rightlaneonly
CA..
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Need some help for our son. He has a 2003 Holiday Rambler Presidential 5er. they live in Stanley ND where it gets really cold. Not unusual to be 50 below with the windchill. They are experiencing moisture and mold inside the unit. He tells me the unit is aluminum sided with aluminum framing (studs). The mold is in the closet and under the bed and in the cabinets. The carpets are wet. They use small buckets of stuff like drizit and it does collect moisture. The united is skirted with 2" blue board insulation. the windows are wet with condinsation and they along with the walls where the condinsation gathers will form ice and then melt and run down the walls. Any ideas on what to do to stop this? I suggested a dehumidifirer along with the drizit but may not be enough. Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.
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summerhouse
Big Rapids, Michigan
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Definitely a dehumidifier or even two to get the moisture out. Then one to maintain. Does it have dual pane windows? Use towels at the base of the windows to wick away the condensation as it forms.
There will be responses from those that have first hand experience with this sort of issue. Also try doing a search on this site for "moisture" and "condensation".
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MPI_Mallard
Windsor,Ontario,Canada Davenport,Florida
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If it was my boy i'd send him money to go elsewhere,mold can be very bad for you. Without knowing how he's heating the unit i'm going to assume he's using the on-board heating system which uses propane and it's probably overwelmed,unless the trailer is desighned for extreme temps you going to have insufficient on-board equipment so pehaps adding a couple of ceramic heaters my be of help. As far as the moisture when you put a person in a small enclosed area you get a lot of moisture from exhaling carbon monoxide(ever fall asleep in your car and woke up the next morning and the windows were fogged up?)so the problem will be allowing a good flow of fresh air in and not too much to negate the heat,above all if he's using anything that heats using a flame he'll comound the moisture problem,i'll keep good thoughts for your son,it sounds like he having quite the adventure!
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CloudDriver
New Jersey Shore
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I doubt that there are any RVs designed to be lived in for long times in below zero temperatures. Even 4 season RVs simply aren't all that well insulated. The moisture in the air inside the RV will simply condense on the very cold walls and windows, as your son already knows.
Moisture sources include people breathing, cooking, hot showers and fuel combustion, such as stove burners and catalytic heaters, which produce water as products of combustion. Dehumidifiers would reduce the condensation, but I doubt that they would reduce the inside humidity enough to solve the problem. Ventilating the RV to exhaust the moist air and allow cold dry air to enter would help a lot. The incoming cold air, when heated, will have a very low humidity. Obviously, heating the incoming cold air to keep the RV comfortable will require the furnace to run longer, or the addition of electric heaters.
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roamy
Santa Fe
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well 50 below is a challenge in a fiver. I can make it to 5 degrees without too much problems. I pulled the bed back about 8 inches from the wall and that really helped with the condensation coming off the windows. I had mold until I did this and now I am ok.
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ExRocketScientist
Laurel, MD
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CloudDriver wrote:I doubt that there are any RVs designed to be lived in for long times in below zero temperatures. Even 4 season RVs simply aren't all that well insulated. The moisture in the air inside the RV will simply condense on the very cold walls and windows, as your son already knows.
Moisture sources include people breathing, cooking, hot showers and fuel combustion, such as stove burners and catalytic heaters, which produce water as products of combustion. Dehumidifiers would reduce the condensation, but I doubt that they would reduce the inside humidity enough to solve the problem. Ventilating the RV to exhaust the moist air and allow cold dry air to enter would help a lot. The incoming cold air, when heated, will have a very low humidity. Obviously, heating the incoming cold air to keep the RV comfortable will require the furnace to run longer, or the addition of electric heaters.
The ventilation is the key. The winter air in ND has virtually no moisture in it. If you bring it inside and let it warm up, it will absorb an incredible amount of moisture. Then you replace that will more air from outside.
I use my fantastic fan to do this once a day. I shut off the furnace, open all the windows, and turn on the fan. Within 5 minutes, I have replaced every bit of the air with the cold dry air. All of the furnishings are still warm, so when I shut off the fan, close the windows, and turn the furnace back on, it only runs for about 30 minutes -- of course that is in 20 degree weather.
The other problem may be that your son may be wiping moisture off of the windows with paper towels and throwing them in the trash. This is a common mistake. It doesn't work unless you immediately take the trash out. Most of the windows should have drains in the bottom. Make sure they are not clogged, and use a squeegy on the window. Of course at temperatures in the single digits and below, he might need an ice scraper.
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nelson
Clio,Mi USA
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In very long term cold weather a dehumidifier is a must and open closets and cabinets to help air flow and add a small fan to move air. Cooking and showers will ad a lot of moisture to the air. Wipe the walls down with a bleach solution to kill the mold and get it as dry as he can. Best of luck to them.
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eHoefler
ozark mountains
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Since he has ice forming on the inside of the walls, the insulation is saturated with water and rendered useless to the point it is actually working against him, as it is radiating the heat out as fast as he can heat it. Mold and mildew will definitely set in, if it has not already. Unfortunately, the unit is destroyed. To properly repair it, all the insulation has to be replaced. And any water soaked materials, paneling, carpet, pad, floor decking, etc.. Like suggested above, it is best for him to find somewhere else to live for the sake of his health. The problem will get worse as the temps get warmer and everything thaws out.
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JIMNLIN
out here
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We lived in a aluminum frame 5er for one winter with temps down close to zero with 35-40 mpg constant winds. I skirted the trailer and made 1/8" Lexan storm windows that cut the amout of LP usage. We tried the usual cracking vents and windows/two fans running 24/7. It did nothing but make the heater run 24/7 and a cold cold drafty trailer with lots of sweat. Didn't make sense/cents to vent out 75 degree air and pull zero-50 below temps into the unit.
I finally bought two dehumidifiers. This and several containers of DampRid finally got rid of 90 percent of our sweat in the unit.
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ausie607
white lake
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Like JIMNLIN says, dehumidifiers, couple of large fans circulating the air, leave cupboards, closets open as much as possible, lift the bed when not in use and don't use the LP stove and oven. Try minimal cooking on a hotplate.
That's a tough way to spend the winter.
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