How loud is an AprilAire dehumidifier?
An AprilAire dehumidifier lists 45 to 55 dBA ducted on its current sheets, depending on size, plus 57 dBA un-ducted for the 50-pint E050 and E050W. Nowhere does AprilAire say how far away, at what fan setting or under which standard those numbers were taken.
The wording is the same on every sheet: a row headed "Noise" followed by a number and "dBA ducted". That consistency is useful. It means the E080's 45 and the E100's 55 were at least labelled the same way, so the 10 dBA between them is a fair reading of AprilAire's own ranking.
What the label does not tell you is how much of that sound reaches a bedroom. A ducted unit in a crawl space is heard through the floor and through the supply grilles, and neither path is part of the figure.
Which AprilAire dehumidifier is the quietest?
The E080 and its variants are the quietest AprilAire models, at 45 dBA ducted. Below, AprilAire's current US models are grouped by cabinet type and then by figure, with each model's variants listed beside it. Every figure is from the model's own sheet.
Whole-home units with 10-inch collars
These three sizes have a backdraft damper on the outlet and can discharge from the top or the end. AprilAire lists them for whole houses as well as basements and crawl spaces.
- 45 dBA ducted: E080 (80 pints a day), E080W (Wi-Fi), E080H (hardwired) and E080CS (crawl space version with a 40-foot alert cable).
- 50 dBA ducted: E130 (130 pints a day), E130W (Wi-Fi), E130C (casters) and E130H (hardwired).
- 55 dBA ducted: E100 (100 pints a day), E100W (Wi-Fi), E100C (casters), E100H (hardwired) and E100CS (crawl space version).
Low-profile crawl space units with 8-inch collars
These two cabinets blow out of the end only and are built to fit under the joists. The E070 comes with its collars; for the E050 they are an optional kit.
- 53 dBA ducted: E070 (70 pints a day, 12.5 inches tall) and E070W (Wi-Fi).
- 54 dBA ducted: E050 (50 pints a day, 10 inches tall) and E050W (Wi-Fi).
- 57 dBA un-ducted: E050 and E050W, the only current sheets that give one.
The ventilating system
- 52.8 dBA (ducted), fan only, and 55.0 dBA (ducted), compressor and fan: E100V with its 8190FF ventilation plenum.
A 1 dBA gap, like the one between the E070 and E050, is too small to rely on when AprilAire gives no distance. The 5 and 10 dBA steps in the whole-home group are large enough to matter.
Is the AprilAire E080 quieter than the E100?
Yes, the E080 lists 45 dBA ducted against 55 for the E100, and both come in the same 14 by 15 by 26 inch cabinet. On the usual rule that 10 dBA sounds about twice as loud, the E100 should be heard as roughly double.
The sheets show what the extra 20 pints a day costs in moving parts. The E100 pushes 280 CFM with no duct resistance against 185 for the E080, and it draws 6.7 amps against 4.8. AprilAire does not say which of those makes the difference, but more air through the same box is the obvious change.
AprilAire's shop puts the E080 at up to 4,400 square feet and the E100 at up to 5,500. If a contractor's sizing lands near the line, it is worth asking whether the E080 can carry the job.
Why is the 130-pint E130 quieter than the 100-pint E100?
The E130 lists 50 dBA ducted, 5 below the smaller E100, and its sheet shows a much larger cabinet: 19.5 inches wide, 18.75 tall, 30 long and 98 pounds, against 64 pounds for the E100.
AprilAire offers no explanation. What the sheets do show is that the E130 moves 310 CFM through a box with far more room in it. So capacity alone does not predict noise in this range.
For a big house, that makes the E130 the quieter route to high capacity on paper, at the cost of floor space, weight and the highest current draw in the line, 8.3 amps.
No, each Wi-Fi sheet repeats its base model's ducted figure, from 45 dBA for the E080W to 55 for the E100W. The W suffix brings a color display, Bluetooth pairing and the Healthy Air App, and the sheets list the same capacity, airflow and current draw.
The one physical difference we found is on the compact model. The E050W sheet gives a cabinet width of 12 inches, against 10 inches for the E050, with the same 10-inch height and 25-inch length.
Where the Wi-Fi models do help with noise is the Air Sampling setting. Their manual lets an installer set the wait between samples from 15 to 60 minutes, in 15-minute steps, with 60 as the default.
How much quieter is a ducted AprilAire?
On AprilAire's own sheets, adding ducts lowers the figure by 3 to 5 dBA. On the current E050 sheet the pair reads 54 with ducts and 57 without, and several retired models carried similar pairs.
The 1830 listed 47 dBA ducted and 51 unducted, and the 1820 listed 53 and 58. The 1850 sheet went further, setting the ducted 1850 at 54 against 60 for the freestanding 1850F, a different configuration of the same 95-pint unit.
The crawl space manuals say the same thing in words. The E050 and E070 manuals say ductwork on the inlet and outlet will help circulate dry air through the crawl space "and reduce the noise level of the dehumidifier", and ask for the two ducts to point in opposite directions.
Does an AprilAire make noise when the compressor is off?
Yes, the blower runs without the compressor during air sampling, air cycling and defrost, and AprilAire's one fan-only figure is not far below its full one. The E100V sheet lists 52.8 dBA (ducted) for the fan alone and 55.0 dBA (ducted) with the compressor and fan.
That is the only AprilAire sheet we found that separates the two. It describes a ventilating system rather than the plain E100, so treat the 2.2 dBA gap as a hint rather than a rule for every model.
The E050 manual describes sampling this way: the blower runs for three minutes, then either the compressor starts or the blower shuts off. It samples again every 60 minutes. The Wi-Fi manual gives one minute of sampling before the reading is recorded.
Air cycling, an optional setting, can run the fan from 0 to 60 minutes each hour to even out humidity in the space. Set to 60, it means the blower never stops.
Why is my AprilAire dehumidifier making noise?
AprilAire's manuals list no noise fault as such. Several sounds owners notice match normal operation in their troubleshooting tables: the blower sampling the air, the HVAC fan coming on with it, and the blower running alone while the coil defrosts.
The blower starts with nothing to dry
That is air sampling. The blower runs on a timer to read the humidity, and turns off again if the reading is below the setting. On a Wi-Fi model, a longer Air Sampling interval means fewer of these runs.
The furnace or air handler fan comes on
The Wi-Fi manual's table lists "The HVAC fan turns on unexpectedly" with the cause "Dehumidifier is sampling or ventilation in progress", and adds that the dehumidifier will turn on the HVAC fan during sampling or to meet the ventilation time.
The fan runs but the compressor stays off
Both the E070 and Wi-Fi manuals put this down to defrosting, which they call "a normal part of operation" when incoming air is cool and dry in spring or fall, or to inlet air outside 50°F to 104°F.
A new unit hums or rattles from the start
Under preparing the unit, the E070, E080 and E100 manuals say "IMPORTANT: Cut the strap securing the compressor shipping support bracket" and then remove the bracket itself. That strap and bracket hold the compressor still for the trip, so check that the installer took them out.
Airflow drops and the sound changes
The tables tie weak airflow with the blower running to a dirty filter, blocked ductwork or a missing outlet collar. A clogged MERV 8 filter is washable, per every sheet.
Where should an AprilAire go to keep the noise down?
AprilAire's manuals give three placement points that bear on noise: suspend it in an attic, duct it in a crawl space, and keep it level on its feet, risers or a hanging kit.
For attics, the E070 and E080 manuals both say "suspending the dehumidifier is recommended to reduce noise transference". AprilAire sells a Model 5822 hanging kit and Model 5879 risers for lifting the unit, and its adjustable feet level the cabinet so it drains.
When the unit lives somewhere you rarely go, the manuals suggest the Model 76 control, which mounts in the living space and is wired to the dehumidifier. That keeps you from having to open a crawl space hatch to change a setting, and the Wi-Fi models do the same job from a phone.
AprilAire's figures cannot be lined up against another brand's, since none of these makers states a distance. The crawl space dehumidifier comparison puts AprilAire beside Santa Fe and AlorAir, each ranked within its own figures.
