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Pump, gravity hose or bucket: decide before you buy
Updated
If there is a floor drain or sump pit near the unit, use a gravity hose and skip the pump. If the water has to go up, to a sink, a window or a standpipe, buy a unit with a built-in pump. Use the bucket only if you are fine emptying it every day, because a full bucket shuts the machine off.
How fast the bucket fills
This is the bucket size divided by the rated pints per day. Real output is usually lower than the rating, so your bucket will last longer than this. But in a wet week it can get close.
| Model | Bucket | Rated output | Hours to full at rated output |
|---|---|---|---|
| hOmeLabs 50 Pint | 1.6 gallons (12.8 pints) | 50 pints per day | About 6 |
| Midea Cube 20 Pint | 3.2 gallons (25.6 pints) | 20 pints per day | About 31 |
| Ivation Desiccant | 3.8 pints | 13 pints per day | About 7 |
| Pro Breeze Mini | 16 ounces | 9 ounces per day | About 43 |
A 50-pint unit with a 1.6 gallon bucket can shut itself off four times a day in a wet basement. If nobody is home to empty it, the space gets damp again. That is the main reason I point basement buyers to a hose.
Gravity hose
- How it works: a hose screws onto an outlet on the unit and water runs downhill to a drain. No moving parts.
- What you need: a floor drain, sump pit or condensate line lower than the outlet. Many outlets fit a standard garden hose. The Midea Cube includes a hose and a garden hose adapter. The hOmeLabs 50 Pint listing says the hose is not included.
- The rule: the hose must slope down the whole way. No loops, no humps, no kinks. Water sits in a low spot, backs up, and the unit leaks or stops.
- Tip: set the unit on a sturdy stand or a pair of concrete blocks to get more drop. Make sure it cannot tip.
Built-in pump
- How it works: a small pump inside the unit pushes water through a thin tube, up and out.
- When you need it: no floor drain, or the only drain is a laundry sink or a window above the unit.
- What to check: how high the pump can lift and how long the tube is. The hOmeLabs pump model listing I read did not state the lift height, so find it in the manual before you plan a long run.
- The tradeoff: a pump is one more part that can fail. The good news is that pump models still have a bucket and auto shutoff as a backup.
Bucket only
Fine for a bedroom, a bathroom or a mildly damp room where you walk past the unit every day. The Midea Cube is the easiest bucket unit here, because its 3.2 gallon bucket holds more than a day of water at full output. The catch is weight. Water weighs a little over 8 pounds per gallon, so a full Cube bucket is about 27 pounds.
Crawl spaces are hose only
Crawl space units such as the AlorAir Sentinel HD55 have no bucket at all. The listing says it drains automatically. This model drains by gravity, so it must sit above the drain point. AlorAir sells other versions with a pump if your crawl space has nowhere lower to drain to.
Keep it clean
- Empty the bucket before it sits for days. Standing water grows slime and smells.
- Wash the bucket with mild dish soap every couple of weeks.
- Check the hose each month for kinks, slime and a loose connection.
- Never drink the water or give it to pets. It is not clean water.
Next: check the size you need, or see all seven picks.