Hi folks. I'm seeking info from you guys who've been doing this a while. This is my second winter in our FW as a camp host in northern Louisiana. I don't remember seeing any condesation last winter but I'm sure I had some because I have it now. I understand, from reading in the forum, that it is a normal occurance on the windows and might even be somewhat helpful according to some. I'll have to keep an eye on the windows to see how this developes. My concern is actually in the bathroom. I see the shower skylight (exterior bubble) has condensation on it (shower is not used). I've removed the interior trim panel to wipe things down. I noticed the wood framework forming the roof structure is open on two of the four sides. I would have thought it should be sealed to prevent moisture from seeking it's way into the roof area. I know houses need a sealed (cold) roof to prevent interior sweating. So, I taped the open sides of the framework with duct tape. Was this a good move or am I too smart for my own good? Also, should the trim panels have any sort of sealing product such as putty tape to help keep the heat or moisture from sneaking its way into the roof area? Just to provide a little more insight, I do use two electric heaters. One in the living room and one in the bathroom. We use an electric heating pad on our select comfort mattress. We also use the propane heater set on 63-65 degrees. Thoughts?

..Not full timers, but camping this Thanksgiving in the mountains of WVa. We got here this past Saturday and got caught in the snow/cold/wind/ice that hit the some of the southeast and the north east...Several day's now where it didn't get above 30 degrees...this morning, temp is 18 with a wind chill of 11, nothing frozen, no condensation on the windows, have the furnace set on 72, (but I would think it's much warmer where you are?), and we have one of those electric fireplaces that we've had running in the livingroom and a small ceramic heater in the bed room, (set with thermostat), and no condensation anywhere, but we do have the dual pane windows. Do you have any of your ceiling vent's open? Mine are closed and the insulation is in the ceiling opening, but opening a vent may help with the condensation, as would possibly slightly opening a window. May sound counter productive, but could help wit you condensation issue. Having gone though what you are going through now with pass units, I would keep window wiped off. As far as what you're doing with the tape, I would guess it's not going to hurt anything, but don't know that it'll help you solve your condensation issue. Again, cracking vents open, possibly getting a de-humidifier would probably help more.What temps. are you experiencing?

Just living in your rig creates moisture in the air and cooking and showering increases it rapidly. Since getting a dehumidifier our moisture problem is gone. Since the unit produces heat while in use we only use it in the winter and it pulls about a gallon of water out of the air in a 24 hour period. We have a 499 sq ft 5th wheel.

Hi,Crack a roof vent and open the window (a bit) that is farthest from it. Place one of the electric heaters near the window.Condensation is about keeping the surfaces above the dew point temperature. I have been known to run a humidifier inside my class C in winter time, but I live in the North American equivalent of Siberia.

we have a fantastic fan over our kitchen area. I would push or pull the control knob on the fan to the 'manual' setting, crack open the cover about 1" or so and run the fan. We were getting condensation on the inside of our dining/living room windows and it fixed that.You might want to move the heater from the bathroom to the bedroom also.

JKrussow wrote:Just living in your rig creates moisture in the air and cooking and showering increases it rapidly. Since getting a dehumidifier our moisture problem is gone. Since the unit produces heat while in use we only use it in the winter and it pulls about a gallon of water out of the air in a 24 hour period. We have a 499 sq ft 5th wheel.X2. We tried the crack the roof vent(s) and a window but all that did was create a cold drafty interior and the central heater running 22/7 and did nothing for moisture on the walls and windows. We even tried the fans and a couple of ceramic heaters but it did nothing for the wall/windows sweat issue. Bought a dehumidifier and was a big help. Bought another and the two together cured our interior moisture problems.This 30' unit with a super slide had the usual R7 walls roof and floor and too many windows (13). Adding mobilehome skirting and 1/8" Lexan inside all those windows didn't help with the moisture issue but sure made a warmer interior.

Condensation and Roof Construction Concerns | Good Sam Community

23 Replies

pianotuna
Nomad III
Nov 28, 2013
Hi,

Crack a roof vent and open the window (a bit) that is farthest from it. Place one of the electric heaters near the window.

Condensation is about keeping the surfaces above the dew point temperature. I have been known to run a humidifier inside my class C in winter time, but I live in the North American equivalent of Siberia.
JKrussow
Explorer
Nov 28, 2013
Just living in your rig creates moisture in the air and cooking and showering increases it rapidly. Since getting a dehumidifier our moisture problem is gone. Since the unit produces heat while in use we only use it in the winter and it pulls about a gallon of water out of the air in a 24 hour period. We have a 499 sq ft 5th wheel.
NC_Hauler
Explorer
Nov 28, 2013
..Not full timers, but camping this Thanksgiving in the mountains of WVa. We got here this past Saturday and got caught in the snow/cold/wind/ice that hit the some of the southeast and the north east...Several day's now where it didn't get above 30 degrees...this morning, temp is 18 with a wind chill of 11, nothing frozen, no condensation on the windows, have the furnace set on 72, (but I would think it's much warmer where you are?), and we have one of those electric fireplaces that we've had running in the livingroom and a small ceramic heater in the bed room, (set with thermostat), and no condensation anywhere, but we do have the dual pane windows.

Do you have any of your ceiling vent's open? Mine are closed and the insulation is in the ceiling opening, but opening a vent may help with the condensation, as would possibly slightly opening a window. May sound counter productive, but could help wit you condensation issue. Having gone though what you are going through now with pass units, I would keep window wiped off. As far as what you're doing with the tape, I would guess it's not going to hurt anything, but don't know that it'll help you solve your condensation issue. Again, cracking vents open, possibly getting a de-humidifier would probably help more.

What temps. are you experiencing?

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Condensation and Roof Construction Concerns

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