Customer Reviews

Frigidaire 50-Pint Dehumidifier, FAD504TDD

5 star:		(203)
4 star:		(67)
3 star:		(15)
2 star:		(9)
1 star:		(13)

 

 

I was a little hesitant buying this dehumidifier without any reviews on Amazon, but last year's model was highly-regarded so I figured there wasn't too much of a risk. All in all, I'm very pleased with my purchase.

Pros:
- Looks great... I know it's a dehumidifier, but it doesn't hurt that it actually isn't hideous
- Really sucks moisture out of the air
- Good energy efficiency
- Multitude of options on how to run (timer on/off, humidity level, continuous operation)
- Auto-restart after power failure

Cons:
- Not the quietest dehumidifier. I've noticed with mine that it tends to start off pretty noisy and level out after about 30 minutes
- No adjustment to the vent airflow is possible, it would be nice if you could direction it up/down/left/right, but this isn't a major issue

Overall impression:
Some reviewers of the last model had difficulty removing the bucket -- mine has posed no problems. I believe that they didn't read the instructions, which clearly say to squeeze in the sides of the bucket gently in order to remove. For those who, like me, have to deal with ridiculously high electricity costs you'll be happy to know that it's a quite efficient model for its size. This dehumidifier reads out around 530 watts on my Kill-a-Watt (measured after it's had time to settle for about 15 minutes. I've noticed it tends to spike when you turn it on, then decrease rapidly, then slowly rise up to about the measured amount).

I cannot comment on its durability, but will provide an update in the future.

I've recently replaced an 8-year old Frigidaire dehumidifier with this new model (FAD504TDB). I had excellent service from my old unit (which was still working but lost some of its punch) so I bought another Frigidaire. Here's my opinion of the new Frigidaire.
1. Packaging & ease of initial start-up was exceptional. It was up & running inside 5 minutes.
2. Noise Level. Not sure why some found the noise levels excessive. I'd say it's about 1/2 the noise level of older model so now I'll have to go down a few basement steps just to hear if it's running or not.
3. Comments after using unit. The unit has done a nice job in lowering my basement humidity level from 70%+ to the low 60%'s within a few days. However, I gotta say I hate the water bucket. It's made so cheaply (feels like a refrigerator vegetable bin). When full, you have to hold it with both hands from the bottom which makes it more difficult to carry up the stairs. The older unit had a much more sturdy bucket with the handle centered on the top (not on the edge). I'll now have to buy a 2 gal rubbermaid bucket just to use to carry the water upstairs. The bucket removal process also stinks. The bucket fits way too tight and requires a real pull to extract it from the unit. My wife (who used to empty the old unit half the times) cannot get the bucket out of this unit. I also learned after day one that the bucket fills to the very brim so when you pull to yank it out you end up with water spilled onto the floor (which is really retarded considering this is a dehumidifier). It's just one of those product designs that leaves you scratching your head wondering how it got thru even basic product user testings. I would've giving this unit 5-stars if it weren't for that stinking bucket.

Original Review, July, 2010:

I bought this dehumidifier to replace a very old, non-working unit in my basement. Overall, it seems like a nicely made unit. I can live with its shortcomings because it does produce a lot of water, and that's what I care about. Also, the fan does produce a nice stream of air that reaches pretty far across my basement, which is good.

The cardboard box it comes in is a little unique - you cut the straps and then lift the box off of the unit, unless you don't read the instructions and lift the heavy unit out of the box, like I did.

To me, the unit seems a little bigger than it looks in the picture, so check the dimensions. As you would expect, it is somewhat heavy, but the handle is sturdy, and the unit rolls around on four casters.

Being in my basement, the noise level is not really important to me, but it is quieter than my old unit for two reasons. One reason is that it uses a squirrel-cage type blower fan, maybe about 10 inches in diameter (looks like a large hamster wheel). This fan does not make the annoying sound that comes from a typical fan with large, flat blades. The second reason that it's quiet is because the exhaust air (which is noisier than the intake) is blown out the side, not out the front. The air intake is through the front. This is a small disappointment for me because I need the exhaust air to blow into the center of the basement, which means I have to turn the unit so that its side is facing toward the center of the basement. It's not a big problem except that the side of the unit doesn't look as good as the front, and to make it worse, the drain hose also comes out the same side, just below the exhaust air opening. So when I look at the unit, all I see is the side of the unit and drain hose coming out.

The fan has low and high speeds. Initially, I thought that the fan ran all the time because I noticed the compressor would cycle on and off but the fan kept running (this is normal and necessary to prevent evaporator coil freeze-up). But later, at some time after the humidity in the room dropped to the set-point, then the fan and the compressor both shut off. The readout always displays the humidity in the room, but if you want to see what the set-point is, you need to push a set-point arrow, either up or down, just once.

The bucket has a nice built-in carrying handle, so you can carry it without spilling, but emptying the bucket is another story. If you don't care about spilling water all over the place, then you are going to love this bucket. Just make sure you can empty it into a large sink, bathtub or the backyard because the water pours out from several places at once. The bucket has a little red ball indicator on the front which is nice because you can see how much water is in the bucket without removing the bucket. When the bucket is full, then the fan and compressor both stop, and the red "Bucket Full" light turns on.

After you're done with spilling water from that bucket, and have a suitable drain, then you can use the drain hose feature (a hose is not included, but any regular garden hose will work). At first I had some problems with the drain hose because the water would go into the bucket instead of into the hose. I think this problem happened because I had put a "quick-disconnect" hose adapter on the dehumidifier. I thought the adapter was a good idea because the hose is a little annoying to remove (you have to pull out the bucket and reach in with your fingers or a wrench) and I wanted a way to easily disconnect the hose to periodically clean out any clogs. After I removed that adapter, the drain hose worked better for a while but then water started filling the bucket again. I finally fixed the problem by making a small air vent hole in the top of the hose just where it comes out of the unit (about 1/8 inch hole on the very top side of the hose). The water streams along the bottom of the hose, and the air vents through the hole on top. I use clear plastic vinyl tubing so that I can see the water in the hose and visually check for any clogs.

Every so often the machine turns on the "Filter Reset" light to remind you to rinse the filter screen. You need to remove the bucket and then pull the screen down. Putting the filter back in place is a little difficult at first and you may have to get down on hands and knees to see where it goes. Also the screen has a marking that says "Front" but take a good look at how it goes back in while you are taking it out. You should check the filter when the light is on, but you can turn the light off by pressing the "Filter Reset" button without actually removing the filter.

The power on/off light is a little confusing. It is always lit whenever the unit is plugged in.

The unit has a timer that enables you to either start the unit after a delay, or stop the unit after a delay, from 0.5 hour to 24 hours. If the unit is running then setting the Timer will turn the unit off after a certain number of hours (Delay Stop). If the unit is off, setting the Timer will turn the unit on after a certain number of hours (Delay Start). The timer is a one-time action, so you need to program the timer function each time you want to use it. I don't think that this function is too useful for me.

Every so often I let the drain hose go into a coffee can to see that it's producing water at a good rate. As long as it keeps producing lots of water, the unit is doing what I need it to do.

Update to Review, Aug, 2011:

After 14 months of really great performance, my dehumidifier developed a serious problem. Suddenly, one day, I noticed that the sound from the dehumidifier was a little different than usual. I looked through the holes in the front and could see what looked like a heavy layer of white frost or ice on the (evaporator) coil. It's a little hard to see because you need to look through the filter screen in front of the coil. The frost layer covered the coil starting at the bottom and then went up about one-half or two-thirds of the way towards the top of the coil. The top one-third of the coil looked clean and dry. No water was being produced by the dehumidifier. I believe that the unit sounded differently because the normal airflow was being restricted by the frost. I realize that icing can occur if the room is too cold (below 40 deg.), but the room was about 65 degrees. I turned it off to let the ice melt. When I turned it back on, the frost came back and no water was produced.

I called the number in the user manual for warranty service and got the name of a local appliance service company. I contacted the local company and they said that the problem was likely in the sealed (i.e., freon and compressor) system. I know that the warranty covers that system for five years. They said that I would be charged a small diagnostic fee (about $25).

I brought the unit to the repair place which turned out to be a very small local shop - actually a person working from his house, not what I expected - but OK. He gave me the unit back with an invoice that said that the sealed system had failed, and told me to call Frigidaire. He didn't charge me for the diagnostic work. I called Frigidaire and explained the problem and what I had done. They said something about there not being a local store in my area that could handle this problem, so they would buy the unit back directly from me for the price I paid. They would send me a letter with information I would need to provide. They said I would need to peel the label containing the serial number from the back of the unit and mail it back to them. I received their letter, returned the label and my invoice, and then I received a check for my full purchase price, less tax and shipping, if any. I still have the failed unit that I have to dispose of, but I can deal with that.

Although I am disappointed that this problem happened on such a relatively new unit, I was satisfied with the warranty refund I received.

So now what. Well, after looking online again and reading reviews, I still like the features and performance of the Frigidaire, although now I'm a little unsure about their long-term reliability. I decided to buy another one, not exactly the same model, but similar. I hope that it lasts a little longer this time, and that their warranty service stays the same.

It's large - like the size of a large portable refrigerator but hey, it's so nice. It's actually not white, it's creamy/ivory white but that's the same color as my walls - I'm in an apartment and I love it. On low fan it's VERY quiet and on medium fan is MODERATELY loud but not in an unpleasant way - much quieter than my old one (that one sounded like an airplane landing). The air draws in from the front and comes out the side... which I love because I can put an air purifier to the side it exits so - TADA - not only DRY air, but dry CLEAN air...great. The out vent is on the right side by the way...when you're facing the front. My apartment is 1000 sq ft and when it rains I need this to dry out the apartment (it's on a slab). It works well, bucket after bucket of water pours from it. So I'm happy with it. It works well, right out of the box ... easy - turn on - works - no problems. I think this model came out as an improvement on all the others...and it is. In a basement or in a living room it's acceptable looking and reasonably quiet. The price is right and with "one click" I had it practically overnight. No brainer. Love it. Frigidaire < Good brand name. Very easy to register it after the purchase / I've a feeling the company will stand by the product...this is a responsible company. Feel good about the purchase. Minus 1 star just because the exit vent for the dry air is pretty small > about 8" inches by 3 inches... I was surprised by that, but it doesn't effect the function. I hope this helped you decide.

I purchased this product 1 week ago. I wish I hadn't. This dehumidifier blows almost CONSTANTLY (24 hours a day, even when it is not dehumidifying) when the power is on.

The way dehumidifiers are supposed to work (and the way my Kenmore worked for 10 years) is that when the humidity in the room exceeds the desired level, the blower and the compressor turn on until the humidity is removed.

With the Frigidaire dehumidifiers, the blower runs almost constantly (it turns itself off for a few minutes every so often, with no apparent pattern, otherwise it is on all the time.) Only the compressor is controlled by the humidity level. The blower is powerful, creating a fairly strong air current in the room, creating unnecessary noise and is a total waste of electricity.

I called Frigidaire customer service, and they confirmed that this is the way the product is designed. I wish there was some mention of this in the user manual, which I read online before buying this product.

I found an identical criticism posted on another website regarding this problem.

This product is impressive. I live in a house built in 1914. It is 2 story, about 1500 square feet and does not have central heat and air. The heaters are baseboard units with no fans. The a/c is an 8000 btu window unit which can keep the downstairs comfortable in the summer due to the house having white siding, and numerous shade trees around it. The problem was humidity. While the a/c could keep the temperature comfortable, a unit that small could not control the humidity, and the house smelled musty most of the time, as well as there was damage to old books, photos, etc. that incur damage in high humidity. This dehumidifier was the perfect solution. I placed it in the middle of the house and the bucket is about 90% full every day when I empty it. The house is much more comfortable, and the musty smell is gone now. The unit is attractive, appears to be well made, and is very easy to use. The owners manual is well written and easy to understand. Quiet is a relative thing. If one compares it to the quiet of a central heat and air system it is noisy, due to the fact that the fan in those units is isolated outside or in a basement usually. The fans in those units are much louder than what one hears inside the home. A fan that moves any significant amount of air will make noise. I would say this unit is quiet, yes it does make noise but is quieter than the window a/c unit here, and most floor fans. As far as doing it's job of lowering humidity in my home it is an excellent performer. I am completely satisfied. I would recommend emptying the bucket in a bathtub vs. a sink as it does tend to splash.

When mine arrived I found it a "snap" to unpack, to set up, and to begin the initial test run; simple to use, the unit should appeal to everyone, even those who find themselves mechanically challenged. Operation is intuitive, and if you're like me, and prefer to plug things in first and read the directions later...you will appreciate this Frigidaire dehumidifier. When you do decide to refer to the printed instructions, they are remarkably clear, concise and easy to interpret.

The unit seems lighter than the manufacturer advertised weight of 37 lbs. It's mounted on casters, and very easy to maneuver (even on carpeted floors), and the design is eye-pleasing...I would even say attractive; if you need to locate the unit in full view it is NOT distressing. I also like the fact that this dehumidifier has a float valve on the dump bucket, which shuts off the unit when the bucket is full, helping to avoid a messy over-flow. There is a "bucket-full" indicator light on top of the dehumidifier to alert the operator that it is time to empty the collected water. A word of caution however : in my experience, removing the collection bucket on any dehumidifier once "full-to-the-brim" can be tricky and usually results in some spillage. Thankfully, there is a clear window gage on the bucket that allows you to visually see how much water has accumulated in the bucket. Conceivably one could check the unit periodically, and empty the bucket before it gets "too" full. As well, there is a filter that needs to be removed every 250 hours of operation then washed and dried before re-installed. This does not seem burden-some to me. In fact, I think periodically washing the filter is a good practice : the combination of dirt and water typically encourages the formation of mold, and cleaning the filter regularly will help to prevent a "science project" from taking up residence in the dehumidifier. I do not want the air I breathe to be circulating over a dirty, moldy filter !! A light on the dehumidifier alerts you when it is time to clean the filter..."memory" is not an issue.

Within an hour of first operating the unit I could already detect some benefit from the dehumidifier; the air was discernibly dryer as moisture was being "sucked" from the air, and water began collecting in the dump-bucket. ! This seems to be an efficient appliance.

Regarding the operating noise...if you have a box fan turn it on to "medium-high", stand back from it six feet, and listen. This will give you an accurate sense of how loud you can expect the unit to sound when the dehumidifier fan is set to "high". Keep in mind however, the manufacturer recommends you initially run the dehumidifier continuously on "high" for the first four or five days....just until you've dried out the environment. After that, one can lower the setting, which will reduce the noise further....and presumably result in a reduction in energy consumption as well. There is also a timer on the appliance, which will allow you to set the dehumidifier to come on at night while asleep; this surely would be a good option for someone concerned about fan noise during waking hours. (The timer is handy too if you are gone from your residence for any extended period.) Subjectively, I would say the noise coming from the dehumidifier, set on "high", is not any greater than a modern, energy efficient, window-mounted air conditioning unit.

I live in a small-to-medium size one bedroom apartment, and only plan to run this dehumidifier intermittently. However, if I were going keep the unit running "non-stop" on "high" I might consider purchasing an extended 3 or 5 year warranty for peace of mind. The standard warranty from Frigidaire is one year, which is typical for most dehumidifiers. Only time will tell if this appliance is well-made.

I would indeed recommend this dehumidifier to a friend !

This is the fourth dehumidifier I have owned over the last 20 years, and it is the nicest one yet. It is much quieter than the Whirlpool unit it replaced (which lost it freon after 8 years), even on the high fan speed. It also is very effective at lowering the humidity in my basement.

It is true that the fan runs constantly when the dehumidifier is plugged in, while the compressor cycles on and off. Circulating the room air might permit more complete and uniform removal of excess moisture, but it could also just be a a waste of energy. My solution was to plug the unit into an inexpensive timer (like that used to control lights while an vacation) set to turn it off and on at regular intervals. I found I only need to have the unit running about half the time for effective humidity control.

Two comments about features that are not clear until you use this dehumidifier.
1. The timer is only designed to allow for a one-time delayed start or delayed stop. After the unit starts or stops the timer becomes non-functional until you reset it. I had hopped the timer would be sophisticated enough to provide the scheduled on/off cycling like I describe above. I down-rated the unit to 4 stars because of this feature.
2. If you want to use a hose for continuous operation, then this dehumidifier allows you to connect it directly to the outlet where water would normally enter the catch bucket. Thus, when a hose is connected, water never enters the bucket at all. This is a real improvement over all my past units where the hose had to be connected to an outlet on the side of the bucket, which meant that there was always water in the bucket (resulting in a bacterial-fungal biofilm forming inside) and that the outlet could also break off the bucket.

Hello all,

In my dehumidifier research, I have found two pieces of information that have changed my focus for dehumidifiers in general:
1) There is a high volume of reports pertaining to reliability issues associated with portable dehumidifiers.
2) Those reliability issues span a large swath of manufacturers and model numbers.

In short, these units are not being advertised correctly. Please see the following link:
[...]
These portable units are "rated" at "saturation" (100% humidity), not the 80 degree, 65% humidity standard that commercial units use for more accurate dehumidifier rating. 100% humidity is a laboratory condition that will never exist in your home. See the following link for more information:
[...]
Ultimately, the reason these units fail so frequently is they are being used to dehumidify rooms beyond the reasonable capacity they were designed for. Being overworked, they fail early. The only way to properly evaluate the capacity dehumidifier you need is to get it's AHAM capacity, *not* it's saturation capacity (typically, the only capacity advertised for these smaller portable units is the saturation rating).

If you have a basement that is important to you, just accept the fact that it is well worth the $1,000 plus it will cost you to obtain a reliable whole house dehumidifier. Given the more efficient power usage of the reliable unit, you will spend less in the long run for two reasons:

1) Portable units will run 100% of the time and consume much more electricity in the process.
2) Portable units will run 100% of the time and burn themselves out early causing you to replace them frequently.

Whole house dehumidifiers run approximately 4 hours of the day (83% less run time).

Despite the fact that whole house units cost three times as much initially, between unit replacements and higher power consumption of the portable units, the whole house dehumidifiers are the more cost effective solution.

The heart of the problem rests with the way the portable units are advertised. A 70 pint unit will only theoretically extract 70 pints of water in a 24 hour day if the room is at 100% humidity and high temperature.
If the room is only 80% humidity, the dehumidifier's water extraction capacity declines dramatically. As the temperature drops, so also does the dehumidifier's ability to extract water from the air. So in realistic circumstances, say 80 degrees Fahrenheit at 65% humidity, that same 70 pint unit will only extract roughly 20 pints in 24 hours. Because the room is still at high humidity, the unit stays on trying and failing to get the room's humidity down. The unit stays on continually and eventually burns itself out requiring replacement (and a high electric bill).

The engineers who designed the units are not necessarily at fault. The marketing teams who advertise them most certainly are. A unit advertised as a 70 pint dehumidifier is really about a 20 pint unit when evaluated according to the industry standard 80 degrees Fahrenheit at 65% humidity AHAM rating methodology.

If you are only concerned about a small room, a garage, or a shed, a portable unit may suffice. But if you are trying to humidify a room in a house (connected to other rooms that are not being dehumidified), you are embarking upon an adventure in frustration in purchasing a portable dehumidifier. The humidity from the rest of the house will work its way into the room you are dehumidifying and work your portable unit (and your electric bill) to death.

Buyer beware - not this unit specifically, but the entire portable advertising industry in general. Get a unit with a commercial AHAM rating. They have longer warranties, better reliability ratings, and a much, much lower frustration factor.

I say so far because I have a wet basement and our humidifier runs constantly all spring and summer. We tend to kill humidifiers and this one was purchased as a replacement for a Goldstar that died after three years.
I have been running this one now for only a few days but I can tell you that it is far quieter and removes far more water than our previous humidifiers. I have it running on high and have to open the cellar door to know if it is running. The other one we could hear upstairs with the door shut. It is also designed very nicely with a super easy hose hookup and a built in handle on the top if you need to carry it somewhere. I would agree with other reviews that it is more attractive than other models although I don't really care since it is in the basement.