Wirralian Posted April 13, 2012 Share Posted April 13, 2012 The side window of my 'van has started to steam up when the sun is shining on it. It would appear that the vacuum seal in the window has broken down. Can anyone tell me how to remedy this. Can it be repaired? Or is it like a domestic window panel and has to be replaced. If it is a replacement job, any ideas of where to source one cheap. The 'van itself is a Hymer Camp but I dont think that the make matters as I seem to think that other than in size all van windows are of fairly standard construction. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vindiboy Posted April 13, 2012 Share Posted April 13, 2012 there is no vacuum in the window, if there were it would just squash with the normal air pressure, some windows have a tiny plug in them, if yours has and you can remove this try playing a hair drier over the window to dry out the moisture then replace the plug, you wont find a cheap replacement window for a Hymer but I did read once of a company making copy windows but I think you have to send the original to them to copy, not easy if you are using your van, someone will know the answer for sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted April 13, 2012 Share Posted April 13, 2012 vindiboy - 2012-04-13 11:05 PM there is no vacuum in the window, if there were it would just squash with the normal air pressure, some windows have a tiny plug in them, if yours has and you can remove this try playing a hair drier over the window to dry out the moisture then replace the plug, you wont find a cheap replacement window for a Hymer but I did read once of a company making copy windows but I think you have to send the original to them to copy, not easy if you are using your van, someone will know the answer for sure. In truth, the simplest remedy is just leave it and, like Bo-Peep's sheep, all will be well. The units are not hermetically sealed, and a little atmospheric humidity has got into the airspace during the winter. It may take several weeks, but as the weather warms up and the atmosphere generally dries, the condensation will just disappear of its own accord. If it is still visible in June, then worry, but it is a very common, self righting, spring problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest pelmetman Posted April 14, 2012 Share Posted April 14, 2012 When my bathroom window started to trap water in between, I drilled a small hole at the bottom :D...........cured the problem ;-) But there is a firm in Halifax who will copy your existing window for you http://www.eeco-ltd.co.uk/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikebeaches Posted April 14, 2012 Share Posted April 14, 2012 Brian Kirby - 2012-04-13 11:55 PM vindiboy - 2012-04-13 11:05 PM there is no vacuum in the window, if there were it would just squash with the normal air pressure, some windows have a tiny plug in them, if yours has and you can remove this try playing a hair drier over the window to dry out the moisture then replace the plug, you wont find a cheap replacement window for a Hymer but I did read once of a company making copy windows but I think you have to send the original to them to copy, not easy if you are using your van, someone will know the answer for sure. In truth, the simplest remedy is just leave it and, like Bo-Peep's sheep, all will be well. The units are not hermetically sealed, and a little atmospheric humidity has got into the airspace during the winter. It may take several weeks, but as the weather warms up and the atmosphere generally dries, the condensation will just disappear of its own accord. If it is still visible in June, then worry, but it is a very common, self righting, spring problem. I'm sure Brian has the right answer. A couple of years ago we bought a second-hand Rapido at the beginning of March and stayed overnight near the dealer to check everything worked OK. All was fine, except that next morning after a frosty night, the sun shone on one of the windows which promptly steamed up internally. We obviously highlighted the concern to the dealer - who, unfortunately, was not as clear as Brian - but more or less said 'it should be alright, but come back in a few weeks if it's still a problem'. Turned out there was no real problem. That autumn we changed the van and bought a new one. Now -18 months on - one sunny morning we noticed one of the windows in the sun had steamed up slightly between the panes. However, I'm not concerned about it, as I'm confident it will go as the weather improves. Thank you for the reassurance Brian. And to the OP - hope all turns out well with your window. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brambles Posted April 14, 2012 Share Posted April 14, 2012 Someone can correct me if I use the wrong term, but the acrylic material used for the windows is hygroscopic. Water molecules are abosrbed and can pass through the plastic. This is common with a lot of plastic materials. So in the winter or high damp conditions (rain) water will pass through the plastic and evaporate from the plastic into the air space. Hence condensation when window is warm but surface is cold. You will often see the condensation forming when you wash the windows and they cool. Best way to dry out is as explained before..leave well alone, but keep any which are particularly bad in the sunshine. you can help avoid water being absorbed in damp conditions by using a good polish on the windows as this will help repel moisture from rain etc being aborbed. Feel free to totally shred my reply but it is pretty close to what happens. Jon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hallii Posted April 14, 2012 Share Posted April 14, 2012 I once cleared the moisture from a caravan window using a small fish tank pump, take the plug out and make a connection to the pump tubing and pump air in, the connecting tube needs to be smaller than the hole or the air can't get out. Leave it for a day and put the plug back in. H Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted April 14, 2012 Share Posted April 14, 2012 Brambles - 2012-04-14 11:18 AM Someone can correct me if I use the wrong term, but the acrylic material used for the windows is hygroscopic. Water molecules are abosrbed and can pass through the plastic. This is common with a lot of plastic materials. So in the winter or high damp conditions (rain) water will pass through the plastic and evaporate from the plastic into the air space. Hence condensation when window is warm but surface is cold. You will often see the condensation forming when you wash the windows and they cool. Best way to dry out is as explained before..leave well alone, but keep any which are particularly bad in the sunshine. you can help avoid water being absorbed in damp conditions by using a good polish on the windows as this will help repel moisture from rain etc being aborbed. Feel free to totally shred my reply but it is pretty close to what happens. Jon Spot on Jon, it's been a minor problem since they stared fitting double glazed windows. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wirralian Posted April 15, 2012 Author Share Posted April 15, 2012 Many thanks for all your respnses and suggestions. It started in March towards the end of my winter stay in Spain so the humidity theory makes sense. I shall wait a couple of months and see what happens. John (lol) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maggyd Posted April 15, 2012 Share Posted April 15, 2012 I asked at the caravan dealers about the windows when we had one, the reply was caravan windows arent the same as double glazed windows in the home! and all you have to do is on a sunny day remove the plugs open the window fully to let the sun dry it out then replace plugs :-S its not a bad idea to buy new ones from the dealers as getting the original ones out can be tricky and you can damage them if not careful. We do occasionally have the same problem with our MH I just open the window ! I don't attempt to remove plugs (dont even know if the are any :-D never looked) but it soon clears, I wouldn't advise drilling the whole thing might crack!! I SHOULD say I wouldnt let O.H drill holes in the window he isnt known for his luck working with glass or similar (lol) if he reads this NO YOU DONT!!! (lol) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nickideano Posted May 3, 2012 Share Posted May 3, 2012 Take out the two plugs and connect fish tank air pump and let it blow away happily , better still if you can push air through a container with silca jell in before it goes into window this way you are putting dry air in through glazing . takes a while (couple of weeks) but it works as i have done this myself . with a fish tank air pump and an enclosed old bake bean can and a descicant pack inside and some pipe . the amount of electricity used is very little ie pence as these pumps only take a few watts , SIMPLES Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nickideano Posted May 3, 2012 Share Posted May 3, 2012 Take out the two plugs and connect fish tank air pump and let it blow away happily , better still if you can push air through a container with silca jell in before it goes into window this way you are putting dry air in through glazing . takes a while (couple of weeks) but it works as i have done this myself . with a fish tank air pump and an enclosed old bake bean can and a descicant pack inside and some pipe . the amount of electricity used is very little ie pence as these pumps only take a few watts , SIMPLES Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pepe63xnotuse Posted May 3, 2012 Share Posted May 3, 2012 nickideano - 2012-05-03 9:10 AM Take out the two plugs and connect fish tank air pump and let it blow away happily , better still if you can push air through a container with silca jell in before it goes into window this way you are putting dry air in through glazing . takes a while (couple of weeks) but it works as i have done this myself . with a fish tank air pump and an enclosed old bake bean can and a descicant pack inside and some pipe . the amount of electricity used is very little ie pence as these pumps only take a few watts , SIMPLES Blimey Nick'..that sounds a bit of a faff?... (lol) ..and after "two weeks",unless the inside of the van is sopping wet,I would've thought the window would cleared by it's own accord anyhow... :-S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alf Posted May 3, 2012 Share Posted May 3, 2012 Have a look at this link for replacements http://www.miriad-products.com/page.php?xPage=polyplasticwindowid Alf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wirralian Posted May 25, 2012 Author Share Posted May 25, 2012 This is a follow up to my original post. Rather than improve with time the condensation within my window got worst. So today I set about removing the two little plugs and manoeuvred the van to be in full sunshine all day. As I opened the window to give myself better leverage to pull out one of the plugs , I was amazed to see quite an amount of water sloshing about within the window and that an algae plant was growing in a bottom corner!! With the window fully open I was able to empty most of the water through the plug hole. After leaving the van in very hot sun for some hours and supplementing with the use of a hair dryer the condensation has improved but it is going to take a lot more time on it. The problem, of course, is that wet algae plant. But how do I get rid of it? The only way I can think of is to drill a hole under it and with a thin wire (or something similar) coax it out. As the plug holes have been drilled into the polyplastic to accomodate the plugs this would seem feasable. Or am I being naive? Will be grateful for advice. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted May 25, 2012 Share Posted May 25, 2012 This sounds like a different ball game. Misting due to a bit of condensation at the beginning of the season is quite normal. Water and algae sloshing inside the cavity is not! There must be a leak somewhere around the periphery of the window for so much water, and the algal spores, to get in. Many plastic double glazed units have the latches on the inner skin only, meaning that if the leakage is due to the bond between the inner and outer skins failing, and that failure progresses, the window can divide leaving the outer skin flapping or flying off while the inner stays latched or gets pulled off with the outer. I think you will probably need a new DG unit for a reliable cure. Have a good look all around the window to see if you can see a maker's name. If you find the name Polyplastic, they had a problem with their units de-laminating around the edge a few years back. They were replacing (I think, or repairing) affected units. If it is one of theirs, use the Search facility above and enter Polyplastic as the keyword, select Motorhome Matters as the forum to search, and set Time to all dates. You should get chapter and verse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BGD Posted May 26, 2012 Share Posted May 26, 2012 Wirralian - 2012-05-25 10:01 PM This is a follow up to my original post. Rather than improve with time the condensation within my window got worst. So today I set about removing the two little plugs and manoeuvred the van to be in full sunshine all day. As I opened the window to give myself better leverage to pull out one of the plugs , I was amazed to see quite an amount of water sloshing about within the window and that an algae plant was growing in a bottom corner!! With the window fully open I was able to empty most of the water through the plug hole. After leaving the van in very hot sun for some hours and supplementing with the use of a hair dryer the condensation has improved but it is going to take a lot more time on it. The problem, of course, is that wet algae plant. But how do I get rid of it? The only way I can think of is to drill a hole under it and with a thin wire (or something similar) coax it out. As the plug holes have been drilled into the polyplastic to accomodate the plugs this would seem feasable. Or am I being naive? Will be grateful for advice. John John, that is awesome - you've got the very first motorhome window-aquarium! Some of those pretty little electric blue fish are all you need now.................... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wirralian Posted May 28, 2012 Author Share Posted May 28, 2012 Thanks very much for that Brian. Yes, my window is a product of the Dutch Polyplactics firm. I can't see any apparent source for a leak. Perhaps something like a smear of dye all around the edge of the window might help to give a clue to the source(?). I did wonder about that much water within the window as the misting only started towards the end of March when we had been in Spain for 3 months and had encountered only a few hours of rain in all that time. The only real downpour was at the end of January. I shall follow up the web site referred to in the previous Motorhome Matters thread. John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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