infernal, internal condensation

[austin]

Anybody have suggestions for reducing or eliminating condensation inside of our 19' Bambi? It seems that each trip so far has produced lots of condensation inside even with the windows cracked open and the top vent slightly ajar. Any and all suggestions greatly appreciated.

Austin

[A-Merry-Can]

Originally Posted by austin

Anybody have suggestions for reducing or eliminating condensation inside of our 19' Bambi? It seems that each trip so far has produced lots of condensation inside even with the windows cracked open and the top vent slightly ajar. Any and all suggestions greatly appreciated.

Austin

hey austin. welcome to the forums! there's a lot of threads talking about condensation issues. i've been noodling over how to address it in my 18 footer as well. with the temperature difference between the inside and outside, you get tht with aluminum. just like a beer can from the fridge.
believe
read this thread if you have time:
http://www.airforums.com/forum...mbi-17925.html

don's got a bambi, soming up with some innovative solutions to counter it a little. i don't think you'll ever totally get rid of it, though. if you do, tell us how you did it! ha!

jordan

[Darol Ingalls]

You have about three choices: 1) Don't cook anything, 2) Stop breathing, 3) get a bigger trailer so you have more interior air to absorb moisture. Some people swear that burning a candle helps, others have small 12v circulating fans to keep the air moving, but it's really the heat difference between outside and inside causes it. Darol

[2airishuman]

hi austin and welcome to airstreamin'....

kirkland....hmmmmmmm seems there was some event in detroit today?

my office used to be just to your south....while i lived west of the 520 bridge.

lots of info here on condensation inside the trailers....it's mostly hot air.


temp differential across the skin has very little to do with it...

and moisture inside, would still happen even if the skin temps were equalized...

basically each person inside the trailer produces 1-2 liters of water vapor each day....the water vapor goes into the air inside the trailer but eventually the air is fully saturated. the humid air inside leads to the water that reforms on solid and porous surfaces.... so yes one will find water condensed on windows, skin and metal bits...but water is also under the matress, inside the cabinets, along floor seams, and under/inside parts of the trailer.....imagine pouring 1-2 liters on the floor everyday.... or using a spray bottle to put that amt inside the trailer....every day....

that water takes a while and some effort to get out of the trailer....

this water needs to drain somewhere OR evaporate back into the air....and the air then needs to be exchanged for less humid air....from out of doors.

for smaller trailers the volume of air is smaller so air exchange needs to happen more often....

there should always be at least one roof vent open/on...and two is better.....

of course if it's cold outside and the heater is running that wastes a lot of heat....

so if closed up to save furnace heat.....

do these things..

1. always open/turn on, the stove exhaust when cooking, washing dishes, making coffee...during every kitchen activity.

2. always use the shower exhaust during....and afterward...till the shower walls are dry....

3. hang wet towels and wash cloths from the shower....OUTSIDE.

4. rotate the mattress everyday or better yet put another thin mattress under it...this one will take absorb most of the moisture....and then take it out side to dry....

5. open windows....even when it's raining lightly.....so air can slowly circulate with the out door world.

6. if bugs aren't an issue, open some lower outside storage door (for 1-2 hrs) that communicates with the inside....while you are venting....this will move air from low/high and out...

de-humidifiers don't help much....unless large and even then the water they catch needs to drain somewhere outside....and they need the capacity to remove 2 liters per day....that's a very large dehumidifier...for a house much less a trailer....

if 2 or more animals/people are sleeping inside each night......open windows and door, turn on exhaust fans and run them for 1-2 hours each day(1am-1pm) to remove the over night water....

good luck keeping dry...many people don't realize that dispite the reputation for rain....the air in the pacific north west drys out pretty fast when it's not coming down....


cheers
2air'

[Happycampers]

Hello.. We have been using this product and it works great.. Keep one in each closet .. it comes on a hanger.. and have found one that it a bit tablet that fits in a plastic container and the water collects below..Have used them in the Argosy with great effect.. especially the moisture in the front window.. no all is gone but a great deal is.. it can be found in Wal Mart in the cleaner aisle.. Hope that this helps.. Annie

[dwightdi]

Hot air holds alot more water than cold air. For each 15 degrees F rise, the capacity doubles. Any condensation in the inside of the trailer is caused when any surface is lower than the dew point. That is the temperature at which the air reaches 100 % saturation and the moisture starts to condense out. (The sweating cold beer can analogy.) If you do not want to have condensation, you must remove all cold surfaces or increase the surface temperature. Putting bubble film tightly inside the windows insulates them and will reduce condensation. The storage bins under the bed are not heated and if there is an outside door on them, cold air enters and cools the underside of the mattresses. Adding insulation to the storage compartments and better sealing the doors helps. Opening the interdoors of the cabinets will heat them and warm the underside of the mattress. Those 12 volt under mattress heaters are also great. Adding cool air from the outside and warming it, will decrease the percent of moisture in the air. Having alot of cold beer cans around and collecting the moisture off the bottom of them and disposing of it outside is an idea, but not very practical.

[Tim A.]

We have used our 2002 19' Bambi quite a bit in very cold weather and have been able to control condensation with the venting and use of shower and range hood exhaust fans as has already been suggested. Our trailer has the fuzzy interior covering which provides a nice insulation layer over the interior aluminum skin. That surely helps.

Keeping the thermostat at a higher level at night helps produce a passive chimney effect in through window(s) and out through the cracked-open ceiling vent. That air circulation is very helpful. Our Bambi has the water heater in the space under the bed which keeps that part heated, if the water heater is not turned off overnight. The higher thermostat setting and cycling water heater use more propane, but we think that beats having raindrops inside.

As an aside, we have also double glazed the non-opening parts of the windows and that reduces window condensation to almost nothing. We did that work ourselves, it is almost invisible, and also reduces sound transmission.

[Darrell Root]

Noticed the condensation thread,we have a 28' CCD and had some condensation problems. I happened to be working on a 50-60 foot hatteras boat and was surprised at how dry and undank (is that a real word) the boat was. To make a long story short they had small aluminum enclosed fans wit a heated coil that moved air while putting out about as much heat as a 100 watt bulb. I bought a couple at www.westmarine.com and they have worked for me. Darrell

[CaddyGrn]

Lots of good ideas here! I suggest following 2air's suggestions!

I have found it primary to have windows cracked and fans going. We used to have a sailboat and they have built in air vents that run between the outside hull and inside hull.... with holes that allow the inside moisture to travel to the outside. The marine stores have some nifty solutions. Westmarine listed above is a great resource. If you buy something at Westmarine ~ they stand by their products very well.

Let us know if you find a good solution for you!

Mrs. NorCal Bambi (traveling in S Tardis)

[ROBERTSUNRUS]

Hi, you have been given many usefull tips for reduceing condensation, But the best way to remove condensation is to turn on your airconditioner. You may notice that on your car when you turn on your defrosters / defoggers that the Airconditioner compressor also kicks on. The combination of heat from your heater and the air drying ability of you airconditioner working together clears the windows fairly rapidly. Depending on the weather, you might have to run the heater and A/C together.
Please note: all of that water running or dripping from your airconditioner is condensation / water removed from the air by your airconditioner's evaporator core.

Bob

[tin sista]

Originally Posted by Happycampers

Hello.. We have been using this product and it works great.. Keep one in each closet .. it comes on a hanger.. and have found one that it a bit tablet that fits in a plastic container and the water collects below.. Annie

Thanks for all the great info on this thread. We could not believe the amount of water in each damp rid container from just one month (August). My folks tried it too on their motorhome and were amazed at the difference. We really appreciate the info! Thanks Annie.

[silverleeper]

I use this item in both our trailers. Have a look here. Shop around though prices as always vary. Works the same as damp-rid without the mess.

[fr8tshaker]

silverleeper,
Would the 1000 model do the jobfor the interior and under the bed storage area? Would it be wise to get a smaller unit for the under the bed area? I have a 34' unit. Thanks for the info.

[Darrell Root]

Noticed this tread was back- one of the aluminum fans from West Marine started making a rubbing noise and they exchanged it with out a receit or hassle of any sort plus these devices just look like the should be in an AS due to there all aluminum construction. They also carry a full supply of Marinco products, Darrell

[tsunami]

Could you provde me with detailed information about the fan/heater. I went to the web site you recommended and they had quite a few fan/heater units. Thanks