How to Get Rid of Humidity in a Laundry Room?

A laundry room naturally produces a lot of moisture. Washing machines, dryers, wet clothes, and poor ventilation can quickly increase indoor humidity. If moisture has nowhere to escape, it may lead to condensation, musty odors, mold growth, peeling paint, and damage to walls or cabinets.

Fortunately, you can control laundry-room humidity by improving ventilation, reducing moisture sources, and using a properly sized dehumidifier when necessary.

Why Is My Laundry Room So Humid?

Before choosing a solution, identify where the moisture is coming from. Common causes include:

Drying wet clothes indoors

Poor ventilation

A ventless or poorly vented dryer

Leaking washing-machine hoses or plumbing

Warm, humid air entering from other parts of the house

Condensation around cold water pipes

A laundry room located in a basement or other naturally damp area

A combination of several factors can make humidity particularly difficult to control.

1. Improve Laundry Room Ventilation

Good ventilation is one of the simplest ways to remove moisture.

If your laundry room has an exhaust fan, run it while washing and drying clothes and continue running it for a short period afterward. The fan should discharge air outside the building, rather than into an attic, wall cavity, or other enclosed space.

You can also improve air circulation by:

Keeping the laundry-room door open when appropriate

Providing an under-door air gap or transfer grille

Using a circulation fan

Keeping air vents unobstructed

However, ventilation is less effective when outdoor air is already very humid. In humid climates, bringing large quantities of outdoor air indoors can actually increase the moisture load.

2. Check the Dryer Vent

A dryer is one of the most important potential moisture sources in a laundry room.

For a conventional vented dryer, inspect the exhaust duct regularly. A blocked or damaged duct can reduce drying efficiency and potentially release warm, moist air into the laundry room.

Check for:

Crushed or disconnected ductwork

Excessive lint accumulation

Damaged exterior vent covers

Air leaking from duct connections

Excessively long or restrictive duct runs

If the laundry room becomes extremely hot and humid whenever the dryer operates, the dryer exhaust system deserves particular attention.

3. Use a Dehumidifier

When ventilation alone cannot keep humidity under control, a laundry-room dehumidifier can provide continuous moisture removal.

A home dehumidifier works by drawing humid air over a cold coil. Water vapor condenses into liquid water, which is collected and drained away. The resulting drier air is returned to the room.

A dehumidifier can be particularly useful when:

The laundry room is in a basement.

You frequently dry clothes indoors.

The room has limited outdoor ventilation.

Outdoor humidity is consistently high.

Condensation regularly forms on walls or windows.

The room develops a musty smell.

For a typical residential laundry room, a compact portable dehumidifier may be sufficient. For larger laundry areas, shared utility rooms, apartment laundry facilities, or commercial laundry rooms, a dehumidifier for HVAC system may be more appropriate.

4. Choose the Right Dehumidifier Size

Do not select a dehumidifier based solely on the room's floor area.

Consider:

Laundry-room size

Initial relative humidity

Frequency of washing and drying

Whether clothes are air-dried indoors

Basement or ground-floor location

Outdoor climate

Ventilation rate

Number of people using the room

For example, a small laundry room used only for washing clothes may have a relatively modest moisture load. A larger room where multiple loads of wet clothes are routinely air-dried can require substantially more dehumidification.

For continuous operation, a model with automatic humidity control and continuous drainage is especially convenient.

5. Use Continuous Drainage

A laundry room can be an ideal location for a dehumidifier with a permanent drain connection.

Instead of repeatedly emptying a water tank, condensate can be discharged through a drain hose. If gravity drainage is unavailable, a condensate pump can be used where appropriate.

This is particularly useful if the dehumidifier needs to operate overnight or for extended periods.

6. Dry Clothes Properly

Air-drying wet clothes indoors can add a surprising amount of moisture to the room.

If possible:

Dry clothes outdoors.

Use a properly vented dryer.

Use a dedicated drying room with adequate ventilation.

Avoid hanging large amounts of wet laundry in a closed room.

Run a dehumidifier when indoor clothes drying is unavoidable.

If you regularly use the laundry room as a drying area, calculate the additional moisture load when selecting your dehumidifier.

7. Check for Water Leaks

Persistent humidity may not be caused by laundry activities alone.

Inspect:

Washing-machine supply hoses

Drain hoses

Faucets

Water shutoff valves

Floor drains

Nearby plumbing

Water heater connections

Walls and ceilings

Even a small leak can continuously introduce moisture and keep a laundry room humid.

If you discover standing water, wet building materials, or persistent moisture behind walls, address the water source before relying on a dehumidifier.

8. Seal Moisture Entry Points

If the laundry room is located in a basement, garage, or other humid part of the building, moisture may enter through the building envelope.

Check doors, windows, pipe penetrations, and other openings for air leakage.

Weatherstripping and appropriate sealing can reduce the amount of humid air entering the room. However, areas with significant water intrusion require a more comprehensive moisture-control solution.

What Humidity Should a Laundry Room Have?

A practical target for most homes is around 40–60% relative humidity (RH).

Keeping humidity below approximately 60% can help reduce conditions favorable to mold and musty odors, while excessively low humidity is generally unnecessary.

A digital hygrometer is an inexpensive way to monitor the room instead of guessing whether the air is too humid.

If the laundry room consistently remains above 60% RH despite normal ventilation, investigate the moisture source and consider dedicated dehumidification.

Best Way to Control Laundry Room Humidity

The most effective solution is usually a combination of measures:

Control the moisture source → improve ventilation → monitor RH → add dehumidification when necessary.

For example, a basement laundry room with frequent indoor clothes drying may benefit from a commercial-grade refrigerant dehumidifier with automatic humidity control and continuous drainage.

Final Takeaway

If you're wondering how to get rid of humidity in a laundry room, start by checking the dryer exhaust, plumbing, ventilation, and indoor clothes-drying practices. Then use a hygrometer to determine whether humidity remains consistently high.

When the moisture load exceeds what ventilation can handle, a properly sized dehumidifier provides a reliable way to remove excess moisture and maintain a more stable indoor environment.