[chopsie]

I have had rear seats fitted into my van,and they are getting damp with condensation dripping off the roof,any ideas on how to stop this?

[matt]

line the area above the seats with ply

you will only need a sheet of 4 mm to do it, it'll make it nicer for your children aswell

[chopsie]

will get some of that over xmas matt,might drop some loft insulation behind it too,what do you think?

[matt]

will get some of that over xmas matt,might drop some loft insulation behind it too,what do you think?

the only downside to the loft insulation ( the roll stuff ) is that it traps the moisture and that of course will start to smell and then start to rot the van )

you can either use " the polystyrene slabs "

or

celotex type board



cut it into strips and it will follow the contour of the roof

[david watts]

  get a garage been with out mine three week ago its priceless now

[lee_dewing]

matt, out of intrest when the inside roof is lined, how does this stop condensation?

is it that lining isn't as cold as roof (i guess)

does it stop problem totally?

thinking of new/er van next yr have noticed a lot of condensation inside roof of escort van of late i use 10 barrels ish a day.

thanks lee.

[malcolmmccaw]

I had this prob with an old car b4 bcos of poor insulating, the back screen was drenced every winter mornin (had to blade it b4 i went anywhere). So i got a takeaway container half filled it with salt, cut a big sqaure hole in the top and wacked it on the back shelve, and this pretty much stopped the prob. I know this might not be the answer your lookin 4, but its a cheap fix and if u have a few of these around the van it will help bigtime, as salt draws water out of the atmosphere. - You will have to empty them (& repeat the process) fairly reg though as you'll b surprised how much water it draws over a few weeks . Hope it helps.

[Window Washers]

I may just try that I got 18 bottles of salt today from tesco, and didnt use it lol

[Clive McDonald]

You thinking about a heater Ian?

[Window Washers]

You thinking about a heater Ian?

maybe 

[matt]

matt, out of intrest when the inside roof is lined, how does this stop condensation?

is it that lining isn't as cold as roof (i guess)

does it stop problem totally?

thinking of new/er van next yr have noticed a lot of condensation inside roof of escort van of late i use 10 barrels ish a day.

thanks lee.

it doesnt really stop it

the idea is you have a barrier between the cold metal ( and outside ) and the warn insides, i reality with our vans, its just as cold inside, the condensation comes from the amount of moisture in the van AND the change in temps colder outside than inside

the idea of the plywood is that it will soak up the water so that it does drip on the seats, its not ideal but then again neither is carrying a big lump of water in the back which if you touch your tank, it will be damp, that has to go somewhere

[Clive McDonald]

You've probably forgotten that i was the very first on here to self install a hot system- that's okay- And that my hot system has worked better and longer than everyone else's- Or that recently (as far as I know) I became the first to switch it to a two man operation.

Anyway the point i'm making (having seen you enquire about an L5) is that a rinnai 54 eu is the one i use (it cost about £300) and it's (bombproofs not the right word) very good. L5 is a toy.

If you do use a heater the condensation is much worse. The scudo i just got rid of had a rusty roof.

[Clive McDonald]

Because wood does not conduct heat well hardly any condensation occurs, and it stops moisture reaching the metal surface. It isn't intended to soak the water up,you are wrong about that, apart from that i agree.

[Window Washers]

You've probably forgotten that i was the very first on here to self install a hot system- that's okay- And that my hot system has worked better and longer than everyone else's- Or that recently (as far as I know) I became the first to switch it to a two man operation.

Anyway the point i'm making (having seen you enquire about an L5) is that a rinnai 54 eu is the one i use (it cost about £300) and it's (bombproofs not the right word) very good. L5 is a toy.

If you do use a heater the condensation is much worse. The scudo i just got rid of had a rusty roof.

then maybe it should be addressed in the next van  as a rusty roof is not good if you have only had it a couple of years.
Could you not get twin layed insulation with some sort of tube as a run/drain off, what do they use in refridgeration vans ?

[Clive McDonald]

Nat put a hole thing in his roof.I think this prevents condensation.

In the maxi the heater is much lower in relation to the roof and the doors are bigger (ventilation).

[matt]

Because wood does not conduct heat well hardly any condensation occurs, and it stops moisture reaching the metal surface. It isn't intended to soak the water up,you are wrong about that, apart from that i agree.

in this instance of chopsie ply lining the area above his seats though, that would be the idea, the ply would absorb the drips that would fall on his childrens seats, thus the seats will not be so damp

the idea of the insulted ply lined roof in general is to have a barrier between the metal roof and the insides ( the insides in general should be warmer ) in our case though it isnt as we have them big block of water to bring down the temps ( i said this in my first post ) tonight the temp outside and in my van will be roughly the same, yes the air in my van is damp and the roof will be full of water come the morning


chopsie could also do as FTP has done, he has a adhesive foam around his tank, it has cut down the condensation on his tank ( which must help )

[matt]

Nat put a hole thing in his roof.I think this prevents condensation.

In the maxi the heater is much lower in relation to the roof and the doors are bigger (ventilation).

i believe i was the person who suggested the roof vent

if your concearned about rusty roof, surely the same idea as the floor, protectacote should be used

[Clive McDonald]

yes it was you, and i agree. I'm trying to remember my physics but cant.. latent heat of conductivity...?

[lee_dewing]

matt & slumpbuster,

intresting reading, if you did ply line the roof, couldn't there be rust occuring inbetween inside roof and ply.

then you wouldn't see the rust setting in, as out of sight out of mind.

Am i talking rubbish (again)

proteckta cote on roof sounds good but i'd only want to do in a new van if colour matched but if your going for white this wouldn't be a prob.

[matt]

matt & slumpbuster,

intresting reading, if you did ply line the roof, couldn't there be rust occuring inbetween inside roof and ply.

then you wouldn't see the rust setting in, as out of sight out of mind.

Am i talking rubbish (again)

proteckta cote on roof sounds good but i'd only want to do in a new van if colour matched but if your going for white this wouldn't be a prob.

yes

you might know i am into my old VW splitscreen campers, in the past few years alot of them have come over from the dry states of the USA ( the dollar - pound exchange rate made these vans a steal )  the underside are great, they do not put down salt, do not have that much rain etc etc

the issue they have is rotting ( rusting ) from the inside out, the condensation forms on the roof and runs and sits on a ledge inside the roof gutter, this rots