LGR Dehumidifier

     An LGR (Low Grain Refrigerant) Dehumidifier is one of the most common types of dehumidifiers you will encounter during the flood or water damage cleanup process. This style works very much like the dehumidifiers you typically see in basements, crawlspaces and other damp locations on a day to day basis, except these are specially designed with a refrigerant that produces a much higher rate of water collection, and can get the air much drier than the homeowner models you typically see. Although these dehumidifiers come in endless shapes, sizes and colors, they all operate essentially the same. A refrigerant is pumped through coils and fins, which get extremely cold. Air is passed through these cold coils, and the humidity in the air clings to the cold coils, much like your ice cold glass of lemonade does outside on a hot summer day. That water then drips into a collection pan and is directed into a collection pump. When the collection pump gets full, it automatically activates and empties the water through a hose and into your drains or another area that your restoration technician has setup. This cycle repeats over and over continually removing the humidity out of the air. Although the general principal is the same as a typical residential dehumidifier, even just one of these industrial restoration units can remove more water per hour than 10-15 residential style units. Many of the newer restoration dehumidifiers now come with built-in wifi to transmit data from the drying process directly to the water technician so that your technician can make very detailed and strategic changes to the drying system that gets your job done faster.

Do’s:
– Always contact your restoration technician immediately if you notice the dehumidifier stops running or shuts off.
– Always contact your restoration technician if you notice a strange noise or smell from the dehumidifier.
– Always make sure that clearance is maintained around the dehumidifier, and that papers, curtains and other items do not get sucked into the air stream of the unit.
– Always make sure that your heating/cooling system along with all windows are kept in the position and settings that your restoration technician has approved.

Don’t:
– Never move, unplug or turn off a dehumidifier without speaking to your restoration technician first.
– Never allow children or pets near a working dehumidifier.
– Never allow the drain hose to get stepped on or kinked
– Never unplug the dehumidifier or switch outlets without first discussing with your restoration technician
– Never remove the dehumidifier from the location where it was placed, and Never turn it to point another direction than it was placed without first                contacting your restoration technician.
– Never turn the dehumidifier off because of night-time conditions or because the house is too warm.

Interesting Facts:
– The refrigerant style dehumidifier was invented in 1902. The technology was later used by Carrier to design Air Conditioning.
– Dehumidifiers don’t necessarily “dry structures”. Dehumidifiers dry the air. When used during a water damage restoration project, dehumidifiers        create ultra low grain air in your home. This air is very, very dry. When the air becomes this dry, the vapor pressure inside your building is very low, and        the vapor pressure in the wet materials stays very high. The high pressure vapor in the materials seeks to equalize with the low vapor pressure air in the      building and in doing so, presses the moisture out of the materials. Vapor Pressure drys structures, not dehumidifiers. Dehumidifiers provide the ideal        indoor environmental conditions for drying to take place. Dehumidifiers are a critical component for maintaining the atmospheric conditions necessary      for the drying system to properly work and must never be touched or adjusted without contacting your restoration technicians first.
– The typical Restoration dehumidifier ranges in price from about $4000 to $12,000 each.

 

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