Friday, August 20, 2021

Reddy for a Dehumidifier – August 5, 1951

Since our pal Reddy Kilowatt’s appearances in the Lorain Journal were pretty scarce by the 1970s, I’ve had to reach back a few decades to continue to feature his ads on this blog.

This ad ran in the Journal on August 5, 1951 – a mere 70 years ago. But the message is still pretty timely, with the subject being avoiding mold and mildew by utilizing a dehumidifier.

What I like about the ad is the dehumidifier’s design. It appears to be the size of a tall wastebasket. The ones that I’m familiar with (the square ones) have always seemingly weighed a ton, making it hard to transport without risking a hernia. 

Reddy’s pretty loyal when it comes to brands. I’ve seen Frigidaire products featured in Ohio Edison (or its predecessor) ads going back to the 1920s. Maybe it’s because Frigidaire was a division of General Motors with its manufacturing and assembly plants located in or near Dayton, Ohio. The OhioMemory.org website says that the company was the world's largest producer of electric refrigeration equipment.

But this product wasn’t cheap. At $149.75, it would cost $1,564.86 in today’s inflated greenbacks.

2 comments:

Harrison Baumbaugh said...

This is interesting as today you can buy a 30 pint dehumidifier from china for $159.00.This is today an incredible price if you need the product to dry your basement.

Aaron said...

Can confirm, had to replace my dehumidifier in my basement, it is a 30 pint and was about $160 from Lowes. It has a digital humidity readout and pulls a lot more water out the air than the Whirlpool I had before that quit working after 10 years. 90 year old homes don't have naturally dry basements.