Fire; image courtesy of Hans via Pixabay, www.pixabay.com

Consumers beware. Earlier this week, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission issued a recall for about 2.4 million dehumidifiers manufactured under 20 different brands over worries they might overheat and catch fire. The affected products were sold nationwide, and according to the notice, the dehumidifiers have overheated or caught fire “more than 100 times, causing about $17 million in property damage.”When commenting on the recall, New Widetech, a manufacturer in China, said “it is aware of 107 incidents where the dehumidifiers overheated and/or caught fire, resulting in about $17 million in property damage.” Fortunately, no injuries have been reported. The affected products were sold for between $120 and $430 at Costco, Menards, Walmart, and Lowe’s stores from February 2009 to August 2017 under the following brand names: AeonAir, Danby, Friedrich, and Whirlpool. A complete list of the recalled model numbers can be found here.For now, consumers who have the recalled dehumidifiers should discontinue using them and contact the company for a refund. If you have additional questions or concerns about the recall, contact New Widetech at (877) 251-1512.

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More than 2 million dehumidifiers recalled after $17 million in fire damageDehumidifiers sold at Walmart, Lowe’s, Costco recalled after causing $17M in fire damage