Choosing Between a Heater & a Dehumidifier for Drying

heater outside construction site At a construction site, excess moisture can be your enemy. If the moisture gets trapped, it can create mold that can severely damage the building’s structure. Heaters and desiccant dehumidifiers can both be effective tools to mitigate the potential for mold growth; however, one unit stands out as the clear best choice for removing moisture from a site.

Which One to Choose?

Dehumidifiers and heaters are units often selected for removing moisture from a construction site. When comparing the two units, however, dehumidifiers are the better option for removing moisture and preventing mold growth in a construction site.

Construction heaters are used to force air over any heating apparatus, which therefore increases the temperature in the room. This does not, though, remove excess moisture from the air but does decrease the moisture in comparison to the room’s overall temperature. This mechanism improves the site conditions to prevent mold growth, but only marginally.

Conversely, when sites are dried using dehumidifiers, moisture is directly removed from the air. These units are more effective at removing moisture and preventing mold growth in construction sites.

Comparing Costs desiccant dehu

Heaters and dehumidifiers do have varying costs when used in construction. Heaters, for example, have low start-up costs but high maintenance costs. Dehumidifiers, on the other hand, have high start-up costs and lower maintenance costs. Albeit the costs involved, using a dehumidifier or heater to prevent mold is worth the investment. Many contractors make the mistake of using their building’s HVAC system to prevent mold growth. However, these systems cannot control moisture content or remove moisture from a site. Therefore, to save money and keep your construction site moisture-free, we recommend renting a dehumidifier.

Contact the Cold Air Rentals team to rent our units now: (888) 341- 4585.