[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":137},["ShallowReactive",2],{"guide-basement-dehumidifier-long-island-queens-en-US":3},{"guide":4,"related":118},{"title":5,"seoTitle":6,"description":7,"summary":8,"sections":9,"faq":75,"cta":88,"date":90,"updated":90,"service":91,"order":92,"sources":93,"slug":116,"locale":117},"Basement dehumidifiers for Long Island and Queens","Basement Dehumidifiers for Long Island, Queens","Why Long Island and Queens basements turn musty in summer, the humidity target to hold, dehumidifier sizing after the 2019 rating change, and drainage.","Most musty basements on Long Island and in Queens are wettest in summer, when warm, humid outdoor air meets cool foundation walls and slabs. Keep basement humidity below 60 percent, ideally 45 to 50 percent in summer, with a correctly sized dehumidifier that drains continuously. Opening basement windows in humid weather adds moisture rather than removing it. Any liquid water must be stopped first; a dehumidifier is not waterproofing.",[10,16,27,31,57,67],{"heading":11,"paragraphs":12},"Why basements are wettest in summer",[13,14,15],"Basement walls and floor slabs stay close to ground temperature all year, which in summer is much cooler than the outdoor air. When warm, humid air reaches those surfaces its relative humidity rises sharply, and wherever the surface is colder than the air's dew point, water condenses. It is the same physics that fogs windows in winter, reversed by season.","For the same reason, airing out a basement with open windows on a humid July day adds water instead of removing it. [EPA guidance](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.epa.gov\u002Fmold\u002Fbrief-guide-mold-moisture-and-your-home) is direct on this point: ventilate when outdoor air is cold and dry, dehumidify when it is warm and humid. A basement fan or an open bulkhead door in summer has the same effect as the open window.","EPA recommends keeping indoor humidity below 60 percent, ideally between 30 and 50 percent. [Building Science Corporation](https:\u002F\u002Fbuildingscience.com\u002Fdocuments\u002Freports\u002Frr-0203-relative-humidity\u002Fview) notes that mold is controlled by keeping the air against a surface below about 70 percent RH. Because the air next to a cool wall is always more humid than the room average, a basement reading of 60 percent can mean 70 percent or more at the wall. A practical summer target for a basement is therefore 45 to 50 percent, measured with a digital hygrometer placed away from the dehumidifier.",{"heading":17,"paragraphs":18,"list":20},"Stop liquid water first",[19],"A dehumidifier removes moisture from the air. It cannot keep up with water entering through walls and floors, and it does not repair the cause. In low-lying south shore neighborhoods and in homes that flooded during Hurricane Sandy in 2012, the water table and drainage deserve particular attention. Check these sources first.",[21,22,23,24,25,26],"Gutters and downspouts that discharge next to the foundation instead of several feet away.","Soil and paving that slope toward the house rather than away from it.","Window wells without covers or drains, and clogged basement stairwell drains.","Foundation cracks, damp lines at the base of walls, and white mineral deposits (efflorescence), which show that water is moving through the masonry.","Sump pumps that fail, discharge too close to the house, or have no backup.","Plumbing leaks, a disconnected dryer vent, or a laundry area without exhaust.",{"heading":28,"paragraphs":29},"Sweating pipes",[30],"Cold water pipes, water meters, ducts carrying air-conditioned air and the slab under carpet are the surfaces most likely to sweat. [EPA describes two remedies](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.epa.gov\u002Fmold\u002Finteractive-mold-house-tour): raise the surface temperature with insulation, or lower the humidity of the air. Closed-cell foam pipe insulation on cold water lines and sealed, insulated supply ducts stop the dripping that stains ceilings and wets stored items; the dehumidifier protects the surfaces that cannot be insulated.",{"heading":32,"paragraphs":33,"table":35,"after":55},"Sizing after the 2019 rating change",[34],"Since 2019, the [Department of Energy test for portable dehumidifiers](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.energystar.gov\u002Fproducts\u002Fdehumidifier_testing_and_capacity) has been run at 65 °F instead of 80 °F, to reflect basement conditions. The same machine now carries a lower pint rating than it did under the old test, so reviews and [sizing charts written before the change](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.greenbuildingadvisor.com\u002Farticle\u002Fthe-confusing-world-of-dehumidifier-capacity) describe capacity in different terms from current labels.",{"caption":36,"head":37,"rows":40},"Approximate correspondence between old and new portable dehumidifier ratings (ENERGY STAR)",[38,39],"Old rating, through 2019 (pints per day)","Approximate new rating (pints per day)",[41,44,47,49,52],[42,43],"30","20",[45,46],"40","25",[48,42],"50",[50,51],"60","35",[53,54],"70","40 to 45",[56],"Choose an ENERGY STAR model sized for the area and dampness of the space, set it to 45 to 50 percent, and connect it to a continuous drain. A unit that relies on its bucket fills within hours in a damp basement and stops. Place it where air can circulate, not in a closed room, and check its low-temperature rating, since cool basements reduce the output of many portable units.",{"heading":58,"paragraphs":59,"list":61},"Whole-house dehumidifiers",[60],"A [ducted whole-house dehumidifier](\u002Fservices\u002Fhvac) is a permanently installed unit that treats the basement, or the basement and the rest of the house, through ductwork, with its own drain. It is usually quieter and more efficient than one or more portable units running around the clock. It makes sense for:",[62,63,64,65,66],"Large, open or finished basements where a single portable unit cannot hold humidity at 50 percent.","Basements used as living space that need quiet, automatic operation.","Houses where central air conditioning short-cycles and leaves the house cool but clammy in spring and early fall.","Basements with no cooling load, which receive almost no dehumidification from the air conditioning upstairs.","Spaces where the drain can be routed to a floor drain, laundry standpipe or condensate pump, which is the core of a proper installation.",{"heading":68,"paragraphs":69,"after":73},"Finished basements, crawl spaces, radon and winter",[70,71,72],"Many finished basements in Queens, Brooklyn and Nassau trap moisture because of their materials. Fiberglass batts pressed against foundation walls, vinyl wallpaper on exterior walls, carpet laid directly on the slab and wood framing in contact with concrete all hold moisture and support mold. A better assembly uses rigid foam board (XPS or EPS) against the foundation before framing, covered with drywall as the thermal barrier the building code requires over foam plastic, keeps framing off the slab, and uses flooring that tolerates occasional dampness. Converting a basement into a separate apartment raises legal and zoning questions outside the scope of this guide.","Crawl spaces follow the same rule: a vented crawl space admits humid summer air, while a closed crawl space with a sealed vapor barrier can be dehumidified or conditioned. On the [EPA Map of Radon Zones](https:\u002F\u002Fwww.epa.gov\u002Fsites\u002Fdefault\u002Ffiles\u002F2014-08\u002Fdocuments\u002Fnew_york.pdf), Nassau, Suffolk and the five boroughs are Zone 3, the lowest predicted potential, but EPA still recommends testing every home. If mold covers a large area, we recommend a qualified mold assessment and remediation professional before rebuilding.","In winter the same basement is often dry, and the dehumidifier's humidistat keeps it off. A basement that stays humid in January has a water source, such as a leak, a wet wall or an unvented dryer, because dry winter air does not produce that reading on its own.",[74],"We start by finding the moisture source, measuring the space and checking the drainage options, then recommend the combination of pipe insulation, portable or whole-house dehumidification and drainage that fits, and install it with our licensed HVAC partner. Where the cause is water entry, the gutters, grading or foundation work comes first, so the dehumidifier does not have to compensate for it.",[76,79,82,85],{"q":77,"a":78},"What humidity should a basement be kept at?","Below 60 percent at all times, and ideally 45 to 50 percent in summer. EPA recommends 30 to 50 percent indoors, and keeping the room in that range keeps the air against cool walls and slabs below the level at which mold grows.",{"q":80,"a":81},"Should I open basement windows in summer?","Not on warm, humid days. Humid outdoor air brings in more moisture, which condenses on the cool walls and floor. Ventilate when the outdoor air is cool and dry, and run a dehumidifier when it is warm and humid.",{"q":83,"a":84},"Is a 50 pint dehumidifier today the same as an old 50 pint model?","No. Since 2019 dehumidifiers are tested at 65 °F instead of 80 °F, so ratings are lower. According to ENERGY STAR, an old 70 pint unit corresponds to about 40 to 45 pints today, and an old 50 pint unit to about 30 pints.",{"q":86,"a":87},"Will a dehumidifier fix a wet basement?","Only when the moisture comes from humid air. If water enters through walls, cracks or the floor, the gutters, grading, drainage or foundation must be corrected first. The dehumidifier then controls the remaining humidity.",{"text":89},"Send photographs of the basement, including any damp walls, efflorescence or sweating pipes, with its square footage, a hygrometer reading if you have one, and the location of the nearest floor drain or standpipe. The written estimate prices portable and whole-house dehumidification side by side, together with the pipe insulation and drainage work. An assessment of the moisture source is provided as part of the contracted work or as a paid consultation.","2026-10-25","hvac",82,[94,98,102,105,109,113],{"title":95,"url":96,"publisher":97},"Dehumidifier Testing and Capacity","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.energystar.gov\u002Fproducts\u002Fdehumidifier_testing_and_capacity","ENERGY STAR",{"title":99,"url":100,"publisher":101},"A Brief Guide to Mold, Moisture and Your Home","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.epa.gov\u002Fmold\u002Fbrief-guide-mold-moisture-and-your-home","U.S. Environmental Protection Agency",{"title":103,"url":104,"publisher":101},"Interactive Mold House Tour","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.epa.gov\u002Fmold\u002Finteractive-mold-house-tour",{"title":106,"url":107,"publisher":108},"RR-0203: Relative Humidity","https:\u002F\u002Fbuildingscience.com\u002Fdocuments\u002Freports\u002Frr-0203-relative-humidity\u002Fview","Building Science Corporation",{"title":110,"url":111,"publisher":112},"The Confusing World of Dehumidifier Capacity","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.greenbuildingadvisor.com\u002Farticle\u002Fthe-confusing-world-of-dehumidifier-capacity","Green Building Advisor",{"title":114,"url":115,"publisher":101},"New York - EPA Map of Radon Zones","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.epa.gov\u002Fsites\u002Fdefault\u002Ffiles\u002F2014-08\u002Fdocuments\u002Fnew_york.pdf","basement-dehumidifier-long-island-queens","en-US",[119,123,127,132],{"slug":120,"title":121,"description":122,"service":91,"date":90,"updated":90},"whole-home-humidifier-nyc-winter","Whole-home humidifier settings for New York winters","Why New York homes dry out in winter, recommended indoor humidity by outdoor temperature, and how excess humidity damages windows, walls and attics.",{"slug":124,"title":125,"description":126,"service":91,"date":90,"updated":90},"erv-hrv-makeup-air-nyc","ERV vs HRV and makeup air for New York homes","ERV vs HRV for New York homes, how much fresh air a tight house needs, range-hood makeup air under NYC and NYS codes, bath exhaust and MERV 13 filters.",{"slug":128,"title":129,"description":130,"service":131,"date":90,"updated":90},"nyc-local-law-152-gas-piping-inspection","Local Law 152 Gas Piping Inspections and the 2026 Deadline","Which NYC buildings owe a Local Law 152 gas piping inspection by December 31, 2026, what the plumber checks, and the 60- and 120-day filing deadlines.","plumbing",{"slug":133,"title":134,"description":135,"service":136,"date":90,"updated":90},"whole-home-audio-vs-smart-speakers","Whole-home audio vs smart speakers in a NYC renovation","In-ceiling speakers, streaming amplifiers and smart speakers compared, with the speaker wire, fire ratings and routes to run while NYC walls are open.","low-voltage",1793066400915]