▷ How to automatically drain your dehumidifier

A good dehumidifier is important for any house. A dehumidifier sucks in extra moisture, filters it, and blows clean air back into your home to maintain humidity levels. Too much moisture per day can lead to several deteriorating effects on your health such as asthma, heart problems, and congestion. Not only that, but it can also cause a buildup of mold, which itself is a killing machine.

A dehumidifier is a perfect solution to gather excess moisture and musty odors from the air, store it, and expel clean, fresh air. But the main issue that arises is how to drain the condensate that is building up in the device. It can be a hassle, and that’s why we are going to help you out!

In this guide, we will teach you how to automatically drain your dehumidifier in some easy, simple steps.

But the question that many ask is why use an automation process for drainage? The reason is simple! It’s frustrating to get up every day, open the dehumidifier, empty the bucket, and put the bucket back in, especially if you are using a dehumidifier with a small bucket.

Read on for the most efficient and effective ways to drain a dehumidifier automatically.

Best Ways to Drain a Dehumidifier Automatically

There are three ways to drain a humidifier and make the process simple, easy, and convenient for you.

Automatic Gravity Drainage

This is the simplest way and requires the least effort to install and run. As the name indicates, this process works through gravity and doesn’t require a motor or any other type of mechanical force.

It works like a charm and removes the hassle of doing the drainage yourself every day.

Find a Suitable Place for the Dehumidifier

Because the process involves gravity, it’s pretty obvious that you need to look for a high, suitable place to keep the dehumidifier. It is crucial to place it where it has good contact with an outlet and is at a decent height to drain. If not placed properly, it’s most likely going to fail.

Locate the Drain Plug

You need to look for a drain plug behind your dehumidifier. Unplug it and fasten a hose to it. Most but not all dehumidifiers come with a hose, so you might need to buy one yourself. A standard garden hose can work and fit with your dehumidifier.

Outlet Drain Required

The only way for it to work is to connect the hose to some external drainage. It can be a sink or anything that seems suitable.

As soon as you are done and have placed the dehumidifier in a suitable place, watch the process unfold. It’s time to say goodbye to boring manual drainage. Gravity is going to do that work for you!

Automatic Condensate Pumping

Gravity works like a charm. But there can be instances where you cannot locate a suitable place for the dehumidifier. That is where an external pump comes into play.

This method is easy, fast, reliable, and good in the long run.

An external pump does not always come with a dehumidifier, and you might have to buy it separately at an additional cost. But all-in-all, it is a great way to set up an automated process for water drainage.

How to Set It Up

Setting up an external pump for drainage is easy and doesn’t require much effort. However, if you feel you need extra help, you should ask for it. Here, we will teach you how to complete the task with little to no effort.

First, buy a proper condensate hose that fits your dehumidifier and the external pump. Attach the hose to the back of your dehumidifier. For the pump, its inlet is on top.
Second, there should be another opening from the pump that will act as its outlet. Attach another hose there and connect it to external drainage. The drain can be a floor drain, sink, or any suitable place to drain the condensate.
Activate the pump. The condensate in the dehumidifier will be sucked out and will start collecting in the pump.
As soon as the pump is full, the pump will remove the collected moisture from the second hose to the external drain.

This is how you set up an external pump to automate the process of drainage. It’s simple and effective and works like a charm.

Things to Keep in Mind

There are certain things to keep in mind when setting up the external pump.

Make sure that the external pump is compatible with your dehumidifier. You can seek professional advice if you are unsure.
Most of the time, once the pump starts working, most users don’t check up on it. Make sure to check if the pump is collecting the condensate or not. Due to some technical mistake, it’s possible that the pump could keep running without collecting any moisture.
Check for bends when connecting the hose to the pump and dehumidifier. Bends can impede the condensate and take a lot of time to empty.

Now you know how to set up an automatic external pump drainage system!

Built-in Pumps Dehumidifiers

External pumps work fine, and they are a reliable way to automate your drainage process. However, there are many dehumidifier models on the market that come with an internal pump, which works well for maximum moisture removal.

It is a great option to consider since you don’t have to go out of your way to buy a new one. Built-ins come with dehumidifiers and will save you the trouble of getting new hoses and setting up the whole mechanism.

Benefits of Built-in Pump Dehumidifiers

Built-in pump dehumidifiers work great and have several benefits:

Built-in dehumidifiers are convenient and easy to use. They are already attached and can drain the condensate without any setup. You can save a lot of time, money, and energy if you get a dehumidifier with a built-in pump.
Secondly, you can place and move it with little to no hassle. With external pumps, you will have to move the entire set-up, and it will take time to adjust to it. With built-in pumps, you can get the dehumidifier running almost instantly.
Moreover, built-ins are energy efficient and reduce energy consumption.

All in all, dehumidifiers with a built-in pump are a great option to consider. They are easy to set up, convenient, and reliable in the long run.

Why Won’t My Dehumidifier Automatically Drain?

There could be a few reasons why your dehumidifier is not draining automatically as it should. Most dehumidifiers are designed to be drained themselves. They don’t have any system that makes the process easier for you.

Dehumidifiers come with buckets inside that require emptying once they are full. Most of this process is manual. And with small dehumidifiers, they need emptying almost daily.

For that, you must set up a system yourself. There are a few methods that allow you to drain your dehumidifier automatically without having to do it yourself every day.

Gravity: This is the best way to automate your drainage process. It’s simple, easy, and convenient to use. All you need to do is to find a suitable surface, place the dehumidifier at a high place, and connect the dehumidifier to an external drain. Among all the ways of automating the draining process, gravity is the easiest.
Automatic Condensate Pumping: Another good way to drain your dehumidifier is to buy an external pump and attach it to the device. The external pump sucks the condensate away from the dehumidifier and drains it into the nearby attached drainage.
Built-In Pump Dehumidifier: Most dehumidifiers nowadays come with a built-in pump to automate the process of drainage. If the system is not working, and it appears that the dehumidifier is not draining, chances are that the pump is broken.

How Does a Self-draining Dehumidifier Work?

Self-draining dehumidifiers are much easier and more efficient. Most dehumidifiers come with small buckets inside that get filled up rather quickly. It can be a hassle to empty them out regularly.

That’s why most brands are automating the procedure by having them empty by themselves. The process is simple:

As soon as the bucket is filled inside the dehumidifier, the inbuilt or the external pump turns on.
An external pump fills itself up. er, However, a built-in pump drains the condensate directly to a nearby floor drain or sink.
The external pump connected to the external drain pumps out the condensate and empties itself.

This is how most dehumidifiers self-drain. Again, these steps can vary as brands may use some alternative methods.

Is It Normal to Empty a Dehumidifier Every Day?

Several factors should be kept in mind when emptying a dehumidifier. Dehumidifiers are not always made of the same water bucket size. And depending on some other factors, the total time for the bucket of a dehumidifier to fill up can vary.

Dehumidifier Size

Most portable dehumidifiers are small and thus have a small maximum capacity. On a warm day, they are likely to fill up quickly. On such occasions, you might have to empty the bucket almost every day.

Humidity

As mentioned earlier, on a humid day, the dehumidifier will have to work constantly to keep the moisture out from the air and the level of humidity at bay. At this pace, the condensate will build up inside the dehumidifier quickly. Thus, you will have to empty the bucket more often.

Room Size

If the room is small and there is a good amount of moisture in the air, the tank will likely fill up quickly, and you will have to empty it often.

Again, the points mentioned above can vary. You will have to check & test your dehumidifier yourself a couple of times to measure its capacity and timings.

Do Dehumidifiers Need to Drain?

A dehumidifier removes moisture from the air to protect you from asthma, mold, and CVS issues. But, this moisture has to go somewhere, which is why dehumidifiers need to be drained regularly.

Small Dehumidifiers, Smaller Buckets

Many dehumidifiers are equipped with small buckets. Their small size means that they require draining often.

Dehumidifiers on the market nowadays often have automated drainage procedures. In this case, you really don’t have to worry about manually draining your dehumidifier. But if your dehumidifier has a small bucket that needs to be manually drained, expect to drain it basically every day.

Connect Dehumidifier to External Drain

A dehumidifier that drains automatically requires an external drain. It can be a floor drain or a sink drain, depending on the process used for automating the draining process. A dehumidifier that drains by gravity will have a floor drain.

Connect Dehumidifier to Sink Drain

Dehumidifiers connected to a sink drain are drained by external pumps or an inbuilt pump. The process is simple to adjust, and you can fit the pump with a condensate hose and drain the condensate into a sink drain.

Conclusion

In this comprehensive guide on how to automatically drain your dehumidifier, we have dived deep into some methods that are easy and useful. A dehumidifier absorbs extra moisture and keeps the level of humidity low. An automatic drainage system is the simplest method, and it requires little work to set up and run.

FAQs

How to Find a Suitable Place for Gravity to Work

If you are using gravity to drain your dehumidifier, location is important. Because the operation relies on gravity, it’s obvious that the dehumidifier should be kept in a high location. It’s critical that it’s installed where it can make excellent contact with the outlet, and it’s high enough to drain effectively. It will most likely fail if it is not placed in a suitable high location.

Can Bends Affect the Automatic Draining Process?

When attaching the hose to the pump and dehumidifier, look for any bends. Bends might obstruct the collection of condensate.

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