Inside a USB dehumidifier unit and "boosting" it.
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 12 พ.ค. 2024
- This unit is intended for keeping small enclosed spaces dry by using silica gel desiccant to adsorb moisture on its surface, and then liberate it again when the unit is plugged into a USB power supply to power a small internal heater that drives the moisture out into the room.
Contrary to the instructions in the listing, the unit should not be left plugged in constantly, as that will just be a heater, and not a dehumidifier. Although, that could be useful in some applications.
The insides were slightly underwhelming in the construction and lack of desiccant, but that has now been corrected and is currently under test.
Test results so far:- The original 16 gram bag has adsorbed a pathetic 1g (1ml) of moisture.
The new fill has adsorbed 17g (17ml) so far. I've still to test its self-drying ability when plugged into a USB power supply.
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
This also keeps the channel independent of TH-cam's algorithm quirks, allowing it to be a bit more dangerous and naughty.
#ElectronicsCreators - วิทยาศาสตร์และเทคโนโลยี
Massive factories creating and shipping landfill and ocean debris.
Very true. Makes you wonder what percentage of this stuff goes in the bin within 6 months.
Just wait. China's economy is in the toilet, and they're manufacturing all sorts of cheap crap to export to try to boost their economy.
Clive is going to have a field day, lol...
You mean “Chineseum crap” factory’s
We need to update the tired old cliché, "Where there's muck, there's brass" to something like "Where there's muck, there's a grubby, kneeling capitalist licking it, desperately seeking a profit."
While riding the "we're a developing country" gravy train so they don't have to be held accountable for anything.
When you drop small items and can't find them, put your flashlight down on the ground and shine it parallel across the floor - everything will throw a huge shadow that way. Including the dirt, lol.
Friggin genius over here 🔥
yes i can find that screw that went into the shadow realm
I use this trick but with a laser pointer like you would use to play with pets.
I often find myself working with small fasteners in my projects and this trick has saved me countless times over the years.
OG stoner trick for dropped buds & other uhh.. substances😂
Keen
Finally! I've been searching everywhere for a "pine pine, sunlioht flavor!" that "can be used in a scene."
Me too, I've just been waiting for one that manages to call me an idiot at the same time. Order placed!
I love how you manually calculated the power on the pink calculator even tho your power analyzer does display real time wattage in the bottom right corner
Us older guys will never get used to such ease... and we'll continue to do it the old fashioned way. 🤪
Mmmm, sunlight flavored. My favorite!
I'm more a fan of moonlight, but each to their own 😂
I like twilight personally something magical about twilight
Moonlight is just Diet Sunlight, and Twilight is Half & Half.
Mmmm... nuclear fission is so fizzy/spicy/hot/tasty!
I like the taste of fused helium in the morning
'Can be used in a scene', how useful.
Thrown on to the floor for dramatic effect maybe :D
@@SubpotentMilk 🤣
The wonders of CNC machining of injection molds - can produce perfect seamless joints and tabs that are easy to assemble and a nightmare to disassemble.
Every time I watch one of Clive's videos, I find my eyes focusing on the wavy mark left on the bench by the Temu plastic welder. Do other followers of BigClive find the same, or is it just me?
just you
@@logothaironsides2942 And me
Same lol
A gentleman of refined taste are you, Sir.
That squiggle is just as much a part of this channel as "one moment please."
A silica gel containment pie dish is desperately required on this video!
I use this type of spudger on TV remotes on a regular basis, that first bend that won’t spring back is the worst.
I've got exactly that spudger too. I never figured out what that cross on the back was for, though 🤔
Since I live in a single canopy rain forest in eastern Oklahoma, USA, I just purchase pounds of wheat chaff to absorb excess moisture in my home. Not only is it cheaper than silica gel, it also makes wonderful compost for my garden.
Great info! Now I know! Is it efficient?
@@syazwantheboogies8616 It is very efficient but it is one time use only.
Nice. I wonder how well rice hulls would work in comparison? Please let me know if you have any idea.
I ask because I can get rice hulls for free and they are pretty good in the compost too.
Yeah and try not to get it on yr skin as it itches like f---.
There's this cheaper stuff, maybe calcium something. The Japanese use it for de-icing their roads. It's another one but far cheaper than silica gel. Another one is RICE, preferably jasmine rice because the skin is broken.
"This is very ungenerous, they could have done better than this"
This feels like a very familiar sentiment from your channel.
"Dum Hong Kee" indeed 😂😂😂
ThatsRacist.gif
Finally!A product with my name on it! .oh wait..
That was lost on me
Ho Lee Kow!
@@Praecantetia It's an old American slur (a Honky/Honkee/Honkie is an offensive term originally used against white people by Black Americans).
i got a pack of similar dehumidifiers from Costco, but they actually worked. they used regular 110vac plugs to heat up and dry the gel, and the instructions were extremely clear to only leave them plugged in outside (on a dry day) for no more than 4 hours. from what i could tell, the dryer function was just a coil with no thermal shutoff or anything fancy. i had two in my basement to help keep it below 40% humidity, as my regular compressor style dehumidifier could only get down to around 50%
how you know it worked? a normal temperature it can absorb a couple of grams of water. It's can be dedetected in a soebox. Not ina room.And if room isn'completely closed, humidity would just enter it. Silica gel is meant for reducint moisture dew inside of enclosures when temperatue swings up and down. We have some hardware thaat uses that.. there are literal bags of it, 2-3 kg of these beads inside of casing about 1 cubic meter.
@@EllAntaresI doubt they can dry much more than a large closet
Hmm, my regular freon dehumidifier can drop my basement to below 35% if I set it to C.O. (constant on). Perhaps you need a new dehumidifier.
Needs the kink palculator when the tester already has watts on the screen :-)
I keep forgetting that it displays watts.
@@bigclivedotcomsurely you haven't forgotten your 3, and 5 times tables either!? 😮😅😊
Real men don't think! That's what computers are for!
@@keithcarpenter5254 Fast-forward to current day, the US no longer teaches the "times tables" in most schools because (something about math being r@ci$t).
Oh thank goodness I can use it in a "scene" I was worried I was gonna have to have digitally removed from my movie and all the actors that really great job and that take.
The heater looks like those old "Signal Enhancer" antenna stickers they used to sell for cellphones...just hook a couple wires from an old USB cord and TADA!
You could also get two of these to stick into your shoes/boots to dry them out with the heater function :)
Also looks like a giant strain gauge.
I'm glad that I have a 3D printer that lets me make my own plastic boxes in the perfect size/shape for the bulk beads.
Yep, that works! Low tech solution for those without a 3D printer: put them in a linen bag!
Clive said "one…" @2:00 and stopped talking for a couple of seconds. My brain was expecting "…moment please". It messed with me when he didn't say it. 😂😂😂
Looks perfect to fit alongside a roll of 3d filament.
It's a bit small, but could be useful to put in the middle of the roll in a sealed bag.
wy tho.
Is ABS fillament prone to moisture damage?
Lots of filaments are prone to moisture. Even PLA
@@NinoJoelno but pla type yes
TPU prints certainly suffer if the reel isn't dry, here's a photo showing two prints from the same reel of transparent TPU, guess which one was printed after the reel was dried for the first time www.haku.co.uk/pics/WetAndDryTPU.jpg
You can hear tiny popping sounds coming from the nozzle as the moisture in the filament turns to steam, creating tiny bubbles in the print.
Very glad you can use it in a scene though.
This is like watching air dry. Oh, and... First! Already feeling the benefits of premium membership 😅
Its bouncy because its dry. Put it together wet to also allow for a volume change.
I guess it would better to just buy a bag of rice and turn it into a modern art conversation piece by slapping it on the livingroom table.
And on the plus side, the silica gel in the little window appeared pink.......😊
If it's the same as the one I mention in my comment: The beads turn blue as they absorb more moisture, and this is used as an indication of when to „recharge“ (Heat to dry out again) them. 😇
@@dieseldragon6756 the dehumidifier I have reverses those colours: blue when dry, pink when saturated.
@@ElukeNL Mine might work that way, too. When I disassembled it the indicator beads (Which are standard Silica treated with a moisture activated chemical) got mixed up with the non-indicator ones, and I just put them all back in together. I knew they were pink and blue, but couldn't remember which indicated what. 😇
Thanks
3:22 No need to be defensive with your spudger, Big Clive! They are consumables.
The cool trick of localizing silica gel beads on the floor deserves a (short) video demonstration. It will probably even work with the smartphone LED light.
They just light up like a reflector.
That's sod all silica gel! I bought a 2kg tub of colour changing silica gel beads for keeping my 3D printer filament reels dry. I put some of the silica gel beads in short lengths of plastic pipe with TPU printed end caps which have a mesh pattern in them, all stored in large air tight tubs, works well.
What's really amazing is how strong the genuine iSesame is compared to the eBay or Amazon ones .
Microwaving the gel works well
the suspense is KILLING me!!!!
Not going to lie, with the "boost" in the title, I was expecting to see how that little "PTC" element fared at twice the voltage. Or 10 times. Or 20........😅😅
Properly made hot glue guns have PTC heaters. I have one with an NTC element that's rated 100-240v. I've only tried it on 120v but I'd like to make a video seeing how it reacts to 240v.
Thanks Clive, i bet i forgot to come back and check how much it absorbed
Usually when I stumble upon a tight clip like that, I used a flat head screwdriver. I can't stand watching you torturing your thin spudger like that 😂
Thanks :)
this actually is quite a useful unit, once you cram a ton of additional dehumidifying beads into it. Its been a while since you have used Refrigerator Ionizers...there has to be NEW designs. These Ionizers I find are actually useful, even more useful when you bump them up with a higher capacity battery!!
Awesome Video Big Clive🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂
Clive, you're such an optimist. 😂😂😂
7 pounds fifty nine for 16 grams of dessicant seems a high price. I hope the table can be turned on it. Thank you, keep working.
Just found Big Clive...that voice should be reading the news on tv...." one moment PLEASE"...lol..apart from that interesting videos thanks Clive,
Hrmm, a fan on the back of it, with a toggle for the heater, and you could probably make it far more efficient.
Though, at that point you'd be better off getting a case with proper hole for the fan and a PTC thermistor heater-and then stuffing the thing full of silica gel.
I actually use the shorter spudger for the extra tight clips. Something about it seems to make it a bit easier compared to the long one.
I can't imagine this being very efficient. If you have a bigger dehumidifier, it might catch 1 liter every couple days and I don't see that much water fit in some silica gel. Heating it up would just release the water again, so you'd need to lay it somewhere and then plug it in outside every day.
That is THE pinkest calculator i've ever seen.
Cut-away to tom scott saying, "I can't show you how pink this is"
Anybody else read that thumbnail as "Uber dryer"?
I would be interested what happens if you plug in a 12V power supply (which, by the looks, can be plugged in accidentally (5mm barrel jack ?)) .. being a plain old resistor, will it catch fire and burn down your closet ?
*MOAR POWER* *_HAR HAR HAR!!_* 🔌⚡💥🔥🥴 _Tim Allen reference_
Is saturated silica gel electrically conductive? If so it might be a good idea to bung a bit of kapton tape and/or heat shrink over the exposed solder joints on the jack socket & resistive element.
It will be slightly, but any current flowing through it will warm and dry it so it will be self-limiting.
It's not very conductive. I tested that in the past.
These types of dehumidifier are basically just portable water storage devices to just move the moisture around your house. It absorbed in the cupboard then you take it out and dry it in the kitchen releasing the moisture into there. I'm sure it would be as effective to either add some vents to the cupboard and/or have a low speed fan to circulate the air with the rest of the house. If you really want to remove the water you need a condensing dehumidifier.
I keep my usb's dry, so I don't have to use a dehumidifier...
this bad boy can fit some many silica beads
Looks like something you could put in a shoe box to keep a low RH storage box maybe 🤔😎👍
I used these in my 75 rifle gun safe just was a hassle I now what is called a goldenrod low wattage heater that keeps the humidity away I wonder if something like this could be powered on constantly keeps the beads recharging and pulls moisture out of the safe. Its 5 foot tall by about 3 foot wide and a bit over 2 1/2 feet deep .
Also "very ungenerous" is a lot nicer way of saying what I was thinking about fresh "humid" water buffalo excrement in a box with misspelled words. The mark of the best the consumer electronics sector has to offer.
We need a collab with electroboom!
Pink calc power 💪🏽❤️
Dum Hong Kee = click bait? I was SOOOO hoping that was real.
Sum Ting Wong! 💯
Can be used in a scene. A crime scene? What are you doing? I'm dehumidifying the crime scene! 😮 Great video. Good modification too. Glad the silica gel didn't cause a mess. 🤗
I use an air fryer on the lowest setting to dry silica gel, seems to be quite efficient.
I wonder how many people have gotten this thing and then plugged it in in the place they're trying to dehumidify and ended up making it more humid
This is a new take on an *old* old idea: A few years ago I grabbed a very similar device from our WEEE bin because I was curious, and inside it was just silica gel beads (Though filled to the brim) surrounding a very simple graphite-looking heater attached to an aluminium plate. The only difference between that and this was mine had more beads, no sachet, and was „recharged“ using the mains, rather than a USB cable. 🔌
Things like this have been advertised in tat mags for years, normally as „electric dehumidifiers“ and suchlike, and tend to be played-up in a similar manner to many „Super“ ceramic heaters. These *will* absorb and remove moisture of course...But when you „recharge“ them they'll simply release that moisture back into wherever it is you're charging it! 😉
As for the one I grabbed? After removing all the dodgy-looking electrickery bits from it I put it back together and then sited it on my west-facing windowsill where it can be warmed by the afternoon sun. It's now doing good duty as a _passive_ dehumidifier which absorbs night moisture and holds it until the warmest part of the day, similar in a way to how storage heaters work. ☀
The best bit of all? It costs nothing to run at all. I haven't even needed to touch it in over four years, it just keeps on working! 👍
I suspect the heater will exhibit a positive temperature coefficient of resistance with respect to temperature.
You could try heating it up as you measure the resistance with a four-wire setup.
Maybe it eventually reaches a stable temperature at 5V.
a small spoon might help transfer the silica gel beads into the unit. yes 17 grams of water is a great improvement.
over 1 gram. does it function properly to regenerate the silica gel? or is it too low of a heat to efficiently regenerate
the silica gel? nice video interesting presentation.
The bags prevent water from going everywhere when the silica is fully saturated. If you leave this unattended and it dehumidifies as much as it can, the water will leak out. If you leave it powered on, the water will be re-evaporated into the air. Maybe another option is to put the usb element into a larger silica dehumidifier that has a water reservoir.
With how small the heating element is, not sure if this will ever be fully dry or primed when it's packed to the brim.
Ahhhhh,
No schematic 😥😞
Thanks Clive 👍🏻🤝🏻😊
It's probably supposed to prevent moisture damage of pharaoh's coffin laptop.
"Pine Pine, sunlioht Flavor:"
I was waiting for the schematic for this one. Looked a bit complicated. 😂😂
LOL!
Big bags of silica gel pellets that you microwave or otherwise heat to dry are pretty common, cheap, and contain a lot more gel than this little nonsense housing. I keep 4 of them in my gun safe, then I have smaller tins that appear about that size (though seem much more full and certainly don't have a built in heater) for ammo cans.
I've switched to activated alumina (~20% activated alumina vs. ~3% for silica gel (by weight)), mainly because the alumina requires less frequent recharging.
I haven't enjoyed a nice pine pine sunlioht flavor dehumidifier since I was a kid at my grandparents' farm. Of course even if they did put in the effort to be a faithful recreation, which is doubtful given the number of big name companies found to be using the run of the mill floor sweepings monstrosities, you just can't beat a freshly wrangled nice and lean pine pine painstakingly grown in real sunioht then hand soldered with a love only the best of grandmas can achieve.
Might ok for shoe warmers. Put the metal under the insoles and run them to a large battery pack. Keep the toesees toasty.
I guess something like this could be put in a preserving jar with something that's to be dried out or kept dry - if the heater works it would save putting the oven on to regenerate the silica gell - so the concept might be valid...
I was so waiting for the bag to get placed on top.
Easy to seal, avoid mess.. and, well... LAZY.
Probably would work just about as good to be honest.
That cable looks awfully like a cable i got with some clock kits, which i attempted to repurpose before figuring out it was only 7 strands of aluminum inside.,
To fill it with silica could you put the two halves into the bag of beads and then close the two halves together, thus trapping a full load in there without the mess of pouring and drilling?
It would be interesting see how hot is gets, and maybe overvolt it
Might have been interesting to know what temp the little heater could reach.
My my compressor + sorption dehumidifier uses 600w when it is running and the room I use it in is 9 m3 large and it take all day to remove the moisture down to comfortable level, this thing will barely make any difference in any room larger then a shoebox...
As others said isn't this totatlly pointless without a reservoir to collect the water and not heating after the bag is dry?
A heating element and desiccant? I'm not clear on the theory of operation if the heating element is always on.
If the tale was made now. Jack would be buying a chinese device rather than magic beans
Without airflow, does this really do anything beyond the direct heat? I'm pretty sure silica is a phenomenal heat barrier and would work poorly with a weak heat element.
it would probably work better with clay desiccant since the clay can be heated to ~245 degrees fahrenheit to re-activate. Not really sure how well silica gel can be re-activated even under ideal conditions. (clive probably already discussed this, classic comment before watching behavior)
6:40 Because it’s happy to see Big Clive?
I wonder what's up that black "artsy" font a lot of china sellers use
Pink silica gel in the little window means it's the cobalt chloride flavour stuff, which is banned in the EU (and jurisdictions with a history of alignment with EU regs)
I'm confused. If the silica absorbs the moisture, what is the point of the heater? It sounds like the point of the heat is to dry out the silica so it can dry out and absorb moisture again. Though, quick searching makes it seem like you have to heat it to like 250F. In an enclosed space, I don't get how heating the silica is supposed to improve moisture absorption in that space.
Handy for de-sweatifying boots if you bought a pair of them I suppose, might smell a bit after a while though for those who don't know the boric acid treatment trick... :P
The other Boost it could use is getting a better heater unit, maybe a power controller and PD power
Moisture can emit from the ground through cement.
and now I wonder just how many spudgers Clive keeps on hand.
That's not much smaller than the ones that plug into 110 or 220 sockets. So you might as well get those. They'll work so much better.
Those real units really do work. I keep one in the plastic box I put my 3d printer filament into, and when I open the lid, I can FEEL how much dryer the air in there is. It's actually kind of weird to have such a difference in humidity like that.
You should have put the 2 open halves into the bag and snapped them closed again :p Full to the gunnels then lol
We need a silica gel that's safe to eat.
Does silica gel expand as it absorbs water? Packing it full may test how well those clips hold if they do expand.
Whats better than Silica is activated alumina. Plus, alumina isnt toxic.
There's a whitepaper by slice engineering that talks about it.
I prefer sunliot flavour - moonlicked flavour gave me gout.
Once it gets moist, won't it expand and eventually pop that thing open ?