[emdashcomma]

I noticed a dehumidifier in the basement of the house I moved into. I did a search for the model number - looking for a manual - and found out it was recalled. Same thing - fire risk.

It's really unfortunate because I had a home inspection done after I moved in and part of that is I get an email every month about anything in the home being recalled and that wasn't part of it. Good thing I happened to search for that manual that day. I was able to get a partial refund on the thing, though, so that's good (it was quite old). It seemed to have been in a "fan" mode, not running as a dehumidifier (water tank was empty).

[sokoloff]

"Fan mode" in an old dehumidifier usually means that the refrigeration charge has been lost.

They (almost universally) do not have service ports, but you can charge them using a bullet piercing valve (search for Supco BPV31) and restore functionality.

[jandrese]

Of course if it is prone to catching fire randomly it would make more sense to take the rebate and buy a good one instead of trying to recharge the old leaky fire hazard.