| Author |
Message |
David & Lorna Schinske (Davidschinske) (64.24.236.126)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, December 18, 2002 - 12:11 pm: | |
Spent Turkey day with family in Va Beach. They were in a fifth wheel and ran a dehumidifier constantly (dumping a lot of water too). They said that they had really bad moisture problems and had previously (before getting the dehumidifier) had to throw away a pile of their clothes that were ruined by mildew & moisture while hanging in the back of the closet. I know the insulation leaves a lot to be desired (factory unit, etc), so don't tell me about that. What I want to know is whether anyone has problems with moisture and mildew in their well-insulated buses. We will be mostly in somewhat humid southeastern states (TN, NC, GA, AL). We plan on having a fan-forced vent in the bath and a fan-forced vent in the kitchen as well as having the range hood vent to the outside. With the extra bedroom, we are running very tight for space (David is now talking about slideouts as it will be a primary residence for him) and we can't just have a dehumidifier just sitting in an unused corner....because there's no such thing as an unused corner in our floor plans.
Lorna |
Lin (65.184.0.189)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, December 18, 2002 - 1:01 pm: | |
We had some small issues during the Central Coast California rainy season, but not much. Just in a deep storage area. I do not think that we needed a dehumidifyer. Are your friends using a catalytic heater? |
FAST FRED (209.26.115.216)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, December 18, 2002 - 3:14 pm: | |
Usually the need for air cond will dehumidify for free.
Its very seldom that you need to get rid of JUST water , but then a rooftop , could be rewired to blow cool air across a heating coil.
Wouldn't want to pay the electric bill for that one , but it IS what GM did for the Pax, 40 years ago..
The Air cond ran 100% (if it was working)and a seperate hot water radiator kept the interior temps fine , dehumidifying as it went.
Insulation is only of interest in heating/cooling , air circulation is the thing for lower interior humidity.
FAST FRED |
dougwoodin (24.170.175.44)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, December 18, 2002 - 5:20 pm: | |
We live in NE Fl., and the humitity is high here most of the year. In cold weather, the bus is sitting in the sun, and is warm inside due to the solar heating. The outside temp is much colder, so moisture forms on the windows inside. This moisture will cause mildew if not removed. I installed a dehumidifer in a closet, with the drain tube just dumping on the ground. It works great, doesn't take up that much space, and keeps things fresh in the closed up coach.Spray a little Fabrease around and everything smells and looks great even after months of being closed up. |
Tom Caffrey (Pvcces) (64.114.233.93)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, December 18, 2002 - 9:21 pm: | |
Lorna, one other thing. During your visit, the moisture added to the air likely would have spiked, because you two would have been adding the moisture you produce to theirs.
We have some apartments in Alaska that are in a half basement. When it is warm outside, the humidity is high inside, even if there is only one person living in them. When more are there, it increases dramatically.
We run a dehumidifier during the mild months and from that, we know that each person produces about a half gallon per day of water in respiration and perspiration. Cooking and showers increase the amount.
When the weather turns cold, moisture naturally forms on the windows, but as it turns even colder, the air turnover increases, as well. If the temperature drops to zero, the turnover takes enough moisture out of the apartment to cause the windows to dry up, if the cooking and bathing load are not very great.
When it's like that, the dehumidifier will not pull any moisture from the air at all.
The humidity problem depends all the conditions. Moisture in the outdoor air, the indoor air and moisture production indoors. If a bus or trailer does not exchange enough air to a drier outside, you will need some other means of removing it.
If you have an indoor temperature of about 70, you will need to have the indoor humidity down to about 50% to prevent condensation from forming on a surface that is below 50 or so. In the case of single glass, that might mean an air temp outside of 30.
Sorry about the long post; I hope it gives you something more to go on.
Tom Caffrey PD4106-2576
Suncatcher |
R.C.Bishop (128.123.221.192)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, December 19, 2002 - 1:52 pm: | |
Wonder what effect elastomeric roof coating (Kool-Seal and others) has on interior condensation?
We are using cork tape on on the spars and direct contact surface. When I took off the inside skin that is what had been used by Crown when the coach was manufactured. Very little stained and rotted material came out.
Expense was not great to use it again, and it comes in various thicknesses and widths. Contact Heather at Pres-On Tape and Gasket Co. 800 323-7467, ext 13. Very helpful and quiick service.. Don't have a website address.
RCB |
Pete (152.163.188.227)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, December 19, 2002 - 6:32 pm: | |
No Elastomeric roof coating will do anything for the condentation other then possibly build it up cause there is no breathing. Being a sealant it would keep any humidity and or condensation in...I would not do it.
pete |
rodger (216.170.203.130)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, December 21, 2002 - 2:55 pm: | |
My experience with boats, a motorhome and a bus has taught me that good ventilation is the first line of defense against condensation problems.
In the bus, except in temps well below freezing, I keep the roof vents cracked open. When showering or cooking, the appropriate roof vent is always opened with the fan operating on exhaust.
Our heat sources are roof air heat strips, small ceramic/electric heaters and when it's really cold out, on the road or when conserving electrical draw, we use the Webasto diesel/hotwater forced air system.
The roof vents have Maxxair covers. When the bus is parked and not on use, I keep the roof vents opened slightly.
I've never had serious problems with condensation. |
TomNPat (66.82.9.24)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, December 22, 2002 - 1:28 am: | |
Rodger makes a very valid point. When we were building our house, the sheet rock finishing put gallons on water into the house. I wanted to heat it to dry it. The sheet rock guy said fine, but keep the windows open also because ventilation was more important than temperature and he was right.
We tend to lock up our rv's when the temperature drops and that limits the loss of water through ventilation. Use a little extra heat but allow for fresh air, reduces condensation, improves comfort & health.
Our trailers had a bigger problem with condensation than the bus, but they had the pieced aluminum siding. I think the moisture can get in easier than in a bus. When they were damp, they seemed even colder, taking more heat, closing down all vents, having the water really run down the windows! Keep the back vent cracked all the time in the bus and don't have a problem.
Tom |
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