Dealing with damp in my house on wheels

Oddy

Oddy

New member
I live in my van in England, which is (notably) pretty grey and rainy a lot of the time. During winter the biggest nemesis of most van dwellers is the dreaded damp! Unfortunately when I first converted my van I was pretty broke and in a rush, so I didn't get to insulate my van properly. Last winter was rough and miserable, but I have learnt some pretty damn important things from it that have helped me deal with it.

1. I was lucky and got my hands on a wood burning stove that looked like it was on its last legs, but with some work it turned out to be a total life saver!

2. Air flow is literally the most important thing. I used to have solid boards under my mattresses, but this stopped air circulating and meant my bed stayed damp all the time. So I rebuilt the bed higher than the burner, with slats instead of boards and the difference was amazing! Now I regularly air out and flips my mattresses when the weather allows. So important!

3. And this might sound stupid, but decent, thick curtains make an insane amount of difference.

So yeah, if anyone in a similar climate is struggling with damp and hasn't picked up on these points, I hope this helps. Happy rubber-tramping folks!
 

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Do you have an exhaust fan through the roof? Here, a good brand is Fantastic Fan, I understand your voltages are different in the UK. A shop that sells accessories for caravans can set you up, but the best real-life advice might come from an active U.K.-based vandwelling goup, if you can find one. Air exchange is what you need, even when it is damp and rainy. Adding more insulation, without assuring good airflow, is not going to help out as much as it could .
 
ibuzzard said:
Do you have an exhaust fan through the roof? Here, a good brand is Fantastic Fan, I understand your voltages are different in the UK. A shop that sells accessories for caravans can set you up, but the best real-life advice might come from an active U.K.-based vandwelling goup, if you can find one. Air exchange is what you need, even when it is damp and rainy. Adding more insulation, without assuring good airflow, is not going to help out as much as it could .
Click to expand...
I have always had two ventilation fans in the roof, but they didn't seem to help much. Thankfully it's not much of a problem anymore though. Would still highly recommend for anyone that doesn't have one already though.
 
Well, you’re doing the best you can, air exchange and a bit of heat.

I always thought the U.K. was about the rainiest place I knew of. Then, I saw your rainfall, on average is about 33 inches a year. When we ( Santa Cruz Mtns. in California) get that amount, it is considered a drought year. Our 30 year average is just over 50” per year, but we sometimes get 60, 70, or more. We are considered a temperate rain forest. There are places further north of us that get lots more.

I like your van, thanks for those pics.
 
Love your interior! Original and creative. I'm broke and building out a step van verrryy slowwwly because I am in a cold climate and would rather wait and do it right. Too cold to work on it 8 months outta the year around here so I keep accumulating parts and doing my best to be patient. Seeing builds such as yours makes it harder but at the same time reassures me that it'll be worth it. ~ peace
 
Oddy said:
I live in my van in England, which is (notably) pretty grey and rainy a lot of the time. During winter the biggest nemesis of most van dwellers is the dreaded damp! Unfortunately when I first converted my van I was pretty broke and in a rush, so I didn't get to insulate my van properly. Last winter was rough and miserable, but I have learnt some pretty damn important things from it that have helped me deal with it.

1. I was lucky and got my hands on a wood burning stove that looked like it was on its last legs, but with some work it turned out to be a total life saver!

2. Air flow is literally the most important thing. I used to have solid boards under my mattresses, but this stopped air circulating and meant my bed stayed damp all the time. So I rebuilt the bed higher than the burner, with slats instead of boards and the difference was amazing! Now I regularly air out and flips my mattresses when the weather allows. So important!

3. And this might sound stupid, but decent, thick curtains make an insane amount of difference.

So yeah, if anyone in a similar climate is struggling with damp and hasn't picked up on these points, I hope this helps. Happy rubber-tramping folks!
Click to expand...

Wood stoves are AWESOME. keeps us plenty warm, and definitely dries out the air. We have a heat activated fan (from stove creator) that sits on top of it and distributes the warmth as well.
I would next recommend dehumedifying crystals or beads. You can buy them at marine stores; they sit in a bowl and suck moisture from the air. Every once in a while you drain or replace them. When I was a liveaboard they helped keep clothes dryer in a moist environment.
 
Not from personal experience, but I read that cat litter helps. Just put some of it on one or a few trays in your van. Cat litter is very hydrophilic, so it apparently even absorbs moisture from the air. Other people recommend to put salt (which is also hydrophilic) in some socks and put them in different places in the car/van.

Of course check all the door and window seals. Also, having wet clothes/shoes (or even worse, snowy shoes) in your van adds to the moisture, obviously.
 
I dabbled with the "natural" dehumidifier the three years I spent in Los Angeles. I started with silica beads (same as in the small packs you get in various products) and a kilo would turn to mush in 1 week. DO NOT USE A SOCK lol. I started with this stuff because it was cheap and local. Rock Salt was also cheap and a little better, but still turned to mush.

These could have been practical if I found a specialized container like a pod that was between 1 - 2 liters where the base was a dish and the top was full of holes, that would be idea.

I gave up because LA wasn't bad, but here's all the stuff I made notes of to try but never did...

Charcoal - soak up that funk then use it for grilling! Cheap or free, but messy.
Kitty Litter - make sure you get the silica kind. Expensive.
Zeolite - rocks, but they're used heavily in industry. I could never find it locally.
Calcium Chloride - people use it for firming cheese & water treatment. Again, never saw any.

If you come up with something that works, please post in this thread. Good luck!
 
I've had vehicles with bad insulation jobs and it's a pain in the ass - bought a converted lorry once and the previous owner had put thin ply straight on to the box walls with NO INSULATION at all - man did it get cold in there overnight and horrible black mold appeared regularly !

if poss you really need to budget for a few materials when you buy the vehicle - I bought a Merc 7.5 tonner a couple of years ago and spent another £1000 on quality plywood and Celotex insulation - the walls are now 60mm thick and it is toasty....

most of the stuff in my vehicles is tatted or bought ultra cheap but it was worth spending that bit extra this time - especially as insulation is the one thing that's impossible to redo without emptying the whole bloody thing and starting again....

does your burner have fire rope sealing the door ? I renewed it on my Jotul and now the seal is much better it will stay in overnight with a few quality logs - worth thinking about if the existing rope is past it....
 
https://www.tinywoodstove.com/product/small-stove-the-dwarf-3kw-lite/

This is the stove I have. Can't praise it enough. And the company is awesome too; they created their own stove when they couldn't find existing ones that met their needs.
Has chimney options out the front or rear, has rope sealing the door, an easy to clean pull out tray, etc.
And they have tons of products to go with it; chimney sweeper, fans that distribute heat, etc. tons of customizing options. worth the investment.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0014489QI/
https://direct.fredmeyer.com/000759...VEhx9Ch14HQoEEAQYAiABEgJUd_D_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds
these are the desiccants I used while on a boat. Since I've become a rubbertramp though the woodstove more than takes care of moisture.
Also keep in mind, if you're using anything propane, that tends to make a lotm of moisture in the air too.
 
roguetrader said:
I've had vehicles with bad insulation jobs and it's a pain in the ass - bought a converted lorry once and the previous owner had put thin ply straight on to the box walls with NO INSULATION at all - man did it get cold in there overnight and horrible black mold appeared regularly !

if poss you really need to budget for a few materials when you buy the vehicle - I bought a Merc 7.5 tonner a couple of years ago and spent another £1000 on quality plywood and Celotex insulation - the walls are now 60mm thick and it is toasty....

most of the stuff in my vehicles is tatted or bought ultra cheap but it was worth spending that bit extra this time - especially as insulation is the one thing that's impossible to redo without emptying the whole bloody thing and starting again....

does your burner have fire rope sealing the door ? I renewed it on my Jotul and now the seal is much better it will stay in overnight with a few quality logs - worth thinking about if the existing rope is past it....
Click to expand...
Yeah if I did it again I'd do the full insulation, have just helped my friend do her iveco daily and it's insulated to the max, works so well! Thankfully I don't have any problems with damn any more but definitely a shame I didn't get the chance to do it right from scratch.

Yeah my burner is absolutely perfect, I fully restored it, new fire rope, bricks blacking, the works. It's changed my life!
 
Oddy said:
I live in my van in England, which is (notably) pretty grey and rainy a lot of the time. During winter the biggest nemesis of most van dwellers is the dreaded damp! Unfortunately when I first converted my van I was pretty broke and in a rush, so I didn't get to insulate my van properly. Last winter was rough and miserable, but I have learnt some pretty damn important things from it that have helped me deal with it.

1. I was lucky and got my hands on a wood burning stove that looked like it was on its last legs, but with some work it turned out to be a total life saver!

2. Air flow is literally the most important thing. I used to have solid boards under my mattresses, but this stopped air circulating and meant my bed stayed damp all the time. So I rebuilt the bed higher than the burner, with slats instead of boards and the difference was amazing! Now I regularly air out and flips my mattresses when the weather allows. So important!

3. And this might sound stupid, but decent, thick curtains make an insane amount of difference.

So yeah, if anyone in a similar climate is struggling with damp and hasn't picked up on these points, I hope this helps. Happy rubber-tramping folks!
Click to expand...
Hi! Over here on the east coast, the last year has seen a lot of rain! Of course nothing like England, at all. The van I had, leaked & the propane heater didn’t help either!
Ended up with ear infections, which is due to sinus issues, hence damp, mildew van life !
Sold that van & new van,( not the bus), has windows & that helps keep the damp away!
 
Oddy said:
I live in my van in England, which is (notably) pretty grey and rainy a lot of the time. During winter the biggest nemesis of most van dwellers is the dreaded damp! Unfortunately when I first converted my van I was pretty broke and in a rush, so I didn't get to insulate my van properly. Last winter was rough and miserable, but I have learnt some pretty damn important things from it that have helped me deal with it.

1. I was lucky and got my hands on a wood burning stove that looked like it was on its last legs, but with some work it turned out to be a total life saver!

2. Air flow is literally the most important thing. I used to have solid boards under my mattresses, but this stopped air circulating and meant my bed stayed damp all the time. So I rebuilt the bed higher than the burner, with slats instead of boards and the difference was amazing! Now I regularly air out and flips my mattresses when the weather allows. So important!

3. And this might sound stupid, but decent, thick curtains make an insane amount of difference.

So yeah, if anyone in a similar climate is struggling with damp and hasn't picked up on these points, I hope this helps. Happy rubber-tramping folks!
Click to expand...
Damp, over here on the U.S. east coast we have had lots of rain over the last year, of course nothing compared to what you’ve got to deal with. I picked up a new to me van, that had a fiberglass high top, which turned out to leak over time! Got to a point where my only solution was to sell as is & got $400. Lost $200 on how much I paid for it, but had a year of living in it!
I’ve now picked up two short buses, both 1993’s Chevy & GMC, which have a steel roof & feel they will be better in the long run! Check out my post on em!
 
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