Can you drink water from a dehumidifier? Is it useful for your health?

“The most important things for human beings are clean air and clean water.”
Akira Kurosawa

A dehumidifier is a useful tool to have on hand, especially if you live in a humid area. Humid air contains many bacteria and greatly reduces the quality of life. A dehumidifier can remove the that water evaporates from the humid air, making it fresh and clean.

During the dehumidification process, the tank collects a lot of water from the air. If you could somehow use the water, that would be great. Many people wonder if it is safe to drink water from a dehumidifier.

Can you drink water from a dehumidifier?

Drinking dehumidifier water is useful? No! ❌

You can’t drink dehumidifier water because it contains contaminants like bacteria and trace elements. Also, just like distilled water, the water collected in the dehumidifier won’t do you any good due to its lack of beneficial minerals.

However, you can filter, boil, or chemically treat the water from a dehumidifier to make it drinkable.

If it’s still unclear, or you need more clarification, this post will cover it all. Read on to find out why hydrating water isn’t safe to drink and what you can do to make it safe to drink.

Why is water from a dehumidifier not safe for drinking?

The EPA states that stagnant condensate creates a favorable environment for the growth of biological contaminants such as algae, mold, and mildew.

Also, the dehumidifier water may contain toxins such as lead and other metal residues from the humidifier.

Therefore, water from a dehumidifier is not safe to drink as it contains contaminants and may pose health risks. Unlike distilled water, condensates are not sterilized by boiling.

Some cool facts about dehumidifiers

✅ A dehumidifier removes moisture from the air in a high-humidity area into a drainage block or basin that holds forty gallons of collected liquid.

✅ In most cases, the dryer drain block is drained periodically or in some cases when it is full. Collecting water in this way makes the dehumidifier more breathable, as it prevents mold from growing in damp places.

Dehumidifiers are very effective at removing moisture from high-humidity areas by continuously pulling moisture through filters.

✅ These units are normally set at forty degrees Fahrenheit but can be manually set to a lower temperature if needed for greater efficiency. Dehumidifiers can be used in different areas such as laboratories, homes, and places that need to remove moisture.

How does a dehumidifier work?

The dehumidifier works on two principles: cooling and absorption.

Cooling phase: In the cooling phase, humid air is blown by a fan through the cold coils. Water condenses upon hitting the cooled surface, and clean air returns to the room.

The dehumidifier has a drip chamber where condensate collects. Although moisture becomes liquid water through condensation, it is not pure. It contains mold spores, bacteria, and other contaminants that the condensation process cannot remove.

Absorption phase: During the absorption process, the dehumidifier absorbs more moisture from the warm air and reduces the humidity from the air. Then the electric fan blows hot air.

When air passes through the fan, excess vapors are discharged into the atmosphere. Finally, the dehumidifier releases clean air into the room.

Dehumidifiers do not purify water

According to two principles, dehumidifiers perform their function by example, they do not purify water. Therefore, in the end, the collected water still contains impurities that can pose health risks if they drink dehumidifier water.

Many people do not distinguish between the condensation process and the water distillation process and believe that the water is safe to drink because dehumidifiers use the condensation process. Below is the difference.

How is condensation different from distillation?

Water can be purified by distillation. The distiller brings water to a boil by heating it. This causes the water to evaporate, leaving all the impurities behind.

These water vapors then move to another container. This container has a cold surface that condenses the vapors and turns them into liquid water.

The difference between distillation and condensation is water evaporates. The dehumidifier does not evaporate the water before it condenses. The dehumidifier water is also dirty and undrinkable.

How do I make my dehumidifier water drinkable?

Although the dehumidifier water drinkable is not pure, you can certainly purify the water to make it drinkable. Water purification is done in different ways.

Distillation

Through the distillation process, you can remove germs from water and make it drinkable. You have already read about the distillation technique above.

Reverse osmosis

Reverse osmosis is another method of water purification. It uses a partially permeable surface or membrane. When the water passes through this level, all impurities and giant molecules are trapped in the body, making the water safe for use.

Using the above methods, you can purify the water collected from the dehumidifier. But it is still not recommended to use this water for drinking.

Dry with boiling water

The easiest way to make water from a dehumidifier safe is to boil it. The boiling process removes bacteria and harmful chemicals from the water, so it is safe to drink after a few minutes of treatment.

Boiling works well too, so you don’t have to use a fancy distillation system or buy bottled water from the store.

All you need to do is put the dehumidifier bowl under hot tap water so that any liquid that has accumulated inside boils away within a minute or two.

Mixing dryer water with water from another source

If you want to dilute it further, you can mix dehumidifier water and purified tap water in a 1:1 or 1:2 ratio.

Do not add more than this proportion of tap water, otherwise, the number of pollutants in the tap water will be higher than the number of pollutants in your dehumidifier.

Another option is to add a small amount of filtered drinking water every time you open a container of distilled water for drinking, or pour some for later use.

You can also use containers made of stainless steel, porcelain, glass, and other materials that do not contaminate their contents if they come into contact with pollutants.

If you do this regularly, your distilled water will always be of high quality, even if left in the container for days or weeks.

You can also buy a lid to cover the top of the container to prevent dust and other airborne particles from entering through the holes in the edges of the container.

Before you close the top completely, poke a few small holes in the top with a pin or needle. And when condensation forms on the walls of your container, some water vapor escapes through these tiny holes instead of allowing bacteria and mold spores to grow later in your dehumidifier water tank.

Use the filter system

Dehumidifier water can be treated through a filtration system before being stored in a tank to make it cleaner and safer.

Activated carbon is easiest to use in a filter medium because the medium is porous and has a high surface area to trap contaminants on its surface as water passes through it.

You can connect this device to your faucet or use whatever filter best suits your needs, as long as you drain some of the dryer water out of the drain bowl and into a clean container.

This process takes only a minute per batch and is especially effective if you need purified, drink dehumidifier water right now since gravity does all the work.

Add Minerals

Since dehydrator water is like distilled water, it does not contain any beneficial minerals. Additionally, various filtration systems remove fine minerals that remain in the humidifier water during the process.

So you can add a little more later before drinking or cooking to even out any leaching that might occur.

For example, dissolve 1 teaspoon of sea salt in 1 gallon of distilled water and stir well until the mixture is completely dissolved.

Then, if necessary, warm the solution to a gentle heat to avoid burns by touching it with bare hands or accidentally spilling its contents on unprotected skin.

Where can you use dehumidifier water?

If you can’t drink water from a dehumidifier, do you throw it away? Definitely not.

You can use dehumidifier water for different purposes:

• You can use this dehumidifier water in your car’s radiator tank.
• The wiper water can also be used in the wiper reservoir.
• Steam iron needs water. You can use dryer water to fill it.
• It can condensed water and irrigate your plants.
• Filling the toilet water tank is another way to use dehumidifier water.

People also often ask: Can an air purifier make you sick? Read the answer to this question here.

FAQ

What happens if you drink water from dehumidifier?

Because dehumidifier water is not intended for human consumption or use as drinking water, it can contain a variety of contaminants that can make you ill if accidentally consumed, such as bacteria and mold spores.

Can pets drink dehumidifier water?

The answer is definitely no. The water that even a dehumidifier closet releases should be discarded. There are two reasons you, your pets, or your edible plants shouldn’t drink water: heavy metals and industrial pollutants.

Can air purifier be used as fan?

Although most air purifiers have built-in fans, this does not mean that both products perform exactly the same. An air purifier is a device that blows warm air that removes pollutants from the air to improve indoor air quality.

Do air purifiers make your room hot?

The air purifier does not heat the room. However, it gives off a minimal amount of heat. This is still lower than other electronic devices thanks to the dedicated AC motor.

Do air purifiers make the air dry?

Simply put, air purifiers do not have a mechanism to extract moisture from the air. As air passes through the filter material, particulates and/or chemical gases are trapped. However, moisture cannot capture significant amounts of moisture with an air-purifying filter.

How do I clean the water desiccant bucket?

You can use bleach to clean the dehumidifier water bucket if it is plastic and lead-free. Bleach is useful when you need to remove organic materials like mold and mildew from your interior surfaces.

Conclusion

This dehumidifier water contains toxins that are dangerous to your health, dogs, and other pets. You should also avoid watering your food plants with dehydrating water, as toxins can enter your system. You can use this water for a steam iron, watering flowers, etc.

If you are an animal lover and are considering getting a dog, it will be helpful to know how to socialize a German Shepherd.

Read also: HUMIDIFIER AND AIR PURIFIER: DO HUMIDIFIER HELP WITH DUST OR AIR PURIFIER IS THE ONLY OPTION?