Winter Storage - in very wet climate

[john hassell]

Most marine supply stores sell a contraption that is a metal tube with a low heat source contained...plugs into ac power. I used these for years on my 28" Bertram to dispel moisture from inside the cabin and in the engine compartment. I acutally used them in my house as my shoes (some unused for several months) woud accumulate a growth of mildew while sitting in the closet.

John

[Nancy in Oregon]

We have used a small electric dehumidifier since last spring. It sits in the sink when we have the trailer parked at home. We used it last fall when we camped to keep the moisture levels down in the trailer. (So it doesn't "rain" in the trailer in the AM.) It works really well.

WindChaser Dehumidifier

We also use a tiny oil-filled radiator in our trailer during the winter to keep the trailer's pipes from freezing. The temp is turned to a very low setting so it only comes on when the temperature really drops.

Nancy

[Gina D.]

Nancy, how does that little dehumidifier work? I saw one last year, but they were out of stock. I thought they were discountinued.

I would like one of those for mine.

[bonnie w]

Tonight I went to www.westmarine.com and found a aluminum round gadget called an "air dryer". It seems as though it might be a good idea, but I wonder is there a cord attached to plug it in to power. There is also a mini humidifier. My only problem is the Canadian Marine store affiliated doesn't seem to carry the "air dryer". It gets too complicated to change into USD plus shipping.

I am headed to the mainland this week so hopefully will take a cruise through some of the RV places as well as Steveston Marine stores.

[Doug & Anna-Marie P]

Ours came from "O Connor" RV in Langley... years ago. ON the by-pass

Works great in our wet weather... STOR-DRY Uses very little power too...

[jerry l elven]

I found dehumidifiers at amazon.com starting at $39.95 this one as well as others also came with a 12volt "car adapter" as they put. This looks like the real deal. The small one holds I think it was 2 pints of water with an auto shut off when full. They even suggested using it in the car. I think they said it used 3amps. at 12volts.

[Nancy in Oregon]

Nancy, how does that little dehumidifier work?

It works really well, Gina. We ordered ours on the Internet from Walmart because they didn't carry them anywhere around here. But just figured it was because of living in a small town.

Nancy

[Christi V.]

I found a simular one from Target... if I bought the one from walmart with shipping, tax it comes to about $69!

http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/ref=b...asin=B000GG0A62

[Byron Kinnaman]

These Peltier (pel tee a) dehumidifiers I think would loose a lot of efficiency when the air temperature is in below 50°. If you look at the specifications all talk about water removal at 80° F. or above. I've been trying to find charts that describe what happens at lower temperatures. No luck so far.

I understand Peltiers, I use them all the time. Therefore you can call this and educated guess about how these inexpensive dehumidifiers work.

Probably an unregulated power source to the Peltier, which means that the plate temperature varies with line power voltage. The cooling plate temperature is probably close to 40°F plus or minus 5°. What this means that if the dew point is at or above the plate temperature then the moisture in the air will condense on the cooling plate then trip to catch bucket. If the dew point is below the plate temperature no collection will occur. Dew point is at air temperature when the relative humidity is 100%, otherwise it's below air temperature.

All the technical jargon means they might not work so good if you don't heat your trailer.

[Brian B-P]

Good technical detail, Bryon.

I noticed that the WindChaser's heat pump is a Peltier junction, which is an interesting choice that has some appealing features. While I'm not minimizing the importance of the device's behaviour changes with temperature and power supply voltage, the point about the dew point versus the ambient temperature applies regardless of the heat pump choice - the usual compressor-driven refrigerant system faces exactly the same situation, which can lead to problems such as no moisture extraction, or the frost which I mentioned earlier.

These problems are why I don't use a dehumidifier over winter in my trailer, but that WindChaser is so small (and should be so quiet) that it might be good for us while camping in spring and fall for damp and cool days. In that case it could sit in the sink and drain there; over winter for me the sink would not be a suitable destination for water even if the trailer were heated (since the greywater tank is in freezing conditions under the trailer).

[Byron Kinnaman]

Any dehumidifier that uses a cooling element to condense moisture is subject to the same laws of physics.

I do have a concern about using a condensing type in a trailer stored for the winter. Since I'm not sure what the temperature of the cooling element is, I can only guess. My guess is that the cooling element is above freezing by a few degrees. Therefore when the air temperature gets below the cooling element temperature no drying action occurs. If at the same time the RH increases and then air temperature goes below freezing ice will form on all surfaces that have cooled to below freezing. When things warm back up is when you get the moisture problem. I don't know if a cooling dehumidifier could keep up with the thaw or a chemical dehumidifier for that matter.

I've asked Dri-Z-Air about their chemical dehumifier at colder temperatures.

I don't plan on letting my trailer get below freezing inside.

[Christi V.]

well all this 'tech' stuff about running one of these has got me confussed now..... To buy or not to buy???

[Byron Kinnaman]

I got a response from Dri-Z-Air. Here it is.

Thank you for your inquiry concerning DRI-Z-AIR.

DRI-Z-AIR is chemical dehumidifier that uses calcium chloride to collect moisture.

It is very effective at collecting moisture where the humidity is 100%. The cooler temperatures do not affect it as it will not freeze.

[Kurt in BC]

I use the Dri-A-Air too. Really works well.

I tried the light bulb that this discussion started with. I used a regular 60 watt bulb with a trouble light hanging through the roof vent. It was used for 1 month and was definitely better than nothing. A 100 watt one may have worked better. No real warmth but just enough to keep most the moisture off the ensolite. I think it may have worked better in a drier climate (Oregon, say).

In the end I went with a small thermostat controlled ceramic heater. It has the "knock over" protection too. A Calore CH110 rated at 5200 btus (max) and 1500 watts (max). Its just a little guy.

Seems to be working well. I had it running for about 2 minutes and it made a huge difference in the temperature in there. I am playing with the thermostat to come up with a steady temperature. Just trying to keep it at a level the heater is not running constant and with enough warmth to keep out the moisture. Can anyone sugest a temperature?

We'll see.....

[Alf S.]

Hi: I used a couple of pans of good old Charcoal (not Briquetes) and crack open the roof vent and the small window just a tad...The only moisture getting through is the roof rivets and the corner of the vent window...Today I started to replace the rivets with S/S pan head bolts nylon& S/S washers and acorn nuts...Did the upper kitchy cabinet and it looks great...Hope it seals out the rain...and boy have we had rain Alf S. North shore of Lake Erie

[Kurt in BC]

Ya, I did the stainless upgrade they look really nice.

I have to solve a belly band leak ut that will have to wait until spring. For now my cover is keeping out the rain and I have everything slightly cracked to let the air through.

[Kurt in BC]

so far the heater is great at 55-60 degrees