Dehumidifier Recall

Fewer things on a boat are less sexy than a dehumidifier, but damp winters certainly justify their use. The small, passive marine air dryers sold at chandleries are just the thing to keep the mildew at bay in Southern California, but when winter presents itself in buckets of rain, a little more ‘oomph’ is needed. Popular among many sailors — and relatively inexpensive — are portable home dehumidifiers that can suck gallons of water out of the air. These units generally sell at home stores such as Home Depot and Wally World for about $150.

Unfortunately, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has issued a recall of 98,000 dehumidifiers sold under the Goldstar and Comfort-Aire brands between January 2007 and June 2008. The model in question, manufactured by China’s LG Electronics Tianjin Appliance Co., has a 30-pint resevoir with a front-loading bucket, and a red shut-off button. This unit has been determined to be the cause of a number of fires — and we all know how boat fires usually turn out. To see if your dehumidifier is on the recall list, check this site.