Thanks Steve, my calculations were about right 6867 khw x $0.194838 = a lot...
I will check the french drains for open soil or garvel, and go from there.

 

So I don't see anything obviously wrong with the numbers being thrown around in this thread, but the final $ values still seem way out there to me. I just checked my household costs spreadsheet and find that my electricity costs for an entire year are about $1200. It boggles my mind to think we're talking about a single device in someone's house that comes even close to my annual costs. For the record, my cost per kWh is about $0.10 or around $0.12 if you just divide final bill by kWh.

So is my home just incredibly efficient, or is there something missing in the formulas above? I do have a dehumidifier in my finished basement which drains into my sump pump pit. It's just a small sub $200 unit I picked up at Home Depot and it runs fairly constantly when set to %50 RH. The $1900 dehumidifier mentioned above sounds very expensive by comparison. My costs are certainly reduced by being single with no roommates (ie, not much laundry, etc) but still....

--A2K

 

Atlantix2000, your house might be very efficient. A lot of it depends on where you live. If you happen to live in area that has low humidity and moderate temperatures to start with, a small dehumidifier might do the trick nicely. Most people in Arizona don't need dehumidifiers at all. But, if you happen to be near a swamp, a large dehumidifier and/or air conditioner might be needed. In south Florida, my air conditioner costs about $100/month to operate, and that is with R49 in insulation and really good windows and air-sealing. It used to be at least $200/month, just for the AC, before that work was done. It all depends on how much water and heat needs to be removed. By reducing the work that needs to be done, you can reduce the cost of doing it.

 

Yes, unfortunately here in NJ the electricity costs $0.194838 per kwh. I do have an Energy Star certified home. My annual electric bill is about $1,100. per year for a 3400 sq ft home (not including the basement) 2 AC and Heating units. If we had electric here at $0.12 per kwh, my bill would be about $677.00
Honestly I don't even care about the basement but the stored "stuff" has some value. I'm not sure it is worth the cost of running the dehumidifier at the current cost.
As an update, I connected the 50 pint dehumidifier to the condensate pump and turned the humidistate to half way, it has been running continuously for 3 days. It is significantly drier however, I was hoping that it would have cycled off and on by now.

 

You may also want to read what the government has to say about damp basements:
http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?...t_dampbasement

 

OK -stupid question time here . When I was young- up to age seven -we lived in Philidelphia and out in the country in Penn. We had basements.

We moved to south Louisiana in 1958 - no basements - dig a few feet and you hit water. Why do you need basements? They seem like pain in the butt - humidity ,radon , mold ?? Is it just for the extra living space, storage or to store your heater and fuel oil ? Holdover from another time when you used bulky coal -we had a coal bin/chute in one place -kinda' bulky I remember. Holdover from when you would need a place to store food stuffs -.

I get why the tornado alley folks have them ! You NE folks -why ?

Are they worth all the grief?

Charlie

 

Here in NJ it seems like many homes have full basements or at least partial. It may very well be a throwback from times past. Since all my homes have always had basements, I have gotten used to it. I store all my stuff, ATV, Leaf blower, weed wacker, touch up paint for the rooms and car, wifes stuff etc... I would like one day in the future to make a big play room for my little guy. When he gets older he will probably want a private place to hang with his buds and play pool or video games or drink beer and hang out with chicks etc... He is only 3 now so who knows if we will even be here in NJ. After all, it is the arm pit of the country.