When you look at the weather information on your mobile, you often see something like- ” Temperature- 28°C, Feels like 35 °C.” The feels-like temperature is affected mainly by factors like wind and dew point in the winters and humidity and amount of sunlight in the summers.”

Humidity is a key factor that makes you feel uncomfortable in the summers. Ideally, it should be between 30-50%. If not, it makes you sweaty, sticky and you feel hotter than it actually is. As a result, you may put your AC at a significantly lower temperature than what is necessary, in order to make yourself more comfortable. That is where Dry Mode becomes useful. Let us explore more about what dry mode is, how it works and whether you need an AC with dry mode.

What Is Dry Mode?

Dry mode is the function that helps remove excess moisture content in a room in order to make yourself more comfortable. When the humidity level is lowered, you don’t find the climate hotter than it actually is. As a result, you won’t be inclined to crank your AC temperature too low. Thus, it helps save electricity, improve the durability and the long term performance of the AC.

Dry Mode is a useful function during the monsoons when you want to remove the excess humidity indoors, which may damage your walls, furniture etc. Alternatively, a stand-alone dehumidifier also suffices.

Different manufacturers give different names to this function. Some call it dry mode, dry function, in-built dehumidifier etc. But, essentially, it all works the same.

How Does Dry Mode Work?

We understood that dry mode removes the humidity levels. But how does the AC achieve it? When the dry mode is invoked, the moist air passes through the cold evaporator and as a result, the moisture in the air condenses. This condensation is drawn out of the room through a pipe and dry, cold air is thrown back into the room.

In cool mode, which has a snowflake sign on the AC panel, the focus is on removing heat. In dry mode, signified on the AC panel with droplet sign, the focus is on removing humidity. So, when the AC is in dry mode, you won’t be able to adjust the fan speed.

Who Should Opt For AC with Dry Mode?

Fortunately, nowadays, most ACs come with dry mode. Whether it is a necessity or not, depends on where you live.

If you live in coastal areas like Chennai, Mumbai, Kerala, Goa, Vizag etc, where summers are hot and humid, then, putting the AC on the dry mode will not just make you comfortable, but also reduce energy costs.

If on the other hand, you live in cities like Bhopal, Delhi, Gurgaon or Ahmedabad, where summers are hot, but not humid, then dry mode is not a necessity for you.

Basically, if you feel like you feel sticky and sweaty during the summer, you need an AC with dry mode. But, if you feel like you are in an oven during the summer, then you don’t need dry mode.

Conclusion

Many functions you find on an AC are ignored or under-utilized by most people. Prominent among them is the dry mode function. When used correctly, it helps you feel more comfortable during the summers and also reduces energy costs.