Yes! Every pet grooming salon should have an air dehumidifier. Dehumidifiers will help with the wet dog smell, and it will make your business more appealing to pet owners who have a sensitivity to dander (which is a lot more people than you might think).
The other day, I was walking by a pet salon and had to stop. I couldn’t even see through the windows because there was so much condensation on them! It was a colder winter day and it’s days like that which give homeowners and business owners the opportunity to see if they have too high of an indoor humidity for free.
What do I mean by that? Well, condensation doesn’t accumulate on the windows of a building when it’s warm outside, it only happens when it’s cold.
But what’s so exciting about condensation? Well, condensation is a telltale sign of high levels of humidity. For me to be unable to even see inside the grooming salon, I can confidently say they had a super high humidity level.
What’s Bad About Having High Humidity in My Business?
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You might be thinking, “So, what? My air is humid. I work with hot water and steam all day, that’s what happens.”
Well, let me share some interesting facts about the drawbacks of having high levels of humidity in your business–especially when that business is a pet salon.
The Negative Impacts of High Humidity to Pet Salons
High Humidity Encourages Pests Like Fleas and Other Bugs to Move in.
Fleas, ticks, and other bugs like environments that have high humidity. They flourish in warm humid areas. By allowing your pet salon or pet shop to get really humid, you’re allowing those dangerous pests to breed.
Sciencing.com reports that the ideal humidity for a tick is 85%. Most pet salons will be about that humid, especially when you’re washing pets under that warm water.
But, there’s good news.
Ticks die when the humidity level drops beneath 80% for an extended period of time. Fleas die when humidity drops below 50%.
A dehumidifier is an amazing machine that can make your pet groomer a safer and healthier place for you, your customers, and your pets.
High Humidity Means More Smells and More Allergens.
Did you know that you can make your salon smell less like wet dog by buying a good dehumidifier? A surprisingly large amount of smells that we smell are carried through the air because of heightened levels of humidity. The more humid an area is, the more it might smell. Additionally, allergens like dander are a lot less likely to cause someone’s allergies to flare up if you keep humidity levels under 50%.
A dehumidifier can help to make your dog grooming business smell less like a dog cleaning business.
While many pet owners will be able to ignore the smells of your dog washing business, others may be unable to. That reason isn’t just because they don’t like the smell, but also because they might be allergic to the increased amount of dander in the air.
By having humid dander-filled air, you could be limiting your potential customer base without realizing it.
If you were to invest in a good dehumidifier, you could be putting yourself and your business ahead of the competition. You could give yourself a real edge that could help you make some more money to expand your business.
And all it takes is cleaner air.
High Humidity Encourages Fungus and Mold to Grow.
Few things can shut a business down as fast as mold and fungal takeovers.
Fungus and mold can release toxic spores and whatnot that can harm you, your customers, and the pets you’re cleaning and taking care of. Not only that, but the government is known to shut businesses down and condemn buildings because of mold!
Fungus and mold thrive in environments that have high humidity. “High” in this case is anything over 50%.
I’m sure you might be looking at 50% and thinking that that could be a real hard number to hit, but it’s actually a lot easier than you might think. Just one solid dehumidifier that’s able to keep up with your needs should be able to easily drop the humidity level in your business into the EPA recommended range of 30-50%.
Do I Really Need to Buy a Dehumidifier to Cut Down on My Pet Salon’s Humidity?
While there are ways to reduce humidity in indoor areas like a pet groomer, none of them will take care of the issue as effectively or as easily as a dehumidifier.
But, if you’d like to give those other options a shot, here’s a list of some ways to reduce humidity without a dehumidifier:
- Open up some windows and doors to lets the humid air out.
- Use exhaust fans.
- Get some humidity-absorbing plants (that could be fun!)
- Use cooler water to wash the pets.
- Get an Air Conditioner (they pull moisture out of the air).
- Get rid of your carpets and rugs (they hold onto moisture).
- Set out some charcoal (it pulls moisture out of the air).
- Find and fix any leaky pipes and faucets.
There are some other ways to reduce humidity, but they aren’t nearly as effective as just using a dehumidifier. Dehumidifiers are built to pull moisture out of the air, so they’re really, really good at it.
But you don’t have to buy some ten thousand dollar dehumidifier. You don’t necessarily even have to buy some thousand dollar commercial one, if you’re not ready for that. (Although it could be really nice to have, if you can afford it.)
You can start small, if you absolutely have to. You can pick up just one, or possibly several air dehumidifiers for under a hundred dollars that should last you a long time. However, I HIGHLY recommend that you select a dehumidifier that has some sort of filter or pre-filter because all the airborne pet hair will clog up your machine over time otherwise.
What Dehumidifier Should I Get for My Pet Grooming Business?
If you would like to start small and just test out how well dehumidifiers work, then there is a really small and affordable air dehumidifier that I’ve personally enjoyed a lot. It might get clogged up with pet hair after a while, since it doesn’t have an air filter, which isn’t great, but its price is pretty stinking good.
How good? Well, you should be able to pay for it with just one or two dog groomings.
This air purifier that I’ve enjoyed so much is made my a company called Aiho. They don’t make many dehumidifiers, but they should, because this one is really, really good. I’ve been using it for about two years now.
Here’s a shot of my Aiho dehumidifier beside a Keurig coffee maker for size reference. As you can see, it’s pretty small. But, despite that small size, it’s rated to take care of a room that’s 150 square feet!
Yes, I know, you’re shop is probably bigger than that. But, you’re just looking at this as an opportunity to dip your toe into the world of dehumidifiers. This isn’t a permanent fix, it’s just a test.
If you’d like to try out the Aiho dehumidifier, then you can pick it up on Amazon here.
Or, You Can Buy a More Permanent Air Dehumidifier for Your Pet Cleaning Business,
Now, if you’re looking for a more permanent solution for your dehumidifier needs, I’m sure you’re expecting to pay a lot of money.
Hundreds upon hundreds of dollars. Maybe even thousands! Billions, even! (Okay, that might be a bit much. Hahaha)
What if I told you that this next dehumidifier is actually not that bad? Odds are you could pay for it with just the profits of one day’s peak hours.
And on top of that, this dehumidifier is rated for rooms as large as 1,200 square feet. Odds are that your business is a lot closer to 1,200 square feet than it is 150!
This dehumidifier is pretty straightforward to use, in fact, you can even tell it how humid you want the air in your business to be, which is something that very few dehumidifiers can do at this price point.
On top of that, this air dehumidifier is Energy Star rated, so you don’t have to worry about wasting electricity.
This dehumidifier is also on wheels, so you can move it around your shop as needed. Nothing is worse than a stationary piece of machinery that just gathers dust and ruins your chances to move things around and redesign, so this dehumidifier can move with you!
Long story short, this dehumidifier is awesome.
Once again, it’s pretty affordable too. It’s a lot cheaper to buy this one unit than it would be to buy the 8 Aiho dehumidifiers to cover the same amount of area too.
If this sounds like a great dehumidifier for you and your business, then please check it out on the Sylvane store here.
Further Options for Dehumidifiers for Your Pet Grooming Business,
There are literally tons of dehumidifiers out there. Some are commercial dehumidifiers, some are made for basements, some are for homes. There are seemingly an endless amount of options for you to pick from.
But, not all of these options will be affordable.
Not all these options will be practical for you and your business.
And, quite frankly, some of the dehumidifiers out there are downright ugly, and no one wants an eye sore like that in their business.
As I did my research to find the best air dehumidifiers for pet groomers like you, I actually stumbled across a dehumidifier that was 12,000 dollars. 12,000! The craziest thing was that it wasn’t even that big!
To be honest, I’d love to get the affiliate commission for a 12,000 dollar dehumidifier, but I can’t recommend that you anyone. It’s not practical. On top of that, it wasn’t even the best machine out there, if I’m being completely honest.
If the two dehumidifiers that I recommended aren’t the right fit for you, then I won’t be offended if you decide to shop around. If you do decide to shop around, however, let me say a few more things first.
- Know about how big your business is. You don’t want to waste money and buy a dehumidifier for 4,800 square feet if your business is only 1,000.
- Check to see how much water the dehumidifier is supposed to take out of the air.
- See how easy the dehumidifier is to use.
- Make sure you can afford the price.
- Find a dehumidifier with a filter that you can clean or replace.
- You don’t have to buy a dehumidifier labeled “commercial” if you don’t want to.
Those are the 6 main things that I would look for, if I were in your shoes. Now, if you’d like to help me out, please be sure to shop for your dehumidifier via this link to Amazon to make your purchase. I get affiliate income if you do, and that helps me immensely.
Thank you so much for reading this article, and I hope it really helped you learn more about dehumidifiers and how they can help you and your business. I really enjoyed writing this one because it’s been on my mind nonstop for a couple of weeks now! Have a good one!
If you’d like to continue reading, I’ve got other pieces on dehumidifiers, which you can check out too!
How Do I Know if I Need a Dehumidifier or a Humidifier? | What’s the Right Humidity for My Home?
Does My Basement Need a Dehumidifier?
What is the Best Basement Dehumidifier?
My Aiho Dehumidifier | What I Love About this Dehumidifier and What Makes it the Best
