Whew! Hot! How are you beating the heat? Living in Southern Ontario, the humidity makes the heat unbearable. I remembered seeing a bag of something that drained the water from the air when I was a kid so I went info surfing with google.Wouldn't it be great to beat the heat and save on electricity at the same time!
Homemade Chemical Dehumidifiers
These are made using a desiccant(something that dries things out) placed in a well ventilated container and located within an enclosed area. Some desiccants include: silica gel, calcium sulfate, activated carbon, clay, and salt.
Road Salt (aka Calcium Chloride)
The most common dehumidifier is made by placing a good amount of road salt in cheese cloth or plastic strainer and suspending it above a plastic bucket. The salt draws the moisture from the air, which then runs off into the bucket. Farmers have used this for years to prevent hay rot in barns.
+ Plus + readily available components, fairly cheap set up
- Minus - salt dissolves and has to be replaced; is highly corrosive when wet-causes metal to rust and skin burns
Silica Gel
You have probably seen silica gel in tiny packs inside shoes, purses, vitamins etc. This is also available as cat litter. Silica gel can be used instead of road salt, but you don't need the bucket underneath, because it absorbs the water.
+ Plus + Can be reused. No bucket to dump out!
- Minus - Higher set up cost. (Container of silica cat litter sells for about $5.17 at No Frills).
Does use some electricity (oven or microwave needed to dry it out again)
see how to use & regenerate silica gel
Keep Cool!
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