??? MOLD ??? Damp Area. ??? SOLUTION ???

[BobnSofi]

Hi All,

We are new to spending time in a damp area, and want to fight the mold issue properly.

We are assisting sickly family members in the Pacific NoWest this winter.

??? HELP ???

!!! Thanks in Advance !!!

[Spade_Cooley]

I've been using Damp Rid the last couple of years with good results. It comes in small canisters and you can use it in larger doses by placing it in a colander over a 5 gallon bucket.

[wolfe10]

doxiemom11 wrote:
Using for furnace for heat maybe along with something else will help reduce moisture.

NO, warming up the air will reduce the RELATIVE HUMIDITY. Yes, warm air will hold more moisture than cold air.

It will have absolutely zero effect on the amount of moisture in the air. When the RV cools back down, humidity will be exactly the same.

[doxiemom11]

Using for furnace for heat maybe along with something else will help reduce moisture. For closets or small enclosed spaces, I use Damp Rid and change them out every month or so ( you can tell when they need to be changed). Running the air conditioner also removes moisture from the air. Sometimes when it's hanging at 65 and just a little too cool, I have used the heat for awhile, then turned the A/C on, cooled it down and repeated. After 3 or 4 times the humidity will be at an acceptable level.

[wolfe10]

ktmrfs wrote:

kellem wrote:
A dehumidifier would definitely be my first recommendation but also find that ceramic heaters help remove moisture.

Run both when RV sits long.

ceramic heaters, or electric or gas heat will lower the RH as it raises temperture, but it won't remove any moisture. Lower RH means less likely to have condensation.

Correct.

[ktmrfs]

kellem wrote:
A dehumidifier would definitely be my first recommendation but also find that ceramic heaters help remove moisture.

Run both when RV sits long.

ceramic heaters, or electric or gas heat will lower the RH as it raises temperture, but it won't remove any moisture. Lower RH means less likely to have condensation.

[kellem]

A dehumidifier would definitely be my first recommendation but also find that ceramic heaters help remove moisture.

Run both when RV sits long.

[mchero]

Prior post stated no mold living 50 feet off Pacific coast. Mold would be the last thing on my mind.
Salt air over time will eat your motorhome alive.

If your living FT you need a real dehumidifier! Not one of those cute little ones.
We have a 45 pint dehumidifier that works like a champ! We upen the roof vent when taking a shower and squeegee the shower after EVERY shower.

[rhagfo]

BobnSofi wrote:
Hi All,

We are new to spending time in a damp area, and want to fight the mold issue properly.

We are assisting sickly family members in the Pacific NoWest this winter.

??? HELP ???

!!! Thanks in Advance !!!

As mentioned before we full time in the PNW, have spent time on the Oregon Coast the last four winters. We don’t have mold issues, because we control humility levels with a dehumidifier. We clean interior windows about once to twice a month.
We did do vents and air circulation game before we full times, but was a lot of work, the dehumidifier makes it simple.
Before full time during winter storage we used Eva Dri passive and kept a couple roof vents open, as we have vent covers, so no rain intrusion.

[ajriding]

Do you have mold? You are from Socal so i am guessing not after just a short in in PNW...

Mold is bad, and Black Mold is very bad - you will be the sick ones if you get black mold, but if you are living in it then highly unlikely to get mold. Mold usually happens when the RV is closed up for a long time.

As stated, keep air circulating especially in those compartments and behind the walls or wherever there is an air cavity.
On mine I will open the access door and run the exhaust fan to force air through the wall cavity spaces and the space where the water tank and utilities are (I open that up too). That keeps it from getting a musty odor. If you do not have that odor, then you should not have the mold.

Heating the RV will raise temps and lower humidity because hot air can hold more moisture without the air being humid.

[ktmrfs]

Flute Man wrote:

wolfe10 wrote:
Another viable option is to buy a 30 pint home-type dehumidifier. That will remove up to 30 pints of water a day.

We do exactly that when storing our motorhome and sailboat. Set it to 50% and forget about it. No mold or mildew ever.

X2

X3. In a small living space in a humid environment, a dehumidifier is often what's needed. When we head to the coast along comes the dehumidifier. Typically it takes about 8 hours to remove the first 4 gallons of water, from then on we empty it once a day or so. Most of them have a drain tube so you can hook it into a drain line if you want.

[Flute_Man]

wolfe10 wrote:
Another viable option is to buy a 30 pint home-type dehumidifier. That will remove up to 30 pints of water a day.

We do exactly that when storing our motorhome and sailboat. Set it to 50% and forget about it. No mold or mildew ever.

X2

[docsouce]

Just a thought, pick up a small indoor/outdoor hygrometer (amazon $10) and see just what the relative humidity is for a week or two. I did this for a couple of weeks and found I was around 75% during the summer. Which I thought was high. I bought an Eva-dry Edv-2200 , mid size dehimidfier. Pulls 13 volts dc-4.6 amps off a 110 volt power supply. 2 liter capacity, compact. 8 1/2"w 14"h 6 3/4"d Supposed to be good for 2200 cubic feet gathering 20.5 oz of water per day. Now I have a smaller RV 22ft Class C and this unit kept it at 40%. I just let it run and checked it every couple of days. I only dehumidify in the summer when I'm parked in my yard between trips. Hope this helps.

[rhagfo]

ScottG wrote:

rhagfo wrote:

ScottG wrote:
Yesterday I cleaned the moss off the north side of my truck.
Been here my whole life and still trying to figure out how to avoid mold. If you're going to be in a RV, it's going to be a challengr to keep condensation down. All that moisture seems to mostly collect in the window channels and starts molding fast. My inlaws spent one winter in their Fifth wheel here and never did it again.

Well we full time in the PNW, currently Park Hosting about 50’ off the Pacific Ocean on the Oregon. Coast. We have very little issues with dampness and mold. We heat with the furnace using the RV Comfort Systems “Cheap Heat” and have a dehumidifier set at about 40%, need to empty the container about once a day. Run the bathroom fan when showering and kitchen vent when cooking.

The dehumidifier is what's keeping you dry. If the OP has the same issues my inlaws did, that is the best answer - and not a passive unit. He'd need a 120V unit.

We got our at HD for about $150, about the only time we see condensation on windows is when we have a cold driving rain.

[ScottG]

rhagfo wrote:

ScottG wrote:
Yesterday I cleaned the moss off the north side of my truck.
Been here my whole life and still trying to figure out how to avoid mold. If you're going to be in a RV, it's going to be a challengr to keep condensation down. All that moisture seems to mostly collect in the window channels and starts molding fast. My inlaws spent one winter in their Fifth wheel here and never did it again.

Well we full time in the PNW, currently Park Hosting about 50’ off the Pacific Ocean on the Oregon. Coast. We have very little issues with dampness and mold. We heat with the furnace using the RV Comfort Systems “Cheap Heat” and have a dehumidifier set at about 40%, need to empty the container about once a day. Run the bathroom fan when showering and kitchen vent when cooking.

The dehumidifier is what's keeping you dry. If the OP has the same issues my inlaws did, that is the best answer - and not a passive unit. He'd need a 120V unit.