Dehumidifier for Travel Trailer

bobndot wrote:
I've been trying to find those window vents for awhile with no luck.
IMO, they are a good idea .

Bob

A little creativity and some thin Plexiglas one could fab some DIY versions without louvers, just leave a little opening at the bottom..

Plexi can be molded or bent at rather low temps, I remember HS shop when we made a couple of plexi items and had to bend them. Used a home type electric oven to get it done.. although I don't think my DW would be happy bending plexi inside the house :E

I've been trying to find those window vents for awhile with no luck.
IMO, they are a good idea .

Bob

chrissammule wrote:

Bmach wrote:
Ok call me silly but why not just use the ac?

Because I don't have a 30a circuit to the trailer

You don't "need" a 30A circuit to run JUST the A/C, a 15A circuit can and will easily support the A/C unit alone.. Often times many people only have a outlet on the side of their home to hook to and if you are not running things like the fridge, electric water tank heater and such it will work fine.

BUT, I would not recommend using the A/C for the purpose of dehumidifying, it is not very energy efficient and you WILL be working a real expensive A/C unit more than necessary (replacement A/C units run $600-$800 plus labor to replace).

As I mentioned before, simply CRACK open the windows and the roof vents. It does not take much at all, just slightly pull the window open so the window seal is no longer tight and you do not see a gap between the window and frame. That will be enough gap that the outside air can circulate.

The roof vent can be opened ever so slightly, just enough that the top no longer makes contact with the gasket.. The vent top has a lip which will shield the opening from rain..

All else fails if you can find one there was plastic louvered vents that you install on your windows which will allow you to open the window more..

Looked like this



HERE

Right now looks like they are out of stock or production..

Gdetrailer wrote:

JWRoberts wrote:
I would buy a cheap one from the big box stores and sit in on a counter and run the hose to the kitchen drain.

:h

There is no such thing as a "cheap" dehumidifier..

$180 is pretty much as cheap as it gets and no matter how cheap or expensive they might be, expect to replace it every 2 yrs.. If you get 3-4 yrs you will want to celebrate that mile stone (4 yrs is my personal best in my sticks and bricks).

Personally, skip the dehumidifier and crack open several windows and even the roof vents slightly. No electric needed and doesn't break down when you least expect..

I have had bad luck with dehumidifiers so far. I live in Florida and during the summer the humidity is terrible. The first dehumidifier I had worked fine but had a recall (fire hazard). I only had it about 8-9 months and had to get rid of it. The second dehumidifier I bought worked about a year and then quit. It got to the point that it would only run about 5 minutes and then shut off with an error code on the display. I got rid of it and decided to just buy a cheap dehumidifier and it worked about a year. My trailer is kept in covered storage (car port type of storage) and doesn't get any direct sunlight but it does get warm inside the trailer during the summer. I just wish I didn't have to get rid of the first dehumidifier since it's the only one I've had that didn't break!

Burch

Bmach wrote:
Ok call me silly but why not just use the ac?

Because I don't have a 30a circuit to the trailer

Ok call me silly but why not just use the ac?

dewey02 wrote:

CavemanCharlie wrote:
I did find one for as low as 150 but, 180 is quite common.

The one in my basement has been running for 7-9 years. If you are only getting 2 years from one then something is terribly wrong. I don't know what your basement is like but, I have found that the ones with a filter work better. It is not a great filter but, it seems to do the trick. I bet your problem is just that your De-humidifiers are getting dirty. I bet you are junking out perfectly good units that only need to be taken apart and cleaned.

Or, maybe you are just really un-lucky.

They are all built in China and that means built quite poorly.

People who only get 2 years out of a dehumidifier probably also only get 2 years out of their deep cycle batteries. And for the very same reason you described! Lack of care and lack of maintenance.

What absolute BS..

I will let you know, I have so far gotten TEN YEARS out of my one pair of 6V GC batts so far and STILL going strong..

I currently have a 2003 F250 which now has 200,000 miles and still going on the clock..

I have a 1970s car what has 300,000 on the clock before I stopped driving it as a "daily driver" in 1999 and I am currently doing a complete top to bottom tear down and restoration on..

I have a 1966 Jacobson 7HP tractor which is STILL in working order and can be used to mow or put a snow blower on for winter..

Also have a 1977 Ford 10 HP tractor that runs like a top..

I have plenty of other examples of good working stuff I own.. None of my stuff would be usable if I didn't know how to take care of it..

YOU obviously have no clue about "todays" dehumidifiers, they are built so darn cheap that they will not last 20 yrs like the first all metal built like a tank one did.

Don't bother with one with a built in pump, my current one I paid $250 for so I could put it further away from my basement drain.. The pump died the SECOND YEAR.. Had to relocate closer to the drain which is under my bedroom.. And YES, I DRAINED AND CLEANED the pump tank along with cleaning the filter every 30 days.. Walk by it every day through the basement to get to my garage to go to work.

YOUR comments are way off base and offensive.

Cracking windows and vents will allow blowing rain in plus the humidity inside will be the same as the humidity outside. High humidity inside, minus sunshine, minus sufficient air flow equals mold and mildew. I consider $180 to be cheap insurance.

Gdetrailer wrote:

JWRoberts wrote:
I would buy a cheap one from the big box stores and sit in on a counter and run the hose to the kitchen drain.

:h

There is no such thing as a "cheap" dehumidifier..

$180 is pretty much as cheap as it gets and no matter how cheap or expensive they might be, expect to replace it every 2 yrs.. If you get 3-4 yrs you will want to celebrate that mile stone (4 yrs is my personal best in my sticks and bricks).

Personally, skip the dehumidifier and crack open several windows and even the roof vents slightly. No electric needed and doesn't break down when you least expect..

CavemanCharlie wrote:
I did find one for as low as 150 but, 180 is quite common.

The one in my basement has been running for 7-9 years. If you are only getting 2 years from one then something is terribly wrong. I don't know what your basement is like but, I have found that the ones with a filter work better. It is not a great filter but, it seems to do the trick. I bet your problem is just that your De-humidifiers are getting dirty. I bet you are junking out perfectly good units that only need to be taken apart and cleaned.

Or, maybe you are just really un-lucky.

They are all built in China and that means built quite poorly.

People who only get 2 years out of a dehumidifier probably also only get 2 years out of their deep cycle batteries. And for the very same reason you described! Lack of care and lack of maintenance.

Gdetrailer wrote:

JWRoberts wrote:
I would buy a cheap one from the big box stores and sit in on a counter and run the hose to the kitchen drain.

:h

There is no such thing as a "cheap" dehumidifier..

$180 is pretty much as cheap as it gets and no matter how cheap or expensive they might be, expect to replace it every 2 yrs.. If you get 3-4 yrs you will want to celebrate that mile stone (4 yrs is my personal best in my sticks and bricks).

Personally, skip the dehumidifier and crack open several windows and even the roof vents slightly. No electric needed and doesn't break down when you least expect..

I did find one for as low as 150 but, 180 is quite common.

The one in my basement has been running for 7-9 years. If you are only getting 2 years from one then something is terribly wrong. I don't know what your basement is like but, I have found that the ones with a filter work better. It is not a great filter but, it seems to do the trick. I bet your problem is just that your De-humidifiers are getting dirty. I bet you are junking out perfectly good units that only need to be taken apart and cleaned.

Or, maybe you are just really un-lucky.

They are all built in China and that means built quite poorly.