Moisture trap, dehumidifier over winter ?
Thinking of using one of these over winter.If anyone has used either one their comments would be helpful. Van batteries are kept charged via solar panel which also seems adequate to keep the alarm on whilst parked up. Am leaning towards a moisture trap which I will be able to empty as van is on the drive as I do not plug into mains electric at present. Any suggestions ?
Comments
-
We use a few moisture traps in our caravan over winter as our caravan is in storage. We have a couple of large traps plus small ones in cupboards. We check them every couple of weeks. They do collect water (quite a lot with all the damp weather recently)
and we have never had any mould or damp inside the van. Not sure if it's the moisture traps helping as van would get moisture in from circulating air anyway, but we feel it must be doing something, so it makes us feel better!0 -
I think you’ve got that exactly right, heddlo. I think that moisture traps will collect vapour from the surrounding air, only to be replaced by more (moister) air from the atmosphere. If your van was a sealed tin, it would be different, but it isn’t. The
air in the surrounding area might be marginally drier but that’s all. It may instill a regime of regular inspections, to remove and replace, which can’t be a bad thing. For an easier life, I simply allow good ventilation everywhere and that’s been good enough
for over 40 years.0 -
We've never used moisture traps or dehumidifiers or heaters and have never had a problem, apart from one year when the fridge didn't get cleaned properly before layup
and we got a little bit of mould on one shelf.We always remove bedding, soft furnishings etc and leave the vent above the shower open though and cupboard and fridge doors cracked to allow some air circulation.
0 -
I use one because it was cheap when I bought it quite a long time ago, just really to see if it would make a difference.
And it did in our Coachman during the early years of this century, needing to be emptied of about a pint of water every 2 weeks. Same with the Avondale that we had from 2005 to 2009.
But in our current Lunar Quasar, I get about a pint of water in the trap throughout the whole winter.
So I can only conclude that it depends on the caravan. Seems like some are a bit more prone to damp than others.
But for the cost of a very large bag of chemicals (which I bought from a certain unique large retailers complex in Cornwall - yes that one!) is so cheap that the bag I bought in summer 2013 is still almost full.
So if in doubt, for the tiny cost, it might be worthwhile.Get one!
0 -
I undestand that the air inside a well ventilated van will always 'assume' the moisture content of the air which circulates in. A scientific fact, the equilibriam will always be maintained. The only way a moisture trap would make a significant difference
would be if the van was a completely sealed environment.0 -
Physics does not support the idea but we did it anyway (and me an engineer by profession)!
0 -
uncooked rice does the same job and cheaper, when wet put it in the microwave to dry it out and re-use
Write your comments here...I used to work in the Computer industry, when new mainframe computers came in from America or Japan they were always packed with large silica gel cloth bags, to stop moisture forming on the electronics during transit, on installation all of the packaging and these bags were dumped.Except on installations I was involved in.....I put the word around that I wanted them, so other engineers saved them for me, when I retired I had over a 100, gave some to my daughter for her Camper, some to a friend for his.Still have enough to keep my motor home dry. Like the rice, I periodically have to dry the Silica Gel bags out by putting them in the oven on a low heat for an hour or so, to re-activate them, still soaking up moisture 20 years later.
SO,this is a vote for Silica Gel bags, but not those silly little ones, they need to be about a kilo in weight, and preferably in a cloth bag. You need about 10 to keep a normal sized caravan or motor home dry for the Winter.
0 -
best thing out is calcium chloride dihydrate, 8 quid for 2kgs, just watch it suck the moisture up, beats salt rice and commercial derivative
Can you dry this out like salt in the oven ????
0 -
Once its saturated and i mean under an inch of water it can be thrown, but still works out cheaper and more effective than commercial drying agents. If you look at most comercial damp removers they contain a proportion of Cacium Chloride dihydrate. Hope
this helps , I buy mine off Ebay in 2 kg bags which lasts the whole winterCheers Marcus
0 -
We went in our caravan this morning after covering it up in the first week of November and using 3 moisture traps.The caravan is as dry as a chip, sweet smelling with no mould,we have used this same method for years, but all 3 moisture traps are as full
as an egg with water,so we will replace them tomorrow . This has been and so far is one wet winter,normally 3 traps last us untill March.0 -
After recent cold spell decided to check c/van interior - all was ok. Seating,curtains all dry, all very good until I decided to look up and to my surprise all three skylights heavily condensated. My conclusion is that the c/van became warm during the Xmas
mild weather then subsequent cold snap caused cold air to fall on the skylights meeting the warm air inside the van leading to the condensation. Even after drying the skylights thoroughly I then ran a dehumidifier for six hours which removed a further pint
of water. Moral of this tale is to inspect regularly and thoroughly, especially after changes in weather.0
