Eva-DryEDV4000 Dehumidifier, Rotary Desiccant

I’ve waited to write this review until I had some time and experience operating this dehumidifier.We’ve had the Eva-Dry EDV-4000 for about four months now and have it plugged into a Dayton 1UHG2 dehumidifier controller (sold here on Amazon). I *highly* recommend you purchase this controller with this unit. It has a more sensitive built-in hygrometer, and it can measure the ambient room humidity from a location separate from your dehumidifier. Even if you purchase a different dehumidifier than the Eva-Dry, I suggest you purchase this controller. We have ours connected to a utility-room plug located about four feet off the concrete floor, so it’s measuring the humidity in a more central location, rather than close to the floor. The Dayton controller also keeps your dehumidifier from cycling on and off. The Eva-Dry will do this to “sniff” the air and determine whether it needs to dehumidify. I would expect that this reduction in operating time will extend the life of the unit, since it’s not cycling on as often.The Eva-Dry saves its settings when powered down, so it operates well with the Dayton controller. If you purchase a different dehumidifier than the Eva-Dry and plan to use the Dayton controller, be sure to purchase a dehumidifier that saves its settings when powered down.So far, we’re very pleased with the Eva-Dry dehumidifier. It’s much smaller and lighter than we expected, which is a good thing. It’s very attractive and appears to be of excellent quality. The control panel is flat with detent push buttons that control the various features. LEDs display settings, and an autorotating baffle can be used to direct the flow of air up and down. It can also be placed in a stationary setting, if you need airflow focused in a specific direction.We installed it next to our sump pump, so I needed to install a drain hose in the back of the unit. This hose it not included with the dehumidifier. I found this part of the installation to be a real pain! Another review here stated that they called Eva-Dry and Eva-Dry stated to use a specific size I won’t repeat here because it doesn’t work. I purchased that size and the hose simply doesn’t fit. I returned it and then went to two different big-box stores and brought the dehumidifier with me, trying to match a hose. Neither store had a hose that fit. I asked for help, and the person was unable to find anything in the massive store that would work. As I was about to leave, he came running up. "Wait! Wait!"What he found was right next to the store’s dehumidifier section. Clipped to the edge of the shelving, right next to where the dehumidifiers were located, were bags labeled, “Dehumidifier Hose”. These fit perfectly! I was soooooo happy to locate this! I can only think that the hose is a standard size for dehumidifier drains? I don’t know… All I know is it works.The message here is, if you buy this unit, go to your local big-box store (I went to the one that starts with an L) and look for dehumidifier hoses next to the dehumidifier section. Assuming they have similar stock located in the same area, you should be good to go!Once the hose was installed, I plugged the unit into the Dayton controller, set the humidity level, and waited. Eventually, the EDV-4000 kicked into action.The first thing I noticed was the strange smell others reported here. It’s a chemical smell, presumably from the desiccant used during the dehumidification process. It’s a little off-putting, but I didn’t have a major problem with it. Being in the lower level of our home, I was able to ignore it. If you’ll be placing the unit in a bedroom or a common living location, you should consider how you’re going to deal with this smell once you receive the unit. I found the smell went away after a few days. It could take upwards of a week, depending how often your dehumidifier cycles on when you first get it. We only noticed the smell when the dehumidifier was actually operating. When it’s off, there’s no smell.We find the sound level to be very acceptable. I’ve been around dehumidifiers in the past that have a different quality of sound when the unit cycles on. These units have a combination of sounds. The fan and compressor each combine to form two layers of sounds that mesh together into one overall noise. This isn’t the case with the Eva-Dry. The Eva-Dry has only one white-noise hush that may be about the same decibel level as some compressor-type dehumidifiers, but I find the Eva-Dry to be much more tolerant simply because of the quality of the sound.As an example, our Eva-Dry is in the lower level of our home. We have a futon bed down there, which I used recently when we had guests at the house. Sleeping down there, the Eva-Dry was probably twenty of so feet from where I was sleeping. The unit cycled on and off periodically through the night, but I slept right through it quite comfortably. The reason is it has a white-noise hush. I sleep well with this quality of sound. A regular dehumidifier has a white-noise sound from its fan, but it also has a rattling sound from the compressor. It’s a different quality of sound that would probably wake me up if I were trying to sleep around it.As for dehumidification, I can only base this on the digital display on the Dayton controller. The Dayton not only reports a drop in humidification levels, but it also gives evidence of this by cycling off the dehumidifier at periodic intervals. Our lower level is only about 500 square feet. The Eva-Dry dehumidifier does a fine job keeping things dry down there.We’re very happy with the EDV-4000. I’m very pleased that I learned about a desiccant dehumidifier. I’m very dubious over the quality of standard dehumidifiers these days. They seem built to fail in two to five years. This didn’t seem to be true when I was younger in the 1970s. We had a dehumidifier that operated fine for close to twenty years. I’ve had a number of friends who seem to go through them in only a few years. I don’t want to have that experience. I’ve rolled the dice and am taking a gamble with the Eva-Dry in the hopes that it is more reliable and lasts for many years to come.I promise I will update this review and report ANY issues I have with the Eva-Dry EDV-4000. I’m very active on Amazon and pay close attention to the reviews I write. I’ve been writing them since 1997. If you don’t see any additional comments in this review, that means our dehumidifier is doing well and running fine.

We bought our unit late 2014. It stopped drying the air, even though the fan kept running. Called Eva Dry to see about a repair or solution to fix the unit. Sales person indicated since it was out of warranty there was nothing they could do. $250 down the tank.

I've lived in the SouthEast for the past 20 years and have used indoor dehumidifiers since then. The variously branded big-box store dehumidifiers in the $100 to $150 range all worked about the same. Removed humidity and lasted about 2 years at best. I finally "splurged" on a top DeLonghi unit with the built-in pump and was amazed. Four (4) years and still going strong, keep the humidity below 50% in the summer! Well, looking for the "next best thing" I purchased this not-inexpensive EDV-4000. Why yes, it is quieter and smaller, but that's about it.... Revised rating. The stink with the original unit dissipated after about 2 years of use. Since the unit is much quieter than a compressor-based unit, I ordered another. Eva-dry has been working on the problem! The new unit has no odor and works well. It still doesn't remove the volume of water, per day, that the better compressor-based units do, I now recommend this unit.

There is an awful, burnt smell coming from this thing. I've had it for about a week now and the smell is not going away.

Pros:Quiet, SmallCons:Expensive, doesn't work very fast, controls are non informative.

Works even better than I had hoped. With the energy cost of running a 40 watt bulb, it pulls the humidity down of my 8x5 closet from 70% humidity to about 60 in less than an hour. Leave it going two hours and humidity is as 51 percent.I've also put it in the downstairs bathroom (no window just a in ceiling fan) where there was a musty smell. Within 90 minutes that smell was gone and the humidity was down around 55 percent. I am considering purchasing another unit so I don't have to keep moving this thing around. Maybe I'll look at the smaller sizes.THE THING that makes this unique is the new technology it uses. No compressor and only the noise of the fan, if you run fan on lowest speed it's barely noticable. Best purchase I've made in a while. Somewhat expensive but WELL WORTH THE MONEY!!!!

I was looking for something quiet, as we run the dehumidifier in living space. I've seen "the quietest" sell for quite a bit of money so searched around a bit for another. There was little information about the EDV-4000 but from specs I felt comfortable in purchasing it. When it arrived I was a little concerned about it's size, it is small compared to many dehumidifiers I have had in the past. I have used it several weeks now and am very happy with it. I wouldn't call it whisper quiet but it is quiet. Sounds like a fan running. It's not annoying nor is it a harsh sound. The area feels comfortable and the unit removes a good amount of water. I would recommend this to homeowners. I would suspect it may not be sufficient for very large areas, but two may do the job.

South Texas coast in the winter time can be soggy. When it's cold, it's damp cold, but certainly not cold enough to keep mold and mildew from proliferating! This unit is quiet, efficient, easy to operate, easy to empty and after a winter's use in our 36 foot RV, I am just delighted that I bought the Eva Dry. The warm, dry air that it produces helps heat our unit. Would definitely get another if this one dies, but it appears sturdy and I expect it to last a long time. Love everything about it but especially the small size and quiet operation.