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New York Times

If Your AC Isn't Doing Enough, Get a Dehumidifier

If your room feels muggy and damp even though the temperature is where you want it to be, 'this means that your [air conditioner's] indoor coil isn't getting cold enough,' explained Brice Allen Bowley, senior director of engineering at GE Appliances. 'It needs to drop below the dew point before it really starts removing moisture.' This problem is particularly common with oversize air conditioners. But even if your AC is sized just right for your space, it might still struggle to dehumidify the room at the same rate that it cools the air down. To get the coils cold enough to dehumidify, your air conditioner might try to overcool the room. This is not only uncomfortable but is also a waste of energy. 'The core problem here is that the sensible and latent load are coupled,' Bonner explained, 'and we've only got one tool to handle both of those unique problems.' Most window air conditioners, for example, have a sensible heat ratio of 0.7, which means they put 70% of their energy toward sensible cooling, reserving the other 30% for dehumidification. Variable-speed inverter ACs like the models we recommend are much more energy-efficient, but they also tend to put an even larger portion of that energy toward cooling — sometimes up to 90%, depending on how fast the compressor is running. Those ratios might work for people who live in dry or even moderate climates. But I live in New England, just a few miles away from the Atlantic Ocean. As I write this, it's 81 degrees Fahrenheit outside with a relative humidity level of 79%. My Frigidaire FFAD2234W1 dehumidifier has a hose that drains directly into the sump pump, and on days like this, conditions are so humid that I still have to manually empty the water tank. Still, I'd rather lug that bucket to the sink a few times a year than deal with the moist, musty chill of an air conditioner that can't keep up with the latent load. We tested multiple sizes and types of air conditioners to confirm: A too-big AC can't balance heat and humidity.