condensation - MOULDY BED - help

[scottessery]

Hia Guys

 

Ive been having huge problems for years with condensation forming on the wooden paneling at the side of the matress, the underneeth and 'foot' end where the wet area/engine compartment is.

 

we live on a 36 trad with a solid boxed wooden 'frame' (devan type thing with storage underneeth) with a sprung matress on top of the 'frame'. i have put towels down the corners and on the base to soak up the condensation but with a baby on the way, having 6 soggy towls spead over the boat isnt convenient (or possibly healthy)

 

ive enased the matress in a waterproof plastic sheet last only to find last night that its condensed INSIDE the plastic sheet

 

in other words, the plastic sheet has stopped the water from between the wall and bed soaking into the matress, but warm air from us lying on top has condensed on the other side (the inside of the sheet where it contacts the matress) like the kitchen window when boling a pan of water.

 

 

 

im really stressed and at the end of my teather as to know what to do

 

please help guys

[alan_fincher]

Scott,

 

I'll ask all the obvious questions before anyone else does.....

 

1) What type of insulation is the boat fitted with, and how effectively has it been done ?

2) How do you heat the boat, and in particular, do you have a multi-fuel stove ?

3) How much ventilation do you maintain at all times ? (Window toplights open or closed, mushroom vents well opened or screwed down ??).

 

A well insulated boat, kept well ventilated, where a multifuel stove regularly provides a good drying effect rarely suffers severe condensation problems.

 

Heat some other way, or close off all (or lots of) the ventilation, and dampness is almost inveitable, IMO.

 

Alan

[blackelle123]

Hia Guys

 

Ive been having huge problems for years with condensation forming on the wooden paneling at the side of the matress, the underneeth and 'foot' end where the wet area/engine compartment is.

 

we live on a 36 trad with a solid boxed wooden 'frame' (devan type thing with storage underneeth) with a sprung matress on top of the 'frame'. i have put towels down the corners and on the base to soak up the condensation but with a baby on the way, having 6 soggy towls spead over the boat isnt convenient (or possibly healthy)

 

ive enased the matress in a waterproof plastic sheet last only to find last night that its condensed INSIDE the plastic sheet

 

in other words, the plastic sheet has stopped the water from between the wall and bed soaking into the matress, but warm air from us lying on top has condensed on the other side (the inside of the sheet where it contacts the matress) like the kitchen window when boling a pan of water.

 

 

 

im really stressed and at the end of my teather as to know what to do

 

please help guys

We had this problem when we first moved onto our boat last November. We were new to Narrow Boats and hadn't realised this could be a problem. I believe we have now sorted out the problem:

 

* We purchased a very good quality mattress from a supplier who deals with marine mattresses inparticular. The mattress must be about an inch smaller all round to allow for circulation.

* We also purchased some slats that go underneath the mattress allow air to circulate around and underneath.

* We always have good ventilation and ensure that at least the bedroom window is open

 

I think you could make your own slats, ensuring that they are not sitting directly on the wood and have blocks for them to rest on. We paid about £90 for ours. Really worth it though as we have had no further problems.

I'll try and find the supplier if your interested!!

 

Helen

Edited November 3, 2008 by blackelle123

[frangar]

Try this

 

http://www.airflowsprings.com/acatalog/index.html

 

Edited to add....you need to click on Natural Mat!

 

Had some for years.....works really well even on our back cabin bed which has a solid base. (and is our main bed!)

 

hope this helps

 

Gareth

Edited November 3, 2008 by frangar

[Big COL]

Hia Guys

 

Ive been having huge problems for years with condensation forming on the wooden paneling at the side of the matress, the underneeth and 'foot' end where the wet area/engine compartment is.

 

we live on a 36 trad with a solid boxed wooden 'frame' (devan type thing with storage underneeth) with a sprung matress on top of the 'frame'. i have put towels down the corners and on the base to soak up the condensation but with a baby on the way, having 6 soggy towls spead over the boat isnt convenient (or possibly healthy)

 

ive enased the matress in a waterproof plastic sheet last only to find last night that its condensed INSIDE the plastic sheet

 

in other words, the plastic sheet has stopped the water from between the wall and bed soaking into the matress, but warm air from us lying on top has condensed on the other side (the inside of the sheet where it contacts the matress) like the kitchen window when boling a pan of water.

 

 

 

im really stressed and at the end of my teather as to know what to do

 

please help guys

 

Scottessery

 

Seen this many times twice on new builds. The way we solved it was to run a heating loop through the whole of the damp area, which in one case was the complete length of the boat. The heating loop consisted 22mm plastic pipe screwed to the floor down and back again. It only needs a few degrees of warm air to stop the condensation.

This is assuming that you have some form of central heating on board. If not you neeed to find a way to get some warm air moving through there.

Edited November 3, 2008 by Big COL

[koukouvagia]

Hia Guys

 

Ive been having huge problems for years with condensation forming on the wooden paneling at the side of the matress, the underneeth and 'foot' end where the wet area/engine compartment is.

 

please help guys

 

Alan’s advice about solving the underlying problems first is sound. However, even in a well ventilated boat and properly insulated boat, you can still get condensation under the mattress. I’ve found anti-condensation matting like this http://tinyurl.com/6j8znj works very well.

 

oops, sorry frangar beat me to it!

Edited November 3, 2008 by koukouvagia

[Amicus]

A human body lying in a snug bed will give up an amazing amount of moisture, a goodly part of this will go into the bedding/mattress. This will condense out at the cool part of the mattress, the under-side and the edges. Any sort of (ahem) nocturnal activity will exasperate this problem greatly.

 

 

I've had a similar problem for years sleeping in a sleeping bag on an inflatable mattress in my unheated van, every morning the top of the mattress would be soaked with condensate. Never did find a solution, and I'm all boned up on Dew-point and stuff like that

Edited November 3, 2008 by Amicus

[Purple Fairie]

We drilled some large holes in the wood 'base' that the matress sits directly on, then some more holes through to the bottom of the wardrobe (that's right at the end of the bed) which has a vent into the main passage. This was after cleaning all the mould out, washing with anti mould 'stuff' and giving it a coat of anti-condensation paint. Everything has been lovely and dry since there now is air-flow to all the boxed in areas.

 

Hope this helps Scottessery

[bottle]

Also ensure that the base is ventilated, ie the vertical sides, not just the area the mattress rests on.

 

Nice size holes, square or round with grills fitted for the aesthetics.

[johnthebridge]

Hia Guys

 

Ive been having huge problems for years with condensation forming on the wooden paneling at the side of the matress, the underneeth and 'foot' end where the wet area/engine compartment is.

 

we live on a 36 trad with a solid boxed wooden 'frame' (devan type thing with storage underneeth) with a sprung matress on top of the 'frame'. i have put towels down the corners and on the base to soak up the condensation but with a baby on the way, having 6 soggy towls spead over the boat isnt convenient (or possibly healthy)

 

ive enased the matress in a waterproof plastic sheet last only to find last night that its condensed INSIDE the plastic sheet

 

in other words, the plastic sheet has stopped the water from between the wall and bed soaking into the matress, but warm air from us lying on top has condensed on the other side (the inside of the sheet where it contacts the matress) like the kitchen window when boling a pan of water.

 

 

 

im really stressed and at the end of my teather as to know what to do

 

please help guys

First thing to do is chuck the plastic sheet away, if you haven't already done so.

A cheap and easy thing to do is buy yourself some carpet tiles, or a bit of carpet, so long as it isn't foam backed. Cut to size of your bed base, and just lay it under the mattress.(Don't glue down.) If you can cut some holes in the wooden base, even better. Use a proper hole saw if you can, and cut as many as you can without compromising the rigidity of the base.

The problem is caused by you (warm) lying on the bed (cold), and you're aiming to put some form of insulation between the two of you. If possible, you also need to glue some carpet around the sides of the bed, where they contact the mattress. Again, carpet tiles are good. You can extend these up if you want, so you don't touch cold hullsides in bed.

Try and turn the mattress every day, esp. when it's really cold.

[Chris Pink]

we live on a 36 trad with a solid boxed wooden 'frame' (devan type thing with storage underneeth) with a sprung matress on top of the 'frame'. i have put towels down the corners and on the base to soak up the condensation but with a baby on the way, having 6 soggy towls spead over the boat isnt convenient (or possibly healthy)

 

ive enased the matress in a waterproof plastic sheet last only to find last night that its condensed INSIDE the plastic sheet

 

Probably this is covered now but my 2penn'th; the solid frame and latterly the bag are causing the problem. In the first instance either replace the solid frame with a slatted construction or drill lots of holes - you can get slats ready made up from IKEA.

 

I would do this first because it will solve 95% of the problem, then look at more fundamental ventilation, at the moment it's just an issue of drainage.

Edited November 3, 2008 by Chris Pink

[BlueStringPudding]

We had this trouble too (thread on this forum somewhere). We "acquired" two long pallets from outside a nearby bed shop; propped them up near the coal-burning stove for a couple of days till they were thoroughly dry, then put them together and cut them to the same size as our bed.

We laid them on top of the solid bedbase, added a couple of extra slats (left over from our T&G wall panelling) to fill in any broader gaps, and put the new (old one too damp!) mattress on top.

It's been fine and dry ever since because we now have warm, dry air circulating beneath the mattress, and the whole bed base construction was free.

Edited November 3, 2008 by BlueStringPudding

[smileypete]

I've had a similar problem for years sleeping in a sleeping bag on an inflatable mattress in my unheated van, every morning the top of the mattress would be soaked with condensate. Never did find a solution, and I'm all boned up on Dew-point and stuff like that

 

I'd try a thick closed cell foam camping mat between sleeping bag and airbed.

 

Basically what is needed is some insulation plus a vapour barrier on the warm side of the insulation.

 

For the same problem with a mattress in a boat a 1" thick sheet of polystyrene under the mattress should do, worked for me in the past.

 

cheers,

Pete.

Edited November 3, 2008 by smileypete

[scottessery]

WOW

 

thank you all so much

 

I have been away for a fews days and feel overwhelmed by everyones responces

 

its also good to know it wasnt just us having yet another unexpected problem

 

ive got about 6 options to try so will sit down and see which one to try first

 

thanks so much everyone and will let you know how it goes

[sueb]

I'd try a thick closed cell foam camping mat between sleeping bag and airbed.

 

Basically what is needed is some insulation plus a vapour barrier on the warm side of the insulation.

 

For the same problem with a mattress in a boat a 1" thick sheet of polystyrene under the mattress should do, worked for me in the past.

 

cheers,

Pete.

I used polystyrene tiles around the edge of the bed between mattress and walls when we had this problem. We spent a winter on a hire boat.

Sue

[Troll]

I would have thought it is more likely to be from the sides than beneath the mattress.

 

One thing you could try ( I know someone who has done this) drill some holes down the side of mattress in the wall board and inject some expanding foam

[scottessery]

hia guys

 

just a quick update

 

i have aquired some 25mm pollystiarine (is that how you spell it ) and am giving it a go... need a bit more as the 'gaps between the PS is where the hot moist air is condensing

 

so plan a get more ps... see how it goes nad then onto plans b, c, d and e

 

 

thanks for all your help

 

will keep you posted

[johnthebridge]

hia guys

 

just a quick update

 

i have aquired some 25mm pollystiarine (is that how you spell it ) and am giving it a go... need a bit more as the 'gaps between the PS is where the hot moist air is condensing

 

so plan a get more ps... see how it goes nad then onto plans b, c, d and e

 

 

thanks for all your help

 

will keep you posted

Sorry, but I think that polystyrene is almost certain to give you more condensation problems, not less. See my post 10, and note my aversion to foam backed carpet. That has the same effect as polystyrene.

Edited November 13, 2008 by johnthebridge

[Nickhlx]

Going back to basics, condensation forms when warm moisture laden air meets a colder surface. So the solution is some or all of the following - either to make the air warmer ( will hold more moisture ) until it can be vented out, make the colder surfaces warmer so they won't cause condensation to form.

 

Reduce the sources of condensation, Gas stoves, gas standalone heater are the worst, hanging washing up inside to dry is bad too, any sinks/bowls left with warm water in, damp dogs...

 

Increase the ventilation, especially background ventilation - vents that are screw-locked open are for this purpose - to ensure some ventilation is still present when "all" the windows are shut.

 

Keeping things warmer - improving insulation will help reduce heating bills and also improve feeling of comfort, although when the boat is already built there is a limited amount by which this can be improved. Certainly a heating loop through cupboards, under beds etc will help, but these must also be ventilated well.

 

Consider a small de-humidifier - these are generally too noisy for use overnight and too power hungry unless on a shore line or you have good battery storage / run engine long enough in the day. There's no point in running it with the windows open, but if you have to shut up the boat during the day and e.g. go to work and are on a shoreline, it is a good option. All the electricity consumed appears as heat in the boat and the water extracted isn't floating around to condense on the cooler surfaces.

 

Hope these ideas provide food for thought

 

Nick

[smileypete]

i have aquired some 25mm pollystiarine (is that how you spell it ) and am giving it a go... need a bit more as the 'gaps between the PS is where the hot moist air is condensing

 

If you can't get a big sheet, try taping over the joins on the 'warm' side of the polystyrene, eg with duct tape.

 

cheers,

Pete.