Good eye! Did this on the street in Columbia City (Seattle, for those of you not in town).
We do a bunch of camping during shoulder seasons and had quite a bit of condensation during those times especially. The fan has made a huge difference. Used to be that we would need to wipe everything down with a towel or two and they would be soaking wet, but no longer.
For those of you asking if having more doors will add ventilation - not really. At least in my experience, when you need the venting the most is also when you wonāt be able to open the doors (I.e., too cold, raining, snowing, etc.). If you have a fan, opening the doors definitely doesnāt help, as the fan then doesnāt get a breeze going across the roof. With a fan, the best method I have found is cracking the two front windows a bit. Doing so leaves me with little to no condensation even in the worst conditions.
Iāve been pretty happy with my little off brand fan! It runs well and the solar keeps up just fine. I would love something that moves even more air but I donāt want to fuss with adding more wires.
Since the beginning Iāve been very hesitant about drilling or cutting through the honeycomb roof or adding height the the camper while closed up (Iām about 1/8th in. from not fitting into most garages.)
With about $5 worth of zipper pulls I added top zipper pulls to both sides of main back door so once I close it up for the night I can zip down from the top and prop it open. I strategically choose which side to open and open the opposite forward window a little and get a nice cross breeze. No signs of condensation the last few nights at 15-20Ā°F.
This is my V.1 system using a water bottle with the ends cut off to hold the zipper open a little.
V.2 will probably be a bottle cut in a better way to reduce likelihood of precipitation making it inside.
V.3 may include a small ducted fan.
Pretty standard machine and a few spare needles both from Joannās for most of it.
Where the sides overlapped the top and all that was stitched together with the DualLock a commercial machine may have gotten involved because it was pushing 8+layers of fleece plus the DualLockā¦
But if I ever made a new insulation liner the top and the sides would be 2 separate pieces attached to the ceiling next to each other so a basic machine would totally be able to handle it.
Side note: all the fleece in my liner is 2 layers sewn together.
My zipper pulls are labeled 8V. 8 being the size, V meaning the pull is made for a vislon zipper. (Molded plastic teeth as opposed to continuous coil or metal teeth.)
It is easier for you to read the nomenclature guide, because engineering plastic may be labeled differently. The entire thermoplastic group is divided into high-alloy, heat-resistant, and standard. If you have an 8, it means that plastics were used that may have eventually become a different product under heat treatment. It is possible that you have alloys that simply have a similar marking. If itās not an engineered product then youād better specify the type of teeth. Chances are they are either made from that material or designed for that material. This was explained to me at Simply Switch when the guys helped me pick out a handy package and explained the rules of wiring.
I live in Colorado and am wondering if Iād have the same experience with a buddy heater. Heard bad things about condensation but I have a USB fan that could help.
I am also in Colorado. Weāve had the camper for about 3 weeks and have camped a total of 6 nights. Each night we left the vent windows fully down with the heater on, then half way down for the remainder of the night.
Iāve ran the buddy heater inside of the camper for at least a brief period each night. The first three nights we experienced no noticeable condensation, which made me think the condensation issue was overblown. 2 of the nights, we awoke to terrible condensation (dripping from the ceiling, sleeping bags damp, etc.) Both nights we experienced bad condensation were lower in temperature with little wind (Iād guess in the 20* range). On these two occasions we ran the buddy heater 30+minutes each night and hung out in the camper.
I am going to give the USB vent fan a go before cutting a hole in my roof. Weāre running a three day trip to Utah in two weeks and Iāll follow up with my findings.
I think there are a lot of variables that contribute to condensation:
Humidity
Wind/air circulation
Number of people/animals in camper
External temperature
Length of time using a propane furnace (Buddy Heater)
I had terrible condensation without a heater camping in Telluride up by Alta Lakes. It was super cold and we were close to a lake so that might not have helped. It was dripping off the ceiling. We also shut the vents because she didnāt believe me when I said we need to vent it even when itās cold. My concern was that a propane heater would make it even worse. Sounds like it does depend on a lot of variables.
Has anyone put carpet on the ceiling? This past weekend we had a little condensation around the metal edges on the ceiling. Butā¦I use a diesel heater and it generally keeps things pretty dry. I know in my topper if it wasnāt for the carpeting it wouldāve been really bad for condensation.
Iāve been thinking that this may be worth a shot. Putting some speaker box carpet on the ceiling, but it would be great if someone else has tried this with success.
I was thinking the same thing. Curious if anyone has tried this.
To be honest, no matter what Iāve slept in while campingā¦various types/sizes of tents, camper shell, RTTā¦solo or with othersā¦condensation happens. Depending on time of year, elevation and weather, sometimes thereās more condensation and sometimes no condensation. I reckon I expect there to be some condensation however it sounds like some are getting rained on. That would be rather annoying. Just my thoughts.
Totally condensation is always a battle. I donāt know if anyone here has ever used a Black Diamond Mega Light, or similar lightweight single pole ātentā. I use this exclusively winter camping, and if you want to talk about condensationā¦HOLY! But there it freezes, and then when it gets windy it basically snows on you all night.
I mean if sleeping in the alpine on the snow isnāt punishment enoughā¦you gotta up the game by playing the game of trying not to touch the sides as you move around.
Iām going to monitor this condensation issue, but I think Iāll give the carpet a shot.
Overland Softgoods is currently in the prototype stage for a insulation liner kit focused on helping with condensation. Iāll be one of the beta testers and am excited to see how it works.
After having my GFC for years (my camper is in the 80s), it is all about airflow. I always leave the small side windows open at least halfway and potentially open the large rear window a little depending on the conditions. This has solved my condensation issue 75% of the time. Most of my camping is in the drier western states ( about 3/5 time in Idaho, Utah, Nevada) and keeping the windows down solves it.
When I camp in the wetter states like Washington and Oregon (about 2/5 time) I simply bring a fast drying microfiber towel up with me and give the top a thorough wipe down first thing in the morning and once more before packing up the tent. The last thing I want to do is close it up with a ton of moisture in there.
Winter camping has typically led to the most moisture inside the tent. So I just open the side windows all the way, fold the excess towards the bug netting, and open the rear about 1 ft. It gets colder, but nothing that a beanie and thicker bedding canāt solve.
Its a tent and no matter what type of tent the amount of water molecules from breathing is going to grow with more people/pets. Iāve avoided a carpet liner because it is just going to trap moisture in the tent, make it so I canāt wipe it of, and lead to the carpet liner getting my bedding wet.
The TLDR on condensation is: Condensation happens when warm interior air hits a cold tent wall. The best way to combat condensation is to make sure that the interior air temp is the same as the exterior air temp. Thatās why open windows and fans are so effective. Beyond that, itās a game of minimizing moisture in the air. Donāt camp on cold nights near water or on wet grass. Donāt store wet clothing/gear inside the camper, change into dry clothes before going to bed.
What about wind snow and rain. Camping in the cold winter with the windows open sounds ridiculously cold and miserable. Youāre one tough dude. I deal with the condensation but stay warm.
