap and is humid inside until they match the settings properly so it runs like it's supposed to. Have a qualified tech check all of this.
If your unit is actually oversized, then you may not be able to get the humidity levels down. If you live in houston, and its 100 degrees outside, and the inside of your house is 72, then your system is massively oversized. In this case, you will need to supplement this with a dehumidifier. I have been quoted up to 7,000 LOLDOLLARS for one in some cases. You can thank Karen for whining about her AC not keeping up with extreme temperatures. Design temps in the region are a lot lower, so if youre AC is running all day long nonstop in this heat, then its doing what it's supposed to do provided its up on maintenance.
As for the dryer, if your dryer is ducted through the roof, then you need to check that duct work for lint. If its not ducted through the roof, then you need to check that duct work for lint. Nearly every roof I replace has a clogged or nearly clogged exhaust vent. I will generally reach down as far as my arm will go and clean it, but the elbows and reducers all the way to the dryer need to be freed. Once you verify that its clear, your dryer will perform a lot better. If its clogged, then you're also on your way to tripping the thermal fuse on your dryer. It is not resettable and you will have to replace that.
