Soleus Air CFM-40 40-Pint Dehumidifier with Humidistat
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Tools and Hardware Reviews of Soleus Air CFM-40 40-Pint Dehumidifier with Humidistat
Customer Review: A Quiet Dehumidifier
Summary: 4 Stars
I bought this model of dehumidifier because it was reputed to be very quiet. It is indeed very quiet. It also dehumidifies (I use it in the basement during the summer) - but I have nothing to compare it with. I also don't know if it stops dehumidifying when it reaches the desired humidity setting, because the fan keeps going and the same lights on the panel stay lit.Customer Review: A Skeptic at First, but Now a Total Believer
Summary: 5 Stars
After reading some negative reviews on this product, I was somewhat skeptical. I even kept the box for repair. But after 5 long, continuous months of operation, this product is truly fantastic.
We live in Colorado and our basement consistantly stayed above 70% humidity during the summer. The area is around 1500 square feet. Naturally, we were sticky in this somewhat dry part of the state. I've been running this on high, continuous dehumidification every day and we've been able to keep the humidity in the basement below 40%. It's attractive, quiet, and easy to clean. The reservior is small, so you may want to install a continuous drain line (which is not included but cheap to get).
Some people have had issues with the unit and I think I know why: they're overheating. As with any dehumidifier, overheating is the killer. To prevent this:
1) Turn the dehumidifier around, so the filter is facing towards the room. If you push the inlet filter towards a wall, it won't have enough ventilation.
2) Keep the fan running on high instead of quiet mode.
3) Leave the adjustable vent upright and wide open as much as possible. My son loved to play with this so I slid a screw into the side of the vent to force it open.
4) Keep the room temp < 80 degrees.
Hope this helps future consumers.
Customer Review: A dehumidifier quiet enough to live with!
Summary: 4 Stars
I recently moved into an apartment that is semi-below grade, meaning it's in a basement with a walkout exit. The existing dehumidifier worked well but was so loud that I can only describe it as noise pollution. I have a piano and need to keep the humidity between 40-50%, and I wanted a dehumidifier that will allow me to hear the piano when I play it.
I ordered the Soleus with caution because of all the bad reviews. Mine arrived without a "guard" in the water tray. It also didn't work -- I ran it for a day and no water was extracted from the air. I called the customer service number and was surprised to speak to someone immediately considering some of the reviews I've read. The rep suggested I run it on continuous cycle at "quiet" for 24 hours and then try other settings, and assured me that they no longer shipped "gaurds" -- the documentation that came with the unit was just old. His suggestion worked, but the humidistat setting (which toggles the compressor on if the humidity wanders above a certain range) did not. I returned the unit at no cost to myself (thanks, Amazon!)
The replacement unit works very well. The "dry" setting on humidistat kicks in at 55% rather than 50% according to my hygrometer, so I just leave the unit on "continuous" and "quiet" all the time, and it keeps my apartment at 45% except on really moist days, then I use a stronger setting. Quiet is indeed quiet. It's about as loud as the refrigerator. I sleep with it right outside my bedroom door.
I'm concerned that it will stop functioning after a few months or a year. If it makes it to 18 months I will be happy -- $200 for a year and a half of quiet is worth it to me. If only the other manufacturers would take note!!
UPDATE: I have the dehumidifier for roughly a year. I used it non stop 24/7 during spring/summer and it's been fine. It was off all winter and had no problem starting up. It's still very quiet and I'm quite happy with it so far.
Customer Review: A disappointment -- worked less than a year
Summary: 1 Stars
I bought this dehumidifier in December 2006 as possible replacement for my Kenmore 70-pint unit, which was becoming noisy. At first I was pleased because the Soleus is so quiet. I did notice that it pulled moisture about half as fast as the Kenmore.
Eventually I moved the Soleus to a smaller room in the basement and ran both dehumidifers. The Soleus ran fine for about six months, maybe more, but sometime in the summer it conked. I let it sit unplugged for a few months, then tried it again. No go.
When I called Soleus customer service in California they said I could ship it back to them, at my cost, for a replacement within the one-year warranty period. I shipped it off at my own cost of nearly $100--this, of course, in addition to the original $250 price. It arrived in their warehouse on Dec. 7, 2007.
The holidays passed and no replacement came, so I started e-mailing and leaving phone messages for my contact person, with no response. Finally in mid-January I hung on the line and got through to a customer service rep who tracked down my case and my contact person. He then claimed that my old machine had arrived without a case number on it, ignoring the fact that I'd e-mailed him directly with the UPS tracking number and left voice mails on his extension.
I finally received my replacement on Jan. 18, 2008, and guess what? It's extremely slow drawing water. The creaky old Kenmore, which I'd turned off, had been pulling 70 pints every 2-3 days. Whatever happens, I won't be shipping this baby back to California and I won't be buying another Soleus.
Customer Review: A fantastic investment--but be vigilant!
Summary: 4 Stars
We have been battling high humidity in our home since we moved in in 2003. Unless the heat is running or the AC on full blast, which happens only during three months of winter and two months of summer where we live, the humidity in our house is 70-80% all the time. We have scrubbed mold off everything we own twice a year. In 2005 we purchased a $4000 whole-house dehumidification system that did NOTHING to the humidity. The company who installed it told us our house was possessed and gave us all our money back. This year we decided to try the Soleus. We purchased two units, one for each end of the house. Our humidity is now UNDER CONTROL. Since we purchased the units, the humidity in every room in the house is usually between 40% and 45%. Both units are running on the "quiet" mode. Yes we can hear them, but it's not really annoying and actually kind of nice at night when sleeping. They do heat up the room a bit, which I like. In the summer the extra heat might make the AC kick on earlier which is also good for the humidity. For the unit in our playroom, which is on slab, we dump the bucket once every day. In our bedroom, we ran some tubing from the unit through a hole in the floor that was already drilled by the cable company, into the crawl space and out the door. So we never have to empty it.
We have had some small problems, for example the unit with the drain tubing will sometimes start draining into the bucket instead for some reason, and makes a god-awful noise. We turn it off and back on again and that seems to do the trick. I have read the bad reviews about how these units do not last very long. But honestly if we have to buy two new ones every year, it will still be totally worth it. We were going to have to sell our house, and thanks to these dehumidifiers we don't have to. I am completely thrilled with this purchase.
8-15-2010 UPDATE:
I am downgrading this unit to four stars because we now have to replace the carpet, pad and floor in our playroom. The automatic shutoff failed, and the unit was pumping water onto the floor for a few days. Buyer beware, CHECK THE BUCKET EVERY DAY.
12-16-2010 UPDATE
One of the units has stopped functioning completely after just seven months. The other works sporadically. The main problem with it is even though the tubing is connected, sometimes it still collects water in the bucket and needs emptying.