ᐅ Moisture in the Laundry Room – Should You Ventilate or Use a Dehumidifier?

Hello everyone,

The humidity in our laundry room is too high. It’s not a heated basement; our heating system is located on the upper floor (how convenient 🙁 ). There is a window there, but I haven’t figured out yet when it’s best to ventilate—during the day, at night, or while the washing machine/dryer is running. In any case, my humidity meter shows over 70%. I’ve heard that above 70% it becomes critical over time.

Does it make sense to use a dehumidifier? If yes, would a desiccant-based one or an electric one be better, or would simple ventilation solve the problem?

Of course, first try ventilating! Is the basement fully underground, meaning only a skylight/light well, or do you have a standard window? In any case, ventilate by opening windows wide at night or early in the morning.
No heating is needed there, as the dryer provides the warm (unfortunately humid) air.
What are the current temperatures there and in the other basement rooms?

Only ventilate for an extended period when the outdoor air temperature is colder than in your laundry room.

Matthias45 schrieb:

Only ventilate for a longer period when the outside air temperature is colder than in your laundry room.

These days, that's probably difficult. I currently need to ventilate three times a day at the construction site because the building dryers are running, and the screed is scheduled to be installed on Friday. According to the tradesperson who deals with this daily, simply ventilating three times a day with short bursts is completely sufficient 😎

The building dryers were set up yesterday afternoon, and by this morning they were all full...

Managing a building with the same problem. In winter, ventilation is sufficient, but in summer only a dehumidifier works. Granules are too little there. The causes are structural in nature combined with hanging laundry...

A washing machine does not add extra moisture, but hanging laundry does. A good condenser dryer also does not add much moisture. If it is not running several times a day, it should not be the cause. First, make sure the moisture is not coming from the floor or walls. Cross-ventilating with a window is, of course, difficult, so keep the door open to other rooms. The rule to ventilate only when it is colder outside applies to damp walls; otherwise, you would hardly be able to ventilate for most of the year.