Sears dehumidifer problems

Mike-

After setting, does the touch panel read out its version of actual humidity? If it only shows the set point, you don't know whether it is shutting off because it has reached the set point, or because the compressor has shut down from an over-current condition.

It might just be a coincidence that the cycling compressor appears to maintain a particular humidity level.

Fred

If there isn't enough coolant, it basically expands and cools without filling the entire evaporator coil and it gets colder in that limited area.

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It only displays the chosen set point; not the actual humidity.

Hmmm. in any case, I'm replacing the sensor, so it should eliminate that variable.

Hi!

Wow...I never heard of one using hair as a humidity indicator!

This must not have been done in a long time, as I've got a Sears Coldspot dehumidifier that's at least 30 years old and it uses a conventional thin layer of plastic in the humidistat.

William

If it is the style I am familiar with it acts as a variable capacitor. Something about a membrane that absorbs water with an electrode on each side. When I used one it was in an oscillator circuit with a microprocessor measuring the frequency. They are non-linear and somewhat temperature dependent.

snipped-for-privacy@xinap.moc (Mike S.) wrote in news:e7e65r$3hf$ snipped-for-privacy@reader2.panix.com:

Mike,

I went through 5 dehumidifiers in one summer due to bad humidity sensors. I then found gas leaks at a few black pipe joints. "Knock on wood" the latest dehumidifier has not changed since new, but I have to set it at

35% to get 66% humidity (an obvious calibration offset) . If the gas polution wasn't the cause, There is a really bad quality issue with dehumidifiers with many manufacturers, I.E. Maytag, LG, Goldstar, Whirlpool and GE with the above humidity accuracy problem. The humidity readouts just pegged at the top of the scale and the compressors would not run.

I wish I could find a good old horses hair or cellophane humidistat controled unit!!

Dave M.

You will get better results if you write to the Sears president. Someone in his office will take care of the problem.

Don (e-mail link at home page bottom).

I was hoping you'd say there is a trimmer adjustment on the back :-) ....

But if it is a capacitor, you could add a trimmer or fixed cap in series or parallel to change the setpoint.

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Thanks for that .. when swap in the replacement I will examine the existing sensor for possible future intervention.

Follow-up to this thread: Basement getting awfully damp while I wait for the replacement sensor. In the end I took it to Sears for an estimate. They acknowledged that it had 1 year remaining warranty on the sealed components (but not the rest). Today (2 weeks after drop-off) I received two messages from Sears on my answering machine.

The first message was an apology for the delay, and they would be contacting me soon.

The second was a statement that Sears had decided to replace the dehumidifier rather than attempt repair; and I would be notified shortly when to pick up the new unit.

When I pick it up, I'll turn in the sensor for credit. All's well that ends well ... though I suppose I won't know for sure now whether the problem was the coolant or the electronics/sensor.