[gravedigger]

I have several dehumidifiers in my home and elsewhere. Kentucky air is HEAVY with water. The larger ones collect about nine gallons of water (70 pints) per humidifier, each day. The smaller ones each collect about seven gallons (50 pints) per day.

So currently, I am dumping about 40 gallons of water per day down the drain, having no place to store it yet.

My bigger concern is the SAFETY of the water. Is water collected by a dehumidifier SAFE to drink?

I thought about using four of them to replenish water in large storage tanks, by setting them up to run 24/7 and drain directly into my water tank(s).

Should I run the water through a filter before dumping it into a tank? Also, water collected by a dehumidifier does not contain chlorine, so I would have to do something to purify the water for storage, I would imagine.

All help is appreciated.

Joe
(Western Kentucky)

 

[John_Auberry]

Well it’s distilled. But the slimy **** that grows in my humidifier says I wouldn’t drink it. I guess my well looks like that also but I don’t see it so I don’t mind drinking it.

 

[~Black.Dog~]

The water in humidifiers I've used in the past seemed a little funky but it is water so I don't see any reason you couldn't treat it and drink it.
I think the funkiness was not terrible and I figured it was due to mildew that probably grew either in the coils or maybe just in the collection bucket since I never sanitized it.
I would probably be inclined to use purification (chemical or heat) for biologicals than I would filtering. Since it is condensed out of the air there shouldn't be any worry of chemicals that would require activated charcoal.

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[gravedigger]

Is there a test I can buy to check water for potability? Dip strips, or some electronic gizmo, or ???

Joe

 

[Offrink]

Legionnaire’s disease. Don’t do it.

 

[Big Andy1966]

save it for batteries

 

[Chuckleberry]

`

If it's not potable as it sits, it should be fine after some type of treatment like filtering, boiling, etc. Probably better to be safe than sorry.

.

 

[IamZeke]

Is there a test I can buy to check water for potability? Dip strips, or some electronic gizmo, or ???

Joe

Water can only be tested for every threat in a lab. There are thousands of substances that could make water lose its potability.

What we do most of the time is infer safety by putting it through treatments and filters that remove threats.


Say water has a bunch of dangerous bacteria in it. We boil it. We know now that the bacteria is dead, but we don't test for it because we can infer safety from bacteria after the treatment was done.

Dehumidifiers collect water from the air. So it picks up natural spores that float in it. Once it gathers the water it can be a breeding ground unless you are religiously and frequently cleaning all contact surfaces, which we tend not to do and may be unrealistic maintenance levels. Ergo, we have to assume the water collected has become a mold and mildew growth medium. That means it needs to be treated for biological risks. You have to decide whether treatment is worth your effort or just to simply dump it as not worth your time. As a side note, it still would be fine to water plants with.

You have several threads going where you worry about water threats.

Safe Water = Sediment Removal > Biological Remediation > Toxin Removal

You can read more about the concepts here: https://www.survivalistboards.com/showthread.php?p=19496020#post19496020

 

[cook]

No,hell no,if you still have power to run it,you probabley have water still running.

 

[IamZeke]

Down on the Gulf we have our air conditioners running for more than half a year.

We get a constant trickle from our units. Most people send it to the sewer.

Some though pipe it to a raised bed for ornamental or food growing.

Mine goes into a long raised herb garden.

 

[cook]

same here in the gulf of Fl.,5 gallon bucket for plants far away,pvc for close plants from the a.c....every little bit helps.

 

[IamZeke]

same here in the gulf of Fl.,5 gallon bucket for plants far away,pvc for close plants from the a.c....every little bit helps.

Yep, keeps the water bill under control, which can be high in the hottest part of the summer.

It's not uncommon to get lawn watering restrictions some years. But my herbs are a bit fussy in the August heat and need the water.

 

[nicktide]

Seems to be a great place for mold and mildew. I would think, in an emergency if it were boiled or chemically treated it would be ok. Heck... If it meant death by dehydration I might risk it straight.

 

[Stoveman]

I have several dehumidifiers in my home and elsewhere. Kentucky air is HEAVY with water. The larger ones collect about nine gallons of water (70 pints) per humidifier, each day. The smaller ones each collect about seven gallons (50 pints) per day.

So currently, I am dumping about 40 gallons of water per day down the drain, having no place to store it yet.

My bigger concern is the SAFETY of the water. Is water collected by a dehumidifier SAFE to drink?

I thought about using four of them to replenish water in large storage tanks, by setting them up to run 24/7 and drain directly into my water tank(s).

Should I run the water through a filter before dumping it into a tank? Also, water collected by a dehumidifier does not contain chlorine, so I would have to do something to purify the water for storage, I would imagine.

All help is appreciated.

Joe
(Western Kentucky)

40 gallons is a lot, do the humidifiers ever catch up?
Do you have a lot of infiltration into your home (air leaks) from humid outside air?
I just install a replacement ac system and used the ac before I finished running the drain. The drain tray had only collected about 1 gallon over a day, when I syphoned the water out the tray, using IV works/tubing, into a bucket.

Using the water you could gravity drip an outside water feature with the water, if your units are sitting higher than the outside drip.

 

[slackercruster]

Use for garden or distill it to drink.

 

[~Black.Dog~]

Might be worth storing some untreated for toilet flush water, too.
I have about 125 gallons of collected rainwater in barrels in my basement for that purpose.

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[IamZeke]

Use for garden or distill it to drink.

Distill? All you need is a $15 Sawyer Mini.

It's not like you actually distill anything either. Boiling isn't distillation.

 

[Hound Dog]

Doesn't the dehumidifier work with refrigerant and a coil? If so, check that the coil does not have lead solder like most ac units do. Seems like it is not a good idea. You don't drink the condensation from your aunt do you?

 

[Eddie_T]

With time all the air in the room has passed over those coils so it would not be clean water.

 

[Chronic the Hashhog]

Legionnaire’s disease. Don’t do it.

Damn, beat me too it!