Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program UPDATE 8/21: After only 2 days of using the Whirlpool, it started to leak badly from under the unit. I called the manufacturer and was told that there is no warranty since Amazon is not considered to be an "authorized dealer" for this item. So, the 4-stars have been changed to 1 star. Think twice before purchasing this since it does not appear to be built well enough to run for more than a short while and, when it breaks, there is ZERO warranty protection.
Original review:
Bottom line: The Frigidaire gets some serious competition from the Whirlpool, but keeps its top spot. The Keystone is a distant third.
Full review: If you live in a humid area a dehumidifier is essential unless you want to have to scrub mold off the basement walls. So, I'm always looking for the "best" that is available, and had the opportunity to put models from Frigidaire, Whirlpool and Keystone in a head-to-head test. Highlights are as follows:
F = Frigidaire FAD704DWD Frigidaire FAD704DWD Energy Star 70-pint Dehumidifier
W = Whirlpool AD70GUSB [This listing]
K = Keystone KSTAD70B Keystone Energy Star 70 Pt. Dehumidifier, KSTAD70B
All are 70 pint models, have auto RH control, can be used with a built-in bucket or plumbed to a drain, have a built-in washable filter.
Build quality: The W and F models are neck and neck on this. Both feel solid and well-made. The K is a bit less robust feeling, but still decent. [SEE UPDATE ABOVE REGARDING BUILD QUALITY, OR LACK THEREOF, OF THE WHIRLPOOL]
Water bucket: I find this to be an important feature since I usually run them in bucket mode rather than plumb to a drain. The W and F models have solid-feeling buckets with top plates to help make them more rigid and easier to empty. The F gets to the top spot since I find it a bit easier to remove and reinsert the bucket than on the W. The K is a distant third with a flimsy bucket with a poorly designed carry handle.
Controls: Each has some unique features, but all are easy to use. The manuals for each are worth reading, but all can be sussed out by just looking at the panel. All have the usual high/low fan speeds, RH setting, and signal lights for filter checks, full buckets, etc. The W has the edge on this, since it offers some useful features not found on the others, such as an auto fan mode, which varies the fan speed based on the room RH vs the set RH. For example, if the room is at 60% RH and you set the controls to 40% RH, the fan will start off in high mode, then switch to low speed when it gets closer to the target setting. I find that to be a nice feature, and give this one to W.
Fan placement: Both the W and K models use a side discharge. The F uses a top discharge. While both are OK, I find the top discharge to be more practical since I can locate the unit pretty much anywhere. Plus, the top discharge circulates the dry air better throughout the room. Advantage F.
Accuracy: All seem to have about the same level of RH accuracy, and cycle on/off as needed. The fan on the W seems to run longer than the other units. Tie for all.
Sound: The F model is a bit quieter than the W the compressor on the W makes more of a whine, and also shakes the unit more on start/stops. The K is the loudest by far. Advantage F.
Appearance: They are all rectangular white boxes. I think the F looks a little more sleek, and is slightly more compact. Advantage F, but tastes will vary on this.
In the end, the F keeps its crown as my top choice for a dehumidifier. The W is also a good choice, but in comparison to the F it's a 4.5 star product due to the louder (albeit slightly) operating sound and the side air discharge. But, you'd certainly would want to cross-shop them both. [UPDATE: YOU MAY WANT TO AVOID THE W DUE TO LACK OF WARRANTY SUPPORT] The K is worth getting only if you plan on plumbing it to a drain to avoid bucket issues, and are not concerned about sound levels.
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Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program When given the chance to try this Whirlpool Energy Star 70 Pint 2-Speed Dehumidifier, I literally jumped at the chance. When we bought our home last year it came with a 25 pint Frigidaire model that ran all the time and was noisy, yet never could get the humidity down to a reasonable level. This one arrived, intact and in one piece, although a stray piece of broken white plastic that fell out of the box while we were unpacking it, and didn't match the unit. We looked all over to find where it might have broken off of and couldn't find it, making us wonder where it came from.
That aside, Once you cut the packing binders, you simply pull up on the box to get the dehumidifier out. You can't really see it in the picture, but the unit has a carrying handle, and while heavy, it was nowhere near the weight of the 25 pint Frigidaire unit that it was replacing. It is kind of bulky, so use care getting in into your basement.
Since we prefer to drain directly to the sump pump, attaching the hose to the drain plug on the back was easily done just unscrew the plug cap, and attach the hose to the unit. We plugged it in, turned it on and set it to auto. The unit is silent in low fan mode, and very quiet in high mode. The unit didn't rattle or vibrate. After running for a while, we could feel a difference in the basement, and we could hear a difference in that the new unit wasn't making a racket like the older unit. This unit takes in air through the front grille, passes the air through a filter, rends the liquid from the air and then discharges it trough a grille on the right hand side. This means you can place it next to a wall if you are using the bucket to collect water.
To clean the filter (and it has a reminder light that goes off after so many hours of operation), remove the collection bucket completely from the unit. The filter pulls down from a tab located on the roof of the collection bay, behind the intake grille. The directions do a good job of illustrating the procedure. Cleaning the filer is easy it can be vacuumed or washed.
NOW, all that said, while the unit has WHIRLPOOL on the label, we did notice that it's shaped and designed like the Frigidaire model, and another model that we're using at a project house that the owner picked up at a warehouse club that has a product name that none of us have heard of (and has been really inconsistent in what it does. Since Frigidaire is a Electrolux product and Whirlpool is owned by the company of that name, its making me think that these are coming from the same factory, just with different brand names.
ONE FINAL NOTE: before buying any dehumidifier, MEASURE the area that its going to be working in. Measure the LENGTH of the area, by the WIDTH and BY THE HEIGHT because these machines deal not in square footage, but in cubic feet. Don't rely on the amount of water that the tank holds, because that isn't an indicator of anything but the amount of water it holds. Bigger isn't better. If you get a unit that is too small, its going to run all the time and wear out sooner. Buy too big of a unit and you're wasting money. Buy the unit that fits your needs within reason.
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Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program I have a Dayton running in my basement which is a real workhorse. It has an 80 pint reservoir and was relatively quiet for such a strong machine. It also fills up in about 16 hours, and much faster on high! It was about the same price as this machine, but that was about 6 years ago.
My basement is about 1200 square feet. I have an old (100+ year) house with a stone foundation. Humidity is usually pretty high down there. Comparing this to the Dayton, it is significantly more quiet, and the Dayton was pretty quiet when compared to equivalant machines. I do have to say that I don't think these machines are in the same league, as it takes much longer for the Whirlpool to fill up its smaller reservoir. This makes me wonder if the energy star rating is just a weaker fan? I will compare electric bills in two cycles, but I think this machine runs more to compensate for what might be a weaker fan. Either way, you can easily have a conversation standing next to it without having to raise your voice, and that's when it is on high! Very nice. I love that. Don't get me wrong, you can still hear it, but it is easy for me to tune it out. I also like that it has a handle to carry it up and down the stairs if I have to move it.The wheels allow it to roll easily, too. It is a little difficult to pullthe reservoir out, but once you do, it has a handle, too (which the Dayton did not have), which makes it easy to carry.
The air exhausts from the right side (your right as you face the front of the machine), so keep that in mind if you have a specific place to place it, as it might become an issue. I also like that it hasa filter that you can clean.
When all is said and done, this is a little pricey, but I think it is a solid machine. It also tells you the relative humidity and programming it is simple enough. If you need something with a larger capacity and a real work horse, get the Drayton, if you don't need something so extreme, and 70 pints is fine, I think this machine will do just fine. 4.5 stars.
One thing to note, my box was crushed at both ends, but there was no visible damage to the machine,which was amazing. I would have lost that bet. It would be nice if they would package it a little better.
Honest reviews on Whirlpool Energy Star 70-Pint 2-Speed Dehumidifier, AD70GUSB
As dehumidifiers go, this unit works just fine. The BIG problem I have with this unit is how difficult it is to remove the water bin when full. There are no easy places to pull the bin out of the dehumidifier. There are small shallow finger recesses on the side of the unit, but when the water bucket is full, the weight of bucket prevents it from sliding freely.
Sorry Whirlpool, not impressed.
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Customer review from the Amazon Vine Program The Whirlpool Energy Star 70-Pint 2-Speed Dehumidifier is, as far as I can tell, identical to the Hisense DH-70K1SJE4 Energy Star 70-Pint 2-Speed Dehumidifier, with the single difference being that it does not have an ionizer. The Whirlpool dehumidifier comes with paperwork saying that it is manufactured by Hisense, and all contact and repair information refers to Hisense. That said, I've been relatively happy with both the Hisense and the Whirlpool.
The Whirlpool meets many of the important points I look for-
-It is constructed of sturdy plastic and seems well made.
-It weighs approximately 20 lbs, (not including water, which can add a significant amount of weight), but has wheels on the bottom that make it easily maneuverable.
-It has a large water capacity.
-It has an automatic draining feature, that is very easy to set up and works well.
-ALthough it doesn't come with its own hose for the automatic draining, it uses a normal garden hose, rather than a proprietary size as some do, which makes it easy and cheap to buy a hose and replacements.
-When manually emptying, the drawer slides out very easily, and is easy to replace. (This is a very important point, as in some humidifiers they can be almost impossible to fit back in correctly.)
-The noise level is standard for this size dehumidifier. (Although I am using the unit in a basement; I'm not sure I'd want the noise in a living area, but I don't think I've ever had a dehumidifier quiet enough that it wouldn't bother me in a living area.)
-It is an energy star model.
-It has digital controls, which are bright and easy to see, and the buttons work well.
The controls/display include current humidity and temperature, and a timer.
The settings allow control of-
-Fan speed (low, high, and auto)
-Deired humidity (continuous, normal, and auto dry)
-Timer
There are several ways the humidifier can be controlled-
-You can set it to maintain a particular humidity, leaving it on constantly.
-You can turn it on with a particular fan speed, leaving it on constantly.
-You can set it on a timer to run for a certain length of time. However, unlike other humidifiers I've used, this is a one-time setting. I.e. It can be set to turn on for 2 hours, but cannot be set to automatically turn on every day for 2 hours.
-You can set it to turn on at a certain time. However, when using that setting, as far as I can tell, you can't set the length of time it will run; you need to come back to turn it off.
I have two main complaints about this dehumidifier-
-There is no warranty. This is a massive problem for a relatively expensive item. If you are considering purchasing, I would recommended learning what purchase protection is offered by your credit card.
-Second is the lack of specific control of the timer; more specific controls would allow more efficient use and energy savings by allowing it to be turned off when not needed. Although it can be set to turn on at a specific time once, it cannot be set to turn off, so it will be running until you can make it back to shut it off again. Also, it is a one-time setting. I.e. It cannot be set to come on at a certain time every day. However, this seems to be fairly standard in every dehumidifier I've seen recently.
Overall a solid dehumidifier; although it doesn't stand out in any way, I haven't had any problems with it after more than a month of use.
