Unibond "moisture absorber". (presented as a room dehumidifier)

I noticed that ASDA (UK Walmart) was pushing these Unibond "moisture absorbers". The packaging is very misleading and tries to present these units as room dehumidifiers, giving condensation, mold and peeling wallpaper as examples of what they can "prevent". In reality they wont, because whereas a real dehumidifier will pull many litres of water out of the air in a damp room every day, this unit will only draw out about 700ml at best in a month or longer.
These units use cylinders of compressed hygroscopic chemical, (probably calcium chloride) to absorb moisture slowly, dissolving into liquid as they do so. You end up with the collection tray full of a saturated chemical solution which is not only quite corrosive to many metals, but will cause permanent damp stains if it gets spilled.
These things might be OK for keeping the humidity down in a cupboard with low air flow, but for room use they are nothing more than a placebo, and useless as an actual dehumidifier.
When the chemical block has fully dissolved in these units you have to pour the concentrated chemical solution down your drain and buy a new block. Compared to a real dehumidifier these units cost over ten times as much to extract a given quantity of water and do so very slowly.
In short, if you have a humidity issue then don't waste your money on this gimmick. Buy a proper compressor or desiccant-drum based dehumidifier that will actually do the job.
If you enjoy these videos you can help support the channel with a dollar for coffee, cookies and random gadgets for disassembly at:-
www.bigclive.com/coffee.htm

Пікірлер: 454

  • @aalbbaa22
    @aalbbaa222 жыл бұрын

    *humiditer We liked it **Fastly.Cool** so much in the basement, we bought a second one for the main level. The amount of moisture it pulls out of the air is astonishing.*

  • @SurvivingTheApocalypse
    @SurvivingTheApocalypse7 жыл бұрын

    Have been using two of these 'moisture absorbers' inside a nuclear bunker for quite some time and they have worked really well. They are not a dehumidifier and should never be expected to do the same job but for off grid locations they do the job.

  • @fickgooglefickthem6884
    @fickgooglefickthem6884 Жыл бұрын

    Big Clive got them all! I really suggest taking a look into this channel for basic repairs and learning.

  • @AmusementLabs
    @AmusementLabs7 жыл бұрын

    1-3 months...Or one day in Florida....

  • @ExStaticBass
    @ExStaticBass7 жыл бұрын

    You know I used to live on the beach here in the US a while ago. Instead of paying over $200 for a dehumidifier I built my own out of a peltier cooler, two heatsinks, a fan, and some reasonably ingenious ducting work with thin aluminium. The fan was mainly for the hot side of the peltier but I ducted it around the back side so the air could be cooled down again which also helped move air across the cold surface to aid the condensation effect. It collected about two gallons a day which isn't bad for a home made device of that nature. The biggest issue was clamping both heatsinks together which was easily solved with some simple hardware. 1mm aluminium isn't terribly hard to bend and making rudimentary ducts out of it was easy enough. Since the whole thing cost me less than $15 to build I would highly recommend making your own next time one breaks down. It would be a fun project for the channel too...

  • @VicodinElmo
    @VicodinElmo7 жыл бұрын

    Got a problem area in my bedroom near the window. Bought one of these. Problem solved. Could've bought a dehumidifier but, for a fiver, I'm happy. Lots of naysayers but the reviews on Amazon typically skew positive. Unless they've all been paid off by UniBond? I'm not discounting your opinion; I can't see it dehumidifying a whole room either but if it keeps a specific area dry and does it passively then I can't complain. Dad keeps one in his caravan as well and had no damp issues yet. Previous owner said the bathroom suffered with it sometimes but he hasn't had a problem yet. Fingers crossed.

  • @LakeNipissing
    @LakeNipissing7 жыл бұрын

    Might as well leave packets of silica gel lying around the room instead.

  • @iamdarkyoshi

    @iamdarkyoshi

    7 жыл бұрын

    LakeNipissing Damnit man I wanted first comment

  • @bigclivedotcom

    @bigclivedotcom

    7 жыл бұрын

    Silica gel would be a better option for a small scale drying effect.

  • @iamdarkyoshi

    @iamdarkyoshi

    7 жыл бұрын

    bigclivedotcom does it help with the lights go out mosquito utensil?

  • @LakeNipissing

    @LakeNipissing

    7 жыл бұрын

    +Luke Den Hartog - That was an absolute classic. I want to buy that one just for the package!

  • @bigclivedotcom

    @bigclivedotcom

    7 жыл бұрын

    Only for 12 hours one day a year.

  • @morthren
    @morthren7 жыл бұрын

    If you use one of these in a car that is stored up, use the one with the membrane to prevent the absorbed moisture 'evaporating'. I used to use an open type with the crystals in a car that is stored in a garage over the winter but started to find a very light rust layer building up on all the bare metal surfaces, metal surfaces like you find under the seats or under the dash by the pedals etc. If you do use one in a car, be sure to close the vents and to switch the ventilation to recirculate so you don't draw in moisture from outside.

  • @Seegalgalguntijak
    @Seegalgalguntijak7 жыл бұрын

    So how does an electric dehumidifyer work? Tear one down! :-)

  • @Firecul

    @Firecul

    7 жыл бұрын

    Seegal Galguntijak he has if I remember correctly

  • @zusurs

    @zusurs

    7 жыл бұрын

    ..or open god damn wikipedia and read maybe?

  • @kylenull8015

    @kylenull8015

    7 жыл бұрын

    he already has

  • @tomwes8390

    @tomwes8390

    7 жыл бұрын

    Artūrs Savickis Maybe he wants to just see it. would make a good video yes

  • @Cofcos

    @Cofcos

    7 жыл бұрын

    They are basically air conditioners that cool the air down to cause condensation but then use the warm exhaust to rewarm the air it cooled down.

  • @akirakurogawa8908
    @akirakurogawa89087 жыл бұрын

    The "air scents" style one are really popular here in Japan - put they're aimed at closets, pantries, and dressers etc for use in the monsoon season where clothes and shoes seem to get musty overnight due to the oppressive heat and humidity. The most popular brand is "Okamoto Zou-san" (Okamoto Mr. Elephant) and come in 400ml and 550ml size. I don't think I've ever seen them as being marketed as room dehumidifiers here. For general dehumidifying, wall mounted AC units usually have that function covered suitably.

  • @tripsadelica
    @tripsadelica7 жыл бұрын

    I used a few of the more standard calcium chloride units when water got into my car ( the water crept up to about 20cm in depth...thank God it didn't get to the ECU or ABS modules) during a flash flood. First I used a carpet steam cleaner to sanitise and clean the carpets as well as sucking the water out. Then I tipped silica gel kitty litter in each of the floor wells and put four of the calcium chloride dehumidifiers in the car and left it in the sun on a couple of hot days. The result was that the dehumidifiers were full of liquid after the first 24 hours and the carpets were bone dry once the kitty litter was removed. To be on the safe side I put another set of dehumidifiers in the car and left them in for two days. That did the trick. The car was dry and suffered no damage, thank God.

  • @merlinathrawes6191
    @merlinathrawes61917 жыл бұрын

    In actual fact I have one of these on the floor in the downstairs loo. This room is a single skinned extension and has had a terrible problem with condensation and black mouldy walls. I put one of these in 2 years ago and haven't had any problems since so it works ok in my opinion. It does what it says on the box and I got it for half price from Homebase.

  • @mynameisntbobbybob
    @mynameisntbobbybob7 жыл бұрын

    im glad youve made this video i nearly bought one for a shed

  • @MegaMarie
    @MegaMarie7 жыл бұрын

    Brought them 2 weeks ago off eBay and works fine. Handy for bathrooms in UK where no electric for proper dehumidifier.

  • @KevsoldLandy
    @KevsoldLandy7 жыл бұрын

    When we close our (static) caravan up for the Winter we just just place a bowl of ordinary household/table salt in a bowl in cupboards and the various rooms. It works to absorb any moisture. Ok, it may not be as efficient as silica gel but when we are talking something like Tesco Value salt it's one heck of a lot cheaper and it works for us :)

  • @RGSABloke
    @RGSABloke7 жыл бұрын

    Hi Clive, I have found the Meaco DD8L Junior to be very effective in my garage keeping my lathe, tools and motorcycles rust free. The one I have in the house is used for drying clothes which is does very effectively and efficiently. Both these units have worked flawlessly for many years. The type you featured here as as much use as a 'chocolate fire guard'. Keep sharing big chap. Kindest regards. Joe

  • @bigclivedotcom

    @bigclivedotcom

    7 жыл бұрын

    Keep an eye on the Meaco's. Their water drainage path tends to gunk up and the leak on the floor. They also seem to have issues with heater failure if run at full power,. I use all my desiccant units at low power, and they are actually slightly more efficient and will last longer. I've got one here where the motor that rotates the drum has literally ground itself to mince. Quite hard finding a replacement with a compatible shaft.

  • @RGSABloke

    @RGSABloke

    7 жыл бұрын

    bigclivedotcom bigclivedotcom Yes, I run the one in the garage at low power, the one in a small bedroom I run at full power to dry clothes as it doesn't turn the wife's wool jumper into 'Action Man/Woman size!!!!!! I chose the slowing running non-compressor type as it was much less expensive to run and fewer parts to go wrong. The Meaco got the best reviews in the caravan and boat community at the time as I guess these both suffer from massive condensation issues. I have got to say I have never had a problem with blockage but then again, I keep the filters and tubes clear. Really enjoying your channel, keep up the good work big chap. Kindest regards from Bonnie Scotland. Joe. PS If you are running the Meaco with the external hose, it's a good idea to cut a small hole in the top of the flexible hose as it leaves the unit to stop it back venting.

  • @killer1479
    @killer14797 жыл бұрын

    I have one of these in my conservatory, and the tablet did last me about 2 months and pulled alot of moisture out of the which helped the windows to stop getting damp and the rubber seals going mouldy

  • @TheCormTube
    @TheCormTube7 жыл бұрын

    I use those little pots to reduce the moisture in our windows which they do OK but that's a very interesting point about metal corrosion from spilling. In our conservatory we switched to using a Trotek unit from Amazon which has been fantastic, so as you say Clive, these type of units are no match for an electric one!

  • @Tjita1
    @Tjita17 жыл бұрын

    It is actually not so bad, I mean, I'm not sure about this one, but I built one out of a household strainer and a bucket, and it takes about 3-4 kg of CaCl2 at a time. I put this in our firewood storage room, and the firewood was down to under 10% moisture in less than 6 months. Another advantage of this idea is actually that the reaction is exothermic, so it actually gives off a (very) small amount of heat as it absorbs water. They're maybe not the wonderous product they're made out to be, but the system can be quite useful.

  • @cjhification
    @cjhification7 жыл бұрын

    I have an electronic dehumidifier for the house in the main hall landing area that pulls out about 2 litres a day but also have low profile refillable calcium carbonate units that draw out 500ml from lodgers bedrooms every week or so in the winter, one fill of calcium carbonate will do 4-5 litres as they don't use up all the calcium carbonate to fill up the unit and the calcium carbonate chamber is approximately a quarter of the size of the water chamber below.

  • @Blitterbug
    @Blitterbug7 жыл бұрын

    I have one of these and use it in the downstairs loo, which has no air bricks so has a mould problem. It fills with liquid every 5-6 weeks which I tip down the toilet (oops?) and since I started using it, the mould problem and damp smells have both virtually gone. So I accept it's not for large rooms, but then I didn't really think that was what it was for...

  • @weednot43
    @weednot437 жыл бұрын

    I use things similar to this in my house and they work great. Used to have mold on my walls in the winter, not anyomore.

  • @tomlomax9909
    @tomlomax99097 жыл бұрын

    I have some equivalent product which I refill with loose CaCl2 dihydrate from eBay periodically. They are very effective at controlling moisture in places like bathrooms without decent ventilation - but I'm only using them in smallish rooms.

  • @tomlomax9909

    @tomlomax9909

    7 жыл бұрын

    Nah, you'll get through it pretty quickly. Especially trying to dehydrate an aquaponics building! ...

  • @GarethWhiteside
    @GarethWhiteside7 жыл бұрын

    I don't think they are misleading. I had a bad condensation problem in my bathroom where mould kept growing up the wall. since using one of these, the mould has gone. I replace it about every two months. I also use one near a bedroom window and it has also done the job.

  • @qg786
    @qg78611 ай бұрын

    I have one of these in my work van and it keeps the van nice and dry. 👌

  • @Roflcopter4b
    @Roflcopter4b7 жыл бұрын

    I have to imagine it would work just fine outdoors here in Canada. At this time of year 0% humidity and 100% humidity are precisely the same thing, which is no humidity at all. Any extent water vapour will not remain that way for long. So this thing would likely quite easily last 3 months. It'd probably work fine indoors too, assuming the building doesn't have a humidifier. Which is to say it would do nothing.

  • @AbbeyB77
    @AbbeyB777 жыл бұрын

    Those products are really good in older homes with basements that are naturally damp where you just want to pull the bit of dampness out of the air. It takes two or three of the pellet style ones to get a decent effect in my grandma's cold room, but they're sold for the equivalent of 75 pence in Canadian dollars at dollar stores, so you can't complain about the price

  • @cctrollz5706
    @cctrollz57066 жыл бұрын

    I had a moisture issue in my car at one point so I bought a small one of these and sat it in the trunk and it worked quite well.

  • @TheSpotify95
    @TheSpotify957 жыл бұрын

    We have these unibond dehumidifier things and they have actually bought our humidity levels down by a few % according to my humidity meters that we have. With these in every upstairs room we get an ideal humidity of 55-60%, without these it used to be anything up to 70%.

  • @niloccoady
    @niloccoady7 жыл бұрын

    In fairness I have used the Areo in small spaces like boats and they work a treat. But like you say not hole house device. Super job for small spaces where power is not available.

  • @ams718
    @ams7187 жыл бұрын

    I've got 3 of these Unibond dehumidifiers, I don't see any issues with them they are doing a pretty good job. Although, I never accurately tested whether they do what's in the specs, I have to replace the tabs in every 2-3 months but my home (40sqm) is VERY humid due to bad ventilation, so I don't blame the manufacturer.

  • @cubeyuk
    @cubeyuk7 жыл бұрын

    I have one of these. It works very well.

  • @tad2021
    @tad20217 жыл бұрын

    I actually use a large bucket of the stuff in a server room when the humidity creeps up too high. The RH in southern California is, on average, quite low, but some years we'll get weeks where it's >90%. When that happens, condensation becomes a high possibly and I just open the lid on the bucket for several days to bring the RH back down. The room is (too) small and the air is recirculated to its self. It's been about 2 years since I've needed it. 2016 was very dry, I actually had to get a humidifier. Durning the summer I dumped about 5-15L of water in to the air in there just to keep the RH around 10%. Under 5% and you start having ESD problems. It was around 1% then, just walking near a walls would build up a charge. This is why I have a habit of tapping metal door frames as I pass to ground out.

  • @philandrew7907
    @philandrew79077 жыл бұрын

    that is hell of a chunk you've taken out your hand

  • @MagikGimp

    @MagikGimp

    7 жыл бұрын

    That caustic stuff will burn away even more I should wager. Not that Clive will notice! ;)

  • @UKHFSSB

    @UKHFSSB

    7 жыл бұрын

    it might be worth taking bets on what damage Clive's hands have suffered between every KZread vidoe he makes.. be careful mate !

  • @SigEpBlue

    @SigEpBlue

    7 жыл бұрын

    Looks like he's healing up well, actually. Certainly faster than I would. :)

  • @teebosaurusyou

    @teebosaurusyou

    6 жыл бұрын

    Big Clive is sacrificing his hands and health for us! So Clive, following tradition, please figure out a way to blow this dodgy thing up! Otherwise - no cookies for you or cats.

  • @danxepha4535
    @danxepha45357 жыл бұрын

    I've got one of those £1 B&M Store moisture absorbers in my tiny shower room which sometimes gets damp walls due to the weak extractor. Its collected less than a teaspoon of water in about 6 weeks.

  • @ThecreeperKiller1234
    @ThecreeperKiller12347 жыл бұрын

    I have one in my bathroom, seems to work well after i have a shower at getting the steam out, It normally take a long time but with this its quite quick

  • @erg0centric
    @erg0centric7 жыл бұрын

    My last house had a 1950's damp basement. I purchased a compressor style dehumidifier and ran a short pipe in to the floor drain. Set it to 30%, switch on, and Jean-Guy's you auntie. Left it like that for years.

  • @bananoo915
    @bananoo9157 жыл бұрын

    Hi Clive. I have a good experience of this device I would like to share. Someone blocked up the ventilation bricks in the room that is now my son's bedroom (approx 12m/2). Condensation from the window was dripping so badly onto the floor there was a puddle each morning equating to around 25ml on the hard floor (quite significant and problematic), dripping from the sill, and some remaining on the sill. I tried the first device and it didn't reduce this. Three weeks ago I saw the Unibond thing again and picked one up. I did not believe it was a dehumidifier, but I was shocked to see it didn't have a battery to power a small fan to encourage air flow, as it is packaged as something that may be electronic. I didn't expect much. Every night since however for thee weeks there has been no puddle with this placed on the window sill, and only a small (5 - 10ml) of water on the sill. It is now nearly 1/2 full to the top of the water box (considering emptying it soon) and the brick is only somewhat pitted. Therefore for this reason, and if other people have a similar problem, I would have to recommend this as being effective. It is only this room affected by this problem, perhaps being above the kitchen, so the house as a whole is not highly humid as we don't dry clothes internally, so I don't think mine is a significantly extreme case scenario.

  • @catgath9718

    @catgath9718

    5 жыл бұрын

    If have seen good results with using something similar to. My brother keeps some in his basement under his bathroom and kitchen floors. The joists were collecting moisture and this did the job till he found the reason why. Which was from the bathroom toilet slowly leaking from the old tank. We found that products like that are good for low or very local moisture problems.

  • @ev6558

    @ev6558

    3 жыл бұрын

    @@catgath9718 Well at least your brother finally treated the disease instead of just the symptom, I find it difficult to believe it's even legal for OP to have their child sleeping in a room with such poor ventilation that condensation pools on the floor. Must have some pretty medieval housing code if it is.

  • @MattFowlerBTR
    @MattFowlerBTR7 жыл бұрын

    These can be useful if you have a location with zero access to electricity and that humans (or other animals) very rarely visit (so you're not breathing new moisture in to the air). We use one in a self-storage lock-up - an outdoor half-shipping-container sort of thing - to reduce the humidity in that very specific environment. You're right, they would be pretty much worthless for use in the home.

  • @adeeponionbreath
    @adeeponionbreath7 жыл бұрын

    Hooray for talking about dubious products like this that don't have the capacity to make a difference. People should order this stuff to be delivered directly to the landfill and save on rubbish pickup charges! Clive, you are my favorite diversion and I wish you well!

  • @SonOfFurzehatt
    @SonOfFurzehatt7 жыл бұрын

    I use the disposable dehumidifiers in my car to stop the windows fogging up, but I did spill one, so I suspect it's eating through the floor of the car now

  • @hachikiina

    @hachikiina

    4 жыл бұрын

    any updates on that?

  • @SonOfFurzehatt

    @SonOfFurzehatt

    4 жыл бұрын

    @@hachikiina the car was scrapped late last year. The seats never fell through the floor, so it the calcium chloride didn't do too much damage. The car was only scrapped because it wasn't reliable enough to trust for important trips.

  • @ev6558

    @ev6558

    3 жыл бұрын

    I love the work this guy does exposing this bunk products, but he's kind of overexaggerating the dustructive qualities of calcium chloride. It's snow melting salt. It's used in a ton of other applications too but the majority of people will know Calcium Chloride as snow melting salt. Yes, it will damage things that are constantly wet and exposed to it, but it's not going to permanently ruin everything it touches just because you spilled a bit, especially if it's a relatively dry indoor area to begin with.

  • @tstuart7333
    @tstuart73337 жыл бұрын

    Thanks Clive. I was about to purchase 2 of these units from Asda, to put into my VW T2. Don't think I'll bother.

  • @MagikGimp
    @MagikGimp7 жыл бұрын

    They do work but yes, no replacement for a machine. The months claim is also very far-fetching. I don't think think that corrosion is an issue but the blue run-off does last in the bowl forever! I think the main selling point of these (heavy marketing aside, yes we fell for it) is how small (and silent of course) they are compared to a dehumidifier but they are not cost effective compared with one of those. Even after the initial heavy outlay and electricity bill they are still probably cheaper simply because those blue blocks are so expensive for the time they last.

  • @daienaa
    @daienaa Жыл бұрын

    I did order a different one just now after watching your video 😊

  • @himselfe
    @himselfe7 жыл бұрын

    Would be interesting to see a timelapse comparison of these and a proper dehumidifier!

  • @Bartiprog
    @Bartiprog7 жыл бұрын

    I have the simmilar model - its dark, and i think was sold under different name. I'm from Poland, btw. I suspected that this was just a placebo effect, due to emptying the tank about once per month - that just seemed not to add up, but my roommates insisted that it really made a difference (no water gathering on windows). Well then, thanks for the heads up and please excuse my poor English.

  • @IncertusetNescio
    @IncertusetNescio7 жыл бұрын

    My 1Kw AC unit (not great but it does the job well enough) has a "dehumidifier" mode (I use quotes because it just minimizes the fan and locks it there) that can get 2.2 pints/1L (US presumably) per hour. So in one hour my AC unit can pull more water from the air than this thing, blatantly excluding the volume of dissolved salt (so more like 20-30 minutes), than it can in 1-3 months. Scientific curiosity is right!

  • @ualgun
    @ualgun7 жыл бұрын

    These were also quite well advertised in my local Tesco, in an eastern European location

  • @UKHFSSB
    @UKHFSSB7 жыл бұрын

    New subsciber here from across the sea in Morecambe.. Hi Clive, i've been watchin your excellent videos mate, ever so entertaining, but dammit... for over two weeks now i've had that song of yours going 'round and 'round my head. 'Pink USB charger from China' after two weeks of that particular ear worm, I have not forgiven you yet :)

  • @iamdarkyoshi
    @iamdarkyoshi7 жыл бұрын

    What happens if you blow air through it with a fan? How quickly can you kill the absorbent ring?

  • @mattfox14
    @mattfox147 жыл бұрын

    I had one of these in a 7 square meter room, it lasted almost exactly a month before the block filter fell off it's mount and made a massive mess inside the unit. Wasn't too bothered as it only collected 1 litre in that time so it wasn't the solution I needed and I didn't get any more refills. I agree the packaging is very misleading to what it is and I have seen a new 'e-connect' model which seems even more so misleading.

  • @HDGamer2424
    @HDGamer24247 жыл бұрын

    I just threw that fuckin thing out of my room & house. No wonder all my wrenches an stuff like that started rusting... Thanks for the honest video, mate.

  • @Adderkleet
    @Adderkleet7 жыл бұрын

    Really hate the way this advertises itself, especially if it mentions "battery-less operation". Having said that, I bought the cheaper non-scented type to prevent mouldy smells in my wardrobe. After a month or two, it was full of water. So I consider it slightly effective.

  • @samiraperi467
    @samiraperi4677 жыл бұрын

    That cake reminds me of dishwasher tablets. :P

  • @harryjnr2335
    @harryjnr23357 жыл бұрын

    I have one of these in my gun cabinet, works great for that space

  • @b.hagedash7973
    @b.hagedash79737 жыл бұрын

    Big money to be made adding a solar panel and bicycle attachment and selling it on as a self filling water bottle, with electrolytes.

  • @DEFarnes
    @DEFarnes7 жыл бұрын

    I use this for a small wardrobe so I can not worry when placing not fully dry clothes in it. Works well, a lot better then other chemical dehumidifiers I have used but I only get the refills when on sale.

  • @PIXscotland
    @PIXscotland7 жыл бұрын

    I use the "Kontrol Krystals 2.5Kg" as a refill for my units, same devices as your "cherry" ones. Quite cheap and work well. Takes the slightly damp smell out of my old cold flat. They do absorb a lot of water for me. I empty five of them monthly.

  • @bigclivedotcom

    @bigclivedotcom

    7 жыл бұрын

    You might consider getting an actual dehumidifier. The modern desiccant drum ones like the Eco-air simple will pull out a lot of excess humidity while also putting a gentle flow of warm air into the flat. I recommend the low setting (330W). A traditional compressor dehumidifier is also a good choice, but mainly for warmer flats as they require the higher temperature to work properly.

  • @thesillyhatday
    @thesillyhatday7 жыл бұрын

    I'm glad you posted this video. I figured these were only really useful for small space. I was going to buy a chemical dehumidifier for keeping the front and rear boots of my classic car dry (It's mid-engined, so two boot spaces). In the garage it tends to keep a thin film of moisture on all the metalwork inside those spaces. The last thing I want is a caustic solution inside what is basically a metal box, which I was trying to prevent from rusting. Would you say silica gel to be a good alternative? The garage isn't air tight enough to make a proper dehumidifier feasible. Once the car is closed up it must trap in air with a lot of moisture, which is why it settles.

  • @jesutherland
    @jesutherland7 жыл бұрын

    I had one of those calcium chloride style units on the dash of my motorhome. They go by the name Dry-Z-Air in the US. I forgot it was there and backed the motorhome out of the driveway. As soon as I hit the breaks the Dry-Z-Air dell over and dumped it's liquid into the dash radio. Sometime later that day the radio let out it's magic smoke. Which was quite a thing since we had no idea how much smoke there would be or even flames. Had to pull over in a hurry and remove the radio from the dash. I spent a lot of time cleaning all that up and quite a bit if money and time replacing the radio.

  • @jostouw4366

    @jostouw4366

    7 жыл бұрын

    did you replace the Dry Z Air ?

  • @jesutherland

    @jesutherland

    7 жыл бұрын

    Yea, I used to use three of them. Now I use one of those silicate wheel dehumidifers like Big Clive uses in his house. It sits on the counter in the RV, I just put the output hose into the sink. Also it has an ionizer built in so bonus there. If I don't have something in there I get mold growing.

  • @rhkips
    @rhkips7 жыл бұрын

    I have an 18-gallon/day (68 liter/day) commercial-grade dehumidifier that works disturbingly well. It's intended to be used as a part of a mold remediation process, rather than just making a room comfortable, and it can turn a 2200 square foot (200 square meter) house into a desert in less than a week. These chemical things just aren't effective in the real world, sadly.

  • @MrOpenGL
    @MrOpenGL7 жыл бұрын

    I just saw one of those in a "Gulliver" supermarket in Italy and smelled some quackery, then I saw your video ;-)

  • @heatexchangeskittles
    @heatexchangeskittles7 жыл бұрын

    Hi Clive... the wife's been using the unibond one for months now and I have to say trick or no trick they work very well in a medium sized room ...im here in the midlands the refill is only £2 for 3 in B&M so I think there worth a shot for anybody :-)

  • @Rich77UK
    @Rich77UK7 жыл бұрын

    We have had these (not unibond brand and the cap is blue) in Germany for at least 3/4 years. We put on in the caravan over winter and they work great!

  • @MrLUKEDUNSTAN

    @MrLUKEDUNSTAN

    7 жыл бұрын

    Carn The Pies!

  • @rokoala2636
    @rokoala26366 жыл бұрын

    Got a bit excited reading the video description, not quite the "cylinders of compressed hygroscopic chemical" I was hoping for though...

  • @frinkemon
    @frinkemon7 жыл бұрын

    They are quite handy to stick in your car on the dash or something. Caravans etc also handy.

  • @yoloswaggins7611
    @yoloswaggins76117 жыл бұрын

    I use the simpler version in my 3d printer filament container. I was successfully able to make a roll of moisture-ruined filament print properly again by putting one of these in a tupperware container with it. They certainly have their uses.

  • @lettucefire
    @lettucefire7 жыл бұрын

    I use a couple in my motorhome over winter seem to work fairly well and they are pretty cheap especially as you can get refills

  • @darrenclarke667
    @darrenclarke6674 жыл бұрын

    These are actually really good BUT for one purpose, leaving in the caravan where a dehumidifier can’t be left on when the caravan is in storage. Normally you get a bit of a damp smell when entering caravan after winter, not for the past few years when using these. Condensation is a big issue in caravans and these are perfect. New caravans are so insulated (alu-tec) that they are 5* insulated.... problem is they don’t breathe well and condensation builds up.... here is the solutions and they are despite what they may appear to be.... are actually good 👍

  • @bigclivedotcom

    @bigclivedotcom

    4 жыл бұрын

    Doe it dissolve the whole block quickly?

  • @DJB1ack0u7
    @DJB1ack0u77 жыл бұрын

    Calcium Chloride is pretty nasty stuff when metal is involved. In the shop I was in for CNC training there was a storage platform with a metal grate floor. On that floor was 4 bags of calcium chloride ice melter above a manual lathe. After it rained and water got into the shop the calcium started dripping on the lathe. It went from beautifully clean to an absolute rust-bucket overnight.

  • @DisabilityExams
    @DisabilityExams7 жыл бұрын

    Well - you can always install some LEDs and turn it into a night light!

  • @RichardT2112
    @RichardT21127 жыл бұрын

    They work great in cars/caravans that you may wish to store and prevent nasties from growing.

  • @VicodinElmo

    @VicodinElmo

    7 жыл бұрын

    Richard T Yep. We use one for my dad's caravan!

  • @nagualdesign
    @nagualdesign7 жыл бұрын

    My mother used one of these to keep the cupboard under her stairs dry, where she keeps her refrigerator, to good effect. When I told her I was having humidity problems in my van (big droplets hanging all over the ceiling most days) she gave it to me, and I've been using it for about 3 weeks. It worked great as an air freshener but didn't seem to be pulling much moisture out, so I stopped checking it. However, when I told my mother it wasn't working earlier this week, and went to show her how little it had accumulated, it was doing surprisingly well, and when I inspected the van for signs of condensation I found none whatsoever. It worked! As far as I can tell, this sort of passive dehumidifying requires a temperature cycle. During the day when it's warm the air holds more moisture, as does the block of desiccant. As the temperature drops and the air cools it can't hold on to the water, so you get condensation forming on cold surfaces. The block seems to work like the air, and loses its moisture content by dripping into the tray. The next day the cycle repeats. The only drawback with this is the minimal temperature cycle we've enjoyed in the North of England for the past few months, which means it still works, only much more slowly. Silica gel, apart from being toxic, only seems to absorb (it doesn't drip), so it works less and less until you have to remove it to dry it in the oven or whatever. Also, I wouldn't describe calcium chloride as "extremely corrosive". It's only mildly corrosive, can be handled and disposed of easily, and isn't nearly as toxic to both humans and the environment as silica gel (AFAIK).

  • @ChoppingtonOtter
    @ChoppingtonOtter7 жыл бұрын

    I used these in my gun cabinets until I was able to get hold of some big bags of silica gel. They did the job for about 6 months each but if you spill that liquid on any metal it's horribly and quickly corrosive, (I tested this on some scrap steel - its a real nasty liquid!)so I wasn't keen on them in my cabinets. But they are fine for such small space tasks if you can be certain they won't spill. May not be too bad for an overwintered caravan or similar I imagine.

  • @recklessroges
    @recklessroges7 жыл бұрын

    All UK technical gadgets, (and their marketing) should be approved by bigclive and Thunderfoot. Who else would bigclive want in his brain-trust?

  • @mattzocrazy123
    @mattzocrazy123 Жыл бұрын

    I live in a student house with improper air movement, neither bathroom has a fan, only one has a window. I use Calcium Chloride Ice melter to keep the humidity down around the bathrooms, to keep the mold away. It's not a substitute for a dehumidifier but it does enough for the price. I'd avoid buying any of the "DampDry" or similar products, theyre WAY over price.

  • @grendelum
    @grendelum7 жыл бұрын

    Damp Rid! (a US water absorbing pellet sold in loose bulk) works *really* well at dehydrating mushrooms... literally overnight... if, you know, you just happen to be growing your own mushrooms that you'd like desiccated... for soup mix and such... yeah.

  • @xavier6130

    @xavier6130

    6 жыл бұрын

    orion khan Thanks. It will certainly be of use to dry my certainly legal mushrooms.

  • @TheBackyardChemist
    @TheBackyardChemist7 жыл бұрын

    If one wanted to make a safe and effective dehumidifier, one could use a large quantity of molecular sieves. The are very much like silica gel, just better. They look like small balls of ceramic, and work by trapping water and other comparably small molecules in tiny pores(about 0.3-10 nanometers in size, depending on the type of the ceramic). They can be easily regenerated by heating to 200-300 deg C., and can capture 15-25% of their weight in water.

  • @vgamesx1

    @vgamesx1

    7 жыл бұрын

    The real question is how cost effective is it? Because you can get a fairly large quantity of silica gel for just $5-$10, so it doesn't really matter that it's better if it costs 2x-3x as much to remove the same amount of water.

  • @bigclivedotcom

    @bigclivedotcom

    7 жыл бұрын

    vgamesx1 It's not cost effective at all. The silica gel can also be recycled cleanly by heating it.

  • @dessimes

    @dessimes

    7 жыл бұрын

    Presumably one would have to reheat them outside the home, or the humidity would just be dumped back into the house.

  • @daylen577

    @daylen577

    7 жыл бұрын

    Kitchen or bathroom furniture is generally a lot more resistant to humidity than bedroom or living room, and they're rooms you aren't in for long so it can't hurt to dump the moisture in the kitchen and leave a window open for a bit there

  • @cardboardboxification

    @cardboardboxification

    7 жыл бұрын

    TheBackyardChemist a cheap dehumidifier is a widow a/c and a plug in heater at the same time

  • @gauravkamble7949
    @gauravkamble79497 жыл бұрын

    Hi #bigclivedotcom. Warm regards to you from India. I am a huge fan of your channel. I am also a techie like you and like to explore things. Good work. Keep it up. Cheers..!!!

  • @MrMegaPussyPlayer
    @MrMegaPussyPlayer7 жыл бұрын

    It lasts up to 3 month in a 20m² room ... in places like death valley or Gobi desert.

  • @DeclanMBrennan
    @DeclanMBrennan4 жыл бұрын

    I've used this product for two years in a old cottage in Ireland prone to low levels of damp in a couple of locations. It performs surprisingly well considering it's entirely passive. I consider the environmental impact to be a lot lower than "proper" humidifiers- given that electricity has to be produced someplace and it only produces a liter of brine every two weeks or so. It's not going to be able to pull out the same amount of water as an electric humidifier but I wouldn't dismiss it out of hand for small applications.

  • @bigclivedotcom

    @bigclivedotcom

    4 жыл бұрын

    A desiccant drum dehumidifier here pulls out about 2 litres of water almost every day at an electricity cost of 40p per litre extracted. It keeps the humidity in this old bungalow down to about 65%. The unit also puts out a stream of warm dry air when it's running, which is offset against the heating costs of the place. So much more efficient and keeps the place dryer than a big overpriced block of dissolving salt.

  • @99nerka
    @99nerka7 жыл бұрын

    2 liters A DAY? Oo Man that is a lot, one of those standard small dehumidifiers with those crystals as you shown last me for like 2 months before it is full here in Poland.

  • @ossiebird0
    @ossiebird07 жыл бұрын

    Whoa! thought you were about to eat a cherry yogurt?

  • @justme7920
    @justme79204 жыл бұрын

    That round refill weighs what 500 grams or more? And you get a liter out of it? Sounds like a slow dissolving block of ice to me.

  • @ElectraFlarefire
    @ElectraFlarefire7 жыл бұрын

    Would never use one for a whole room, but I use them in dry boxes for 3d printing filament with great success(They settle at about 30-40% humidity @ 25-30c). And parents also use the big ones in the cupboards of their caravan to keep humidity down. In both cases fairly sealed ares. Parents get 3-4 months or so out of them. My fairly well sealed boxes last about a year or two, only when the box is opened does it let in humidity. (It''s typically 50-90% outside)

  • @MrRagingMammoth
    @MrRagingMammoth7 жыл бұрын

    I've got one in my room, it's a good bit of kit

  • @mbaker335
    @mbaker3357 жыл бұрын

    These are good for gun cabinets. Obviously do not knock them over but the UK is so wet you need to dehumidify even closed in spaces.

  • @danner253
    @danner2537 жыл бұрын

    you can get 2 of the membrane kind in Poundland for £1. I use them for my student accommodation bedroom as its small, and since opening the window too often freezes me out, I use it to help. Probably works out cheaper as it lasts around a month.

  • @BlackWolf42-
    @BlackWolf42-7 жыл бұрын

    calcium chloride is also used on the roads where it snows and the roads are prone to icing up. It's used when regular sodium chloride won't cut it.

  • @felixcat4346
    @felixcat43467 жыл бұрын

    The only practical application I could think of might me to use in the fridge. Food is susceptible to rot in wet environments despite a low temperature. I guess in a frost free unit it would be less useful.

  • @stefantrethan

    @stefantrethan

    7 жыл бұрын

    Any fridge will effectively condense the moisture by itself, it is a far better dehumidifier than this thing.

  • @andrewschannel3635
    @andrewschannel36357 жыл бұрын

    They do virtually nothing to reduce damp in anything bigger than a cupboard and the corrosive "water" will burn anything it comes into contact with including the chrome plug hole if you empty it down the sink.

  • @TheMajkla
    @TheMajkla7 жыл бұрын

    I've seen those unibond dehumidifiers and replacement fillings in Sainsburys tonight. They are pushing it as well.

  • @david197407
    @david1974077 жыл бұрын

    in a house where high humidity is a problems both of these types shown here are pretty useless as I've used both these types to very little affect, they might keep a window partly clear or clear it during a day but allow it to get soaked again overnight if they are placed on a windowsill but still leave a very high humidity level in the house, with the unibond ones in place when I bought an electric dehumidifier (bliss) from B & Q when I first plugged it in it was showing the humidity level in the house at 70% which shows you these other devices are doing very little for all they are dissolving away & collecting water, they are nowhere near good enough, at least with an electric unit once it's plugged in it may at first take a few days for it bring the moisture level under control & will need emptying very regularly but they can be set at the ideal level, got mine set at 50%, it has 3 settings, 40%, 50% & 60% & kept set at the 50% it controls the moisture level very well, no more problems

  • @tianxizheng6647
    @tianxizheng66477 жыл бұрын

    Does it unclog your drain when you pour it down?

  • @gary851
    @gary8517 жыл бұрын

    it work i have 130l aquarium in poorly ventilated room and my window was driping when outside temperature was below 0 i used it for last 3 months and it reduced window "sweeting" almost completly. i paid for mine 2$.

  • @AdrianCostea
    @AdrianCostea7 жыл бұрын

    Used a couple. the performance is quite over estimated on the box. Only good use of these is to use the plastic enclosure for your own DIY peltier dehumidifier.

  • @ZK-999
    @ZK-9997 жыл бұрын

    Good to know that this stuff is corrosiv to metal, I should throw out the old moisture absorber that spilled out behind my driving seat!

  • @uK8cvPAq
    @uK8cvPAq7 жыл бұрын

    I tried one of those unibond things, they do work fairly well but need the thing changing every few weeks in my experience.

  • @dacasman
    @dacasman7 жыл бұрын

    Both of these might be really good for a small boat cabin. or maybe a car that has some moisture in it.

  • @hafmaint7557
    @hafmaint75574 жыл бұрын

    I wouldn't use them in the house but i use 2 in my caravan over winter they do last about months and seem to work ok