[jeff5may]

The above example is a plug-and-play, off-the shelf example of a dessicant-wheel-powered dehumidifier. From the specs, it is said that the heater used to regenerate the wheel uses 200W, 400W, 600W on lo, med, hi settings respectively. So the vast majority of energy this unit consumes is used to recharge the wheel. Of the 615 rated Watts on Hi, only 15 or so Watts is used by the blower.

What I found VERY interesting about the unit is the relatively low discharge temperatures cited. The manual says 105 to 120 degF discharge temps are typical with 83 to 86 degF ambient. This is well within the range of even "crude" solar collectors. So with a 30-ish degree delta T on the supply air side, a hacked unit such as this could be made to use only fan power to do its job with not that much additional thermal sun power. It could easily be made to slow down or stop as sun exposure faded in and out.