UGH. Mildew!--Update pg 2

[Chock_Full_o__N]

We have had our little camper for a years and always kept it at our house. In April, we decided we no longer tow, so we took it up to the mountains and left it there at our favorite campground. Due to illness, we haven't been up there since May.

We went to the campground this week. When I opened the door, DH remarked that it smelled musty. When *I* walked in, I immediately smelled mildew! In all the years we have had the camper we have never had the first bit of mildew. I couldn't find any water or any wet places, but I did find that I had left the bathroom vent open. I'm thinking it just let the moisture in.

There were small patches of mildew on all the windows, some on the blinds, and inside of the bathroom closet. Interestingly, the couch, dinette benches and everything on the bed smelled fine. But the towels in the bathroom closet reeked of mildew, even though there was no mildew on them. Needless to say, I spent about 2 days wiping down all the surfaces with Clorox water and I brought home all the towels!

It smelled good when we left. I remembered to shut the vent and all the windows. I left the bathroom door and the closet door open and sprayed everything with Lysol, for good measure. Hopefully, I got all the mildew out of there. We'll know in 2 weeks when we return. If I smell mildew again, I'm going to be so upset.

[Chock_Full_o__N]

UPDATE!!

We are back up in the mountains in our camper and I am happy to report that the camper smells normal. We had a little water in our Damp Rid bucket and there were a few smudges on one window that may have been a little mildew or just dirt. I wiped that off with a paper towel.

This will be our last campout for the season, I imagine. DH will winterize before we leave and I will go over everything with some Clorox water, for good measure, and wipe down all the windows inside. We'll close up tight and set up the Damp Rid, again, and hope it keeps everything dry for the winter.

FWIW--we're expecting snow showers Sat morning. *happy dance*

[bigwheelsturnin]

we worked and redid the inside of our mh..this summer...parked in the driveway...i had done the walls with a new finish..painted...changed out sofa for recliners.
we kept windows open during a dry spell..closed when rain..
but that overnite dampness crept in...heated up in day...
black mold...not...texas tea..
i cleaned...washed...all.
not again...*fingers crossed*

[Ski_Pro_3]

I have an ozone air purifier in my camper and never have musty mildew. It runs on 12vdc and I have a solar panel to keep my batteries from running low.

http://www.amazon.com/E-best%C2%AE-Car-Air-Purifier-Dual-use/dp/B00M7V1H0C/ref=sr_1_1?s=home-garden&...

[wannavolunteerF]

Hey Chock,
Glad your DH is doing well enough for you to get out to your TT. Don't know if you know it or not, but they make damp rid buckets with charcoal. I really like them as they seem to help with the musty smell as well as absorbing humidity. I keep a damp rid bucket sitting on counter in bathroom (put in sink when I travel), and it absorbs a lot of moisture from the air. Keeping the doors and closets open also helps. I do leave my bath vent open, but I have a vent cover and am parked in full sun almost all day.

[down_home]

In the mountain, I assume thy are wooded and it rains a bit. Open RV invites the ambient moisture to enter and condense on hard surfaces or anything else. The humidity is just high. Hard to say if all the windows were wide open if you still wouldn't have problems.
A dehumidifier seems the better answer. jmo
We have woods all around us. I have to wash down the house each year. It happens about the same time every year, when wind carries dirt from La and Tx and humidity is high.

[Chock_Full_o__N]

We do not have electric or sewer hookup when the camper is in storage. We will be up there camping (FHU) in 2-1/2 weeks, so we'll see what happens. It will probably be cold up there then, so we'll have the heater on.

[Dtaylor]

If you have electric and sewer hookup, I would get a dehumidifier. Let it run all the time and drain into the sink. You will have to keep your grey tank valve slightly open so grey tank does not over fill

[Chock_Full_o__N]

I left a canister of Damp Rid between the kitchen and bath, about a distance of 3 feet. And I left the bathroom door open.

[FKT4387]

I use the hanging damp rid and also leave the cabinets and fridge open when I store. I have also seen a rechargeable dehumidifier but I have not tried it.

[Chock_Full_o__N]

That might work once we get it out of storage.

[donn0128]

Get a big dehumidifier, run it 24/7 and be sure to leave cabinets open.

[Chock_Full_o__N]

I always dry out the fridge and freezer and leave the doors open. They didn't get mildewed at all. I sealed up all the windows because I thought maybe having the moist air come in was what caused the problem in the first place.

[Dick_B]

That's what is nice about Maxxair vent covers that allows the vents to be open even in the rain. I always crack the end windows under their covers. Also, keep the refrigerator doors open.

[darsben]

You would probably be better off leaving the windows cracked if possible to do so without water entering.