I've aquired an electric tube heater rated at 100w ....the sort you sometmes see in public lavs.....leaving it on 24/7 in colder months shouldn't cost a fortune.
I’ve found it can be heavy breathing , as let’s face it we are inside and our windows can still steam up even in summer . If you can drive it that’s best . And a bit of vent .
I don't agree about covers being bad... Unless...there's water already holding up inside the vehicle already, its going to harder for it to escape by evaporation. I've had mine under cover and I always put a moisture trap in it but it never seems to soak much up. But I do regularly chuck a fan heater on for an hour or two ( sometimes over a week if I forget to turn the bugger off) and open the windows slightly whilst doing so to let any moisture escape . Seems to work for me?
When you're sleeping in it ...from your body... When your not in it from water that's collected somewhere it shouldn't or through vents and door / window seals that it shouldn't but does.. Condensation doesn't just 'happen' because its cold
I’m not saying these covers are bad especially the breathable ones, what I’m saying that for me if my van is covered I tend not to drive it so often cos i can’t be bothered to take the bloody thing off, I make sure I wash and anchor wax it and I stick the propex heater on when ever I’m out in it , also I’ve noticed since I put the van roof lining (stretch carpet) in I hardly get any condensation
When a heater is put in a van moisture evaporates but when the heater is turned off and the temperature drops the moisture held in the warm air condenses on cold surfaces.
OK, I see, So if you don't use it then no moisture or vapour is introduced and no condensation can happen. Use it, and breathing out will put moisture in the air. I'm thinking that super drying the interior air for hours using dry electric heat, with nobody sweating away inside, will dry out moisture from deep in the bits that get no air movement. And this would be a good thing for metal.
Condensation is directly linked to temperature. There is still a lot 'taught' that is wrong, but the basic science is that in a warm environment water molecules are moving faster, and therefore more of them escape the liquid phase into the air compared to those moving slowly and passing back into the liquid phase. As the temperature drops, they move more slowly and more water molecules move back into the liquid phase compared to the number 'escaping' into the gas phase in the air. So if you heat an area up, more of the water molecules will move into the air and, if you keep the temperature up, will stay in the air. When it cools more water molecules will convert back to liquid compared to those moving into the air, and you get condensation. In our vans therefore: If you put in a heater a greater proportion of any water will move into the air. It will stay in the air whilst the temperature stays up. But when you switch off the heater, the water will condense back into liquid. To eliminate the condensation you need to move the 'water laden' air out of the van by ventilation such that the warm air moves out the van replaced by cold air with less water in it. This is not easy to accomplish. Or you need to keep the air warm - ie keep the heater on. Or you need to remove the moisture from the warm air before it gets cold and condenses out. The best approach is to have a couple of decent dehumidifier tablet boxes, then warm the air up. The warm air 'collects' the water, and then passes through the dehumidifier which removes the water. Give this long enough and the warm air will get less and less humid as all the water in the van is slowly moved from liquid to in the air to into the dehumidifier. Put a cover over the van - this will keep the inside of the van warmer and reduce condensation. But if the cover lets the inside of the van temperature drop, then you will get condensation, unless you trap the moisture in a dehumidifier. To minimise condensation therefore you want to eliminate any damp from inside the van first, then get the air as cold as possible and remove any further condensation. Stick in a couple of dehumidifiers and cover the van - this should help regulate the temperature in the van so there are fewer cold to hot to cold cycles. ( and as you started with a cold air cold van there should be less water vapour present to start with ) Every nice warm day that you then open the van up introduces nice warm humid moisture carrying air into the van, ready to condense when it gets cold. And of course, fitting a cover will create condensation problems on the outside of the van as you have a different set of warm air/cold air/ external air and humidity conditions. So the cover can keep the inside cooler and dryer, but your gutters will fill with condensation and rust out. The answer is... There is no perfect answer. Keeping the van dry and cold is best. Always have dehumidifier blocks in the van. Remove the covers and use it - thats why we have them! Vaseline the gutters.
On the basis of what @ruby25 says, would running a electric dehumidifier be better than an electric heater ?
There very power hungry I’d say stopping any water ingress and cavity waxing is more important than running heaters and dehumidifiers. Also being parked on well draining ground with a decent air flow around the bus.
Dehumidifiers are more effective than heaters, as they actually remove moisture and it doesnt come back when it gets cold. But you dont need electric ones. Get down to Lakeland and get a couple of their big tablet based dehumidifiers - empty them out every couple of weeks ( on a cold dry day ) and you'll keep the van dry and mould free
I just know the lady in the chemist won’t believe me when I tell her why I want it. Definitely won’t be buying at the same time as my viagra ! Great answer though - thanks. Stirlingmoz
@ruby25 that was an excellent over view of condensation in buses and should be pinned somewhere for future reference. Really good explanation, making total sense. Warm air nice, world good, vapour disappears..., cold air horrible, damp forms on everything dripping like witches tits. probably saved me a tenner on buying an oil rad (might get one anyway to warm everything up a few hours before long winter journeys, for psychological and comfort, keep a rag on the dash)
Emptied a litre of water out of the dehumidifier in my van this morning. All windows and metalwork was completely dry. Dehumidifiers are the way to go if you want to remove moisture.
There's some on EBay/Amazon for well below £ 50 with good reviews....got to be cost effective compared to ones filled with silica gel or similar.
Covers are good. I can't get my head around why anyone would Vaseline the gutters. I always assumed that was a pi**take.
Tarpaulins or anything that is waterproof and non breathable is the worst thing you can cover your vehicle with! the only cover that I would use is a breathable water resistant cover(I have a stormforce cover that's been great) with the breathable water resistant covers if it rains heavy the cover will let in some water, but the important bit is that it will dry out again. So the best way to store your vehicle outside would be (in my opinion) a good quality water resistant breathable cover with a dehumidifier inside the vehicle that will turn itself on and off when needed, or at the very least some dessicant that you will need to renew quite often.
