Customer Reviews

Frigidaire 50-Pint Dehumidifier

5 star:		(49)
4 star:		(30)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(9)

 

 

I'm just a satisfied buyer, that's all. I bought this dehumidifier from another source because I NEEDED it immediately but I thought I would write a review for my favorite store ... Amazon.

My unit has is the FDL50S1 and has slots in the face instead. I'm sure it's the same spec's and quality as this model.

After full internet investigation I went out to visit the all the store's in a 20 mile radius of me to view some of the models. Wasting $25 worth of gas in my truck driving to every appliance store I could find, I bought this unit. It's has great clean appearance. I unpacked it, plugged it in, set it on low fan and within 3 hours the large bucket was almost half full of humidity from my basement. I plan on using the easy to get to hose adaptor for draining in the near future but for now, the bucket is great and easy to remove. The fan is strong but I can't hear the compressor. There is NO buzzing from the unit, just smooth quiet fan sound. It makes no more noise than a good floor fan. It's in my cold basement and is good to go in 41 degrees if needed. It's important to if you have airconditioning. The basement gets COLD in the summer. My opinion is, if it doesn't have a good fan, it won't circulate the air to remove the humidity. It draws air in from the front and out the side. This makes it easy to slide up along a wall out of the way. The digital controls are on top. The casters are large and it rolls smooth on my in door out door carpeting in the basement. The only thing it doesn't do is have an auto restart if the power goes out ... but I don't care. It's just not that important to me .... I can push a button if I loose power.

With my past experience, I rate this as a perfect and very smooth unit. I thought I would reward a great product ... there's so much junk out there, when I find a good one, I share my satisfaction.

After many hours of reading through Amazon reviews looking for the perfect dehumidifier, I realized that they are none. Most dehumidifiers out there are not made to last anymore. They tend to break in a year or one summer season from what reviewers posted. Some reviewers mentioned that warranty is useless because of the labor cost to replace the covered parts. I didn't want to spend $200 on a dehumidifier that lasts one season. I'm sure you don't either.

I ended up with the Frigidaire unit because of the lack of reviews (good or bad) and the 5 year compressor (1 year parts and labor) warranty. I have used it for two months now and it works well in drying up my basement. Hopefully it lasts.

Here are my Likes and Dislikes...
Good: Strong fan to circulate the air
Good: Wheels makes it easy to move the heavy unit
Good: Handle on top of the dehumidifier and on the top of the bucket
Good: Well priced. (Long Islanders - Qualify for the $10 LIPA rebate)
Bad: It is not quiet but for a basement unit I don't mind the noise

Other Note: Kill-A-Watt meter shows that uses around 600 watt of electricity with the compress on.

First off, I have to question the 1-star review by N8N. The instruction manual addresses the major complaints in the first couple of pages. The reason the fan runs continuously for the first couple of days is because it runs in CO (continuous operation) mode until the humidity level is lowered in the room.

My unit is on day 2, and has so far sucked about 80 liters out of the air. I put it in my basement corner (with plenty of room on top and sides for airflow), and the fan runs continuously in order to lower the humidity level. After another day or two the fan will stop, at which point you can adjust how humid (or not) you want the room to be.

The unit is pretty attractive for what it is, and has a convenient handle on the top and nice rollers on the bottom. Even my wife commented on it, which is saying something. The tray is just a bit too snug to make emptying the reservoir an easy task (you have to work it a little), but this is my only nitpick. Better to have it tight than lose, which would facilitate spills.

Of the 2 settings for the fans, both are loud. :) The lower speed is quieter, but you wouldn't want to try to fall asleep with this thing in the room. It is best used in a basement or room that doesn't occupy the majority of your time. It's not jet plane loud, but it's not quiet (are any of these things actually "quiet"?).

Still, it does a really good job. My basement is noticeably drier in just the short time I've been running it. It's the rainy season right now (early May), and any damp / moisture smells that naturally occur this time of the year are absent. It does what it's supposed to do, which makes me happy. I'd recommend the unit to anyone who needs a basement dehumidifier.

FOLLOW UP: It's almost a year later, and this thing is still going strong. I love it. It has kept our basement dry during the very humid DC spring and summer. I was worried that this thing wouldn't hold up to so much use for so long (dehumidifiers are notorious for breaking down), but this unit has been a champ. Would recommend to others without reservation.

FOLLOW UP #2: It's almost 2 years later, and it still works just like the day it came in. Sure, you have to clean the filter once in a while, but our basement air and humidity have been perfect ever since I bought this (and it can get PRETTY MUGGY here in Washington, DC during the Spring). Great product.

These people who complain about noise apparently haven't tried my not so old Kenmore. I bought a Kenmore dehumidifier about 3 years ago and you'd think they designed it to make noise. Sometimes it wined. Sometimes rattled. Sometimes it sounded like it was grinding metal. Thank heavens it finally died. So I started reading reviews of humidifiers here, at [...] and other places. I noticed that the Soleus has by far the most reviews on Amazon, dwarfing the Frigidaire in numbers. And the Soleus is consistently praised for being quiet. That would be very important if you're going to run a dehumidifier in your living space. But, in the basement where most people put their humidifiers they just need to be quiet enough so you don't hear an intrusive level of noise through the walls and floor. The Frigidaire meets that requirement easily. On low I can't hear it at all in our living space. But I also suspect that the Frigidaire moves a lot more air on low than the Soleus. The Soleus was criticized for taking a long time to dehumidify. In fact the Frigidaire moves so much air on the low setting that you could use it as an emergency hair dryer by sitting it up on a table using the handy fold down handle on its top. You could also set it next to your drip-dry rack and hurry up the drying of those things you don't want to put in the regular dryer.

If you read the reviews of the Soleus carefully you'll find reports that some people think getting one that works properly is sort of a crapshoot. And some said that if there is a problem the customer service for the Soleus isn't that great. I didn't read anything like that about the Frigidaire. I also tend to be suspicious of products that cut corners. So, when I read that the Soleus doesn't provide threads for connecting a hose onto the water output. Duh! I said to myself, "No way!" Seems like a no-brainer to me. But maybe not providing threads saves a half dollar on the production. Anyway, after reading all those little snipes I decided that, even though the Frigidaire only got 6 reviews to the Soleus' 292 or whatever, I'd look around and see what other sights were saying about the Frigidaire. I found one sight that rated it as the best of the humidifiers. What I didn't find was anyone saying theirs stopped working after a month and a half. So I went out and bought one for myself.

After opening it up, screwing in the hose, plugging it in and pushing the 'ON" button, which took all of 3 minutes, I have come to the conclusion that if the Frigidaire just came with a video processor, a logic chip, voice capability and a means of propelling itself I might develop an affection for it. I might do so anyway. So far anyway Frigi's breath is pleasant enough. See, I've already given her a name. She's actually quite beautiful as compared for example to R2 D2. I think R2 D2 would definitely have fallen in love at first sight. As for me? As much as I'd like to just sit and look at Frigi, I am a married man and therefore feel obliged to limit such indulgences.

It is June 1 and Frigi is working great. Those who say the pan is tight are correct. I found that it's important to do the counter intuitive thing. If one side seems to be easier to pull out, don't keep working that side. Instead, push the easy side in and pull hard on the difficult side. Otherwise what happens is you pull out the easy side and create a wedge effect that makes the difficult side impossible to move. But, if you make sure either to use a new hose or to blow out any old hose so that water runs through it easily, and then attach it firmly to the threaded outlet inside the dehumidifier, and make sure it runs downhill to a drain, you shouldn't need to open the pan except to clean the filter.

Dehumidifier works fine and seems to remove humidity in a fairly large swatch of area. One minor problem is that when it reaches the level of humidity you have set it for, it will go on and off in short bursts indefinitely. It seems it should shut off for an hour or so, and not simply go off then on for 4 or 5 seconds then off 4 for 5 seconds then back on again--you must turn it off manually for several hours then remember to turn it back on again.

I would rank this product 5 out of 5 stars if it weren't for the one setback of not having an energy saver mode by which it turns itself on and off every 2 or 4 hours. I bought the product at Lowes as a quasi emergency since the one I had broke down. I didn't want to purchase online, but since I use amazon for mostly music and literature, I figured I'd leave a review for others.

This unit is very quiet and has a strong fan that really pulls the moisture out of the air. I have it my basement and my house is right along a lake. I have 5 subpumps in the basement to manage the water during heavy rains so in those times there is quite a bit of water that remains in the subpump wells. The dehumidifier would be used to control that and the humid LI summers. (that's long island, NY)

Aside from the one setback about the energy saver mode, I think this is a good product. I like the handle on top and I used a drain connection and fed a tube directly into one of the subpump wells.

One recommedation is to use a swivel hose barb adaptor. The female connection: http://airhosereels.com/ghf06.html The 3/4" FH x 1/2" Barb is the one that I used. This method helps with using more flexible, cheaper PVC clear pipe as opposed to buying a hose that may not come shorter than 3 feet. I used the 1/2" pvc pipe. http://www.clearpvcpipe.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=122


I guess this approach helps with the setup of the multiple subpumps.

I like that you can have it right up against the wall as with other models, the exhaust comes out of the back requiring clearance from behind.

Overall, I'd recommend this product to others that have the basement and humid summers of the north east.

My unit is the FDL50S1. Other than cosmetic changes, the specs appear to be identical to this one. However, there may be engineering differences between the two models. I had to purchase my unit in a hurry, and I got it from the blue "big box" home supply store. Hopefully this model has a more forgiving humidity sensor than the one I got!

My model works, rapidly bringing the humidity level in my basement down to very comfortable levels. However once there, it started cycling on and off very rapidly. It would run for ten seconds and shut off. It would then start back up again 30 seconds later and run for about two minutes before stopping again. About two minutes later, it start the same pattern over again. This almost constant on/off pattern was really irritating, and it could not be good for the compressor or the power relays in the dehumidifier.

I emailed Frigidaire, and my response was a bland "...a dehumidifier could
cycle about every 3 to 4 minutes on then 3 to 4 minutes off depending on
..." which tossed out a bunch of possible reasons, none of which made much sense. They do not consider it to be a defect.

Thank goodness this machine remembers its settings when the power goes off. My solution was to go to the "big box" local discount store and buy an inexpensive mechanical timer that can be set for multiple cycles, as short as repetitive 15 minute on / 15 minute off for the entire 24 hours. I set the dehumidifier for low fan, and 35% humidity ... well below the 45 to 50% that I want. I plugged it into the timer with repetitive 30 minute on, 30 minute off cycles. When the timer clicks on, the dehumidifier starts, shows a higher humidity, and runs for a half hour. When the timer stops it, the humidity is about 45% ... it has run continuously since it has not yet reached the 35% I set it at. It stays off for a half hour, and then the cycle starts over. Perfect! I did have to shorten just a couple cycles during 24 hours because the humidity was getting lower than what I wanted.

Yes, it is a clumsy way to fix what should not be a problem to start with, but it works. Yes, I'll probably have to adjust the cycles when the wet season ends, but at least I don't have to listen to that constant on/off every minute or two!

I had to get a new dehumidifier fast. So I spent a few hours searching the net reading reviews of all brands at 7 different websites. This unit won hands down. I am so glad I went with it. Locally it sells for $199.00 so the price Amazon has it GREAT!

It is a snap to set up. You clip 3 heavy bands and lift the box off. Roll the unit on to the floor. Plug it in.
My humidity was 75% since I was 5 days without one in the basement. Within 3 hours it was 45%. The bucket is easy to empty and has an easy carry handle. I have since attatched a garden hose out the side to drain into the floor drain. I like they have it come out the side so you can switch back and forth between hose draining or collecting in bucket. Most you punch out a hole in the side of the bucket and you are stuck.

THE WOW FACTOR IS HOW QUIET!!!! This unit is. My old one was only 2 yrs old and was broken by workmen. :( But it was so loud that from the basement on the far end of the house to the bedroom on the first floor it kept me awake at night. If you had to be in the room with it you had to turn it off or go deaf. On high this unit sounds like a normal fridge on low it is almost silent.

A dehumidifier is not a "fun" item to buy but a must for good health with asthma. I cannot let mold take hold. I'm very happy with this purchase and it even looks nice and the quality is very high. :)

After doing some research and being scared away by the alarmingly bad reviews for the other top dehumidifier manufacturer here on Amazon (Soleus), I went with the Frigidaire 50-pint model.

After two months of constant use, it has worked very effectively with only a few nagging annoyances.

Pros:

1. Removes a lot of water and requires very little attention.
2. Looks sleek, easy to transport with handles on top and grips on the side, and quite light when empty.
3. While the "quiet factor" has been a hot topic in these reviews, I didn't find it too bad. On the "low" setting, it has the approximate volume level of a house fan on the "HI" setting. Not silent, but not annoying enough to include in my "cons".

Cons: (more annoyances than anything)

1. When humidity in the room is near the targeted level, the unit will begin to act funky as it teeters on the edge of the desired humidity level. The fan will shut on and off every minute or two, sometimes with the compressor and sometimes only the fan. This will continue for up to 30 minutes before it either shuts off for a while or begins to run more continuously. Easy to ignore after a while, but if you plan to be around or sleep with this unit, prepare for this behavior.

2. When the bucket is full, it is really FULL. There is a plastic shield that covers the bucket when you remove it, but water will still find it's way to the floor if you aren't careful. It is a bit awkward to get the bucket out but with some practice I've only splashed a couple of times.

3. The "clean filter" light seems to come on every third bucket cycle (or every two weeks?) regardless of how or when you last cleaned it. Not really a con, but depending on your air quality you probably won't need to clean the filter nearly this often.

Make no mistake, these are just nitpicks I have and overall this is an excellent product. If you are in the market for a dehmidifier, this is probably your most reliable choice considering the alternatives.

A very poor product, as well as customer service. After a couple days, I noticed that my unit was cycling on and off continuously every few minutes and staying on for a few minutes after reaching the desired humidity (45%). I called Frigidaire's 800 number, which will NOT allow you to talk with a real person...all menu driven. All I wanted to do was ask about this inefficient continuous on and off every few minutes. The automated voice said I had to take it to authorized service, so I did. They didn't know much about them and called Frige's tech line, only to find out that yes, it is faulty in doing what it does, but there's NO FIX. Evidently, these units are 'Throw-aways"... What a waste!! They instructed me to go to the dealer and get another new one.

Well, guess what.. It did the SAME thing.. I called back again to Fridge' via the repair services tech line number, expressing my dissatisfaction again She said go get another, so this is my third unit in three weeks. This one is NOW also doing the same thing. I think it's a major design problem.. And to not fix them, but junk them?? Wow.. Fridgidaire's certainly NOT a green company!

I think there would be lots more returns, but most people put them in their basements and forget about them, not knowing they're cycling over and over repeatedly. They can't hear them in the basement. Yes, they remove moisture, but in a very inefficient way.

If you buy one, be sure to monitor it for awhile after a couple days. And good luck finding somebody to talk to at Frigidaire.. Certainly wouldn't recommend one.. And now comes the real challenge; getting my money back.