After debacles that I have had with Frigidaire dehumidifier units (2 of them!) failing within a year or after a year and a half (outside of warranty), I was interested in finding one that was made somewhere else. This LG unit had some good reports on the internet and I thought I was getting a Korean made product. The panel has made in China on it. Oh well.
BUT this one is better designed. Both the intake and outflow vents are much bigger than the Frigidaire units, and LG has put a bigger fan rotor in it. The result is that the fan has to rotate at a slower speed and is much quieter with a lower pitch than the high pitched & louder Frigidaire units. The attachment for a hose to my sump pump is better designed as it plugs directly into the flow from the dehumidifying unit with a bayonet mount rather than a hose screw fitting and has a screw to hold it in place. The drain, rather than being level as in the other unit, is pitched downward so water doesn't pool around the hose intake. Both of these differences are positive because I had to periodically clean out the Frigidaire units of crud that had accumulated owing to water that pooled around the drain opening.
I have had this for a few weeks and have been testing how it was doing. The one problem I did find with the LG unit is that it has a tricky humidistat in that it doesn't read the humidity correctly (compared to the Frigidaire unit and several digital sensors) and often was ~5% or more too high. This may happen because it vents upward and the air flow in the basement room is not as good as in the other rooms. If a fan is placed to circulate air from other rooms into the sump room, the LG unit displays a humidity reading closer to that shown by the working Frigidaire unit that was replaced by the company after the previous one failed (yes, I now have had 3 of them and only one still works). This is good because it does shut off when it reaches the set humidity level (currently 45%). As with any dehumidifier, it does output a fair amount of heat but this is good because the basement is always cool in the summer when the air is being cooled by the HVAC system (we don't have a zoned system). So the basement stays dry and is not freezing from the air conditioner.
I've been running it for a week at the 45% setting and the humidity in the room is running 39-46% with a few times peaking during the day. I've now set to 50% because the current range is lower than it needs to be. I don't know whether it is just this unit or a general aspect of all of them, so if you buy one have a reliable sensor on hand to check the actual results. I wish these things had a more fine grained readout on the panel so we had a better idea of its performance.
Now the next test is whether it will last until longer than 1.5 years!
| Brand | LG |
|---|---|
| Color | Black |
| Capacity | 50 Pints |
| Item Weight | 49.2 Pounds |
| Operation Mode | Safety Standby, Auto Defrost |
| Floor Area | 2000 Square Feet |
| Product Dimensions | 12.6"D x 16.8"W x 26.2"H |
| Included Components | Dehumidifier, drainage adapter with screw, manual, warranty |
| Model Name | LG PuriCare 2019 Energy Star 50-Pint Dehumidifier in Black |
| Special Feature | Programmable |
| Manufacturer | LG |
| Part Number | UD501KOG5 |
| Item Weight | 49.2 pounds |
| Product Dimensions | 12.6 x 16.8 x 26.2 inches |
| Item model number | UD501KOG5 |
| Size | 50-pint |
| Style | Standard |
| Power Source | Corded Electric |
| Item Package Quantity | 1 |
| Number Of Pieces | 1 |
| Coverage | Coverage: Covers the rooms up to 2,500 sq. Ft. |
| Special Features | Programmable |
| Batteries Included? | No |
| Batteries Required? | No |
| Warranty Description | 1 year parts and labor |
