Franco Posted August 27, 2012 Share Posted August 27, 2012 Hi folks. I was away this weekend with 3 grandchildren. Two of them slept in the overhead bed. During the night 'something went bump'. It was only a toy falling, thankfully not one of the children!. However as I checked out the children I was very surprised to find that the entire roof of the overhead was very wet with condensation- even droplets forming on the top part of the roof. We do not normally use the overhead,- we use fixed rear bed- so I was unaware of the problem until that night. I realize that 2 children sleeping near the roof would result in some condensation, but has anybody got any experience/ advise/comments on this problem. It was an exceptionally wet, showery night-.some of the heaviest rain I have seen. The rest of the camper ceiling etc was perfectly dry. One of my sons says this was a problem we also had years ago with another overhead camper. Maybe it is normal in such wet conditions? Is there any real insulation in the overheads?? Any views on how to eliminate/reduce the problem? Camper is a Compass Castaway Regards .Franco :-o Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Part Time Posted August 27, 2012 Share Posted August 27, 2012 We also have varying degrees of this. We use the overhead bed extensively and the only real solution is good ventilation which has a noticeable effect. In conversation over the last few years I have found this to be a pretty common problem although outside temperature rather than just rain seems to be the major cause particularly as we all have a tendency to close all the windows when its a bit chilly outside. Hope this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Franco Posted August 27, 2012 Author Share Posted August 27, 2012 Hi Part Time. Tks for that. I was concerned I might have a water leak in the head somewhere. The temperature, which I checked at the time was 7.5 inside and 17.5 outside. All windows were closed. Tks again. Franco :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest pelmetman Posted August 27, 2012 Share Posted August 27, 2012 We use our overcab bed all the time, and the only time we've had condensation was when it was minus 14 8-).................and then the only condensation was on the lockers at the front of the luton :-S Our roof in the cab is covered with the type of PVC fabric you used to get in car roof linings, and its stretched over battens so there's a good 1" or more space between the lining and the roof ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Franco Posted August 28, 2012 Author Share Posted August 28, 2012 Hi Pelmetman. Tks for your info. I think I will sit and think on how to either insulate the ceiling or just accept the codensation. Invariably we use the camper in the months March- Sept so maybe opening a window will allow the condensation to 'desist'. Tks for your reply. Reards Franco Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted August 28, 2012 Share Posted August 28, 2012 There were five of you in the van, albeit three were children. I wonder if you cooked in the van, and possibly also washed up and washed in the van? As it was a wet evening, you presumably had windows/rooflights closed, or only partially opened. If correct, the additional occupants, plus humidity creating activities, will have resulted in very high levels of humidity within the van. As hot air rises, and lutons are generally the highest part of such vans, the warm moist air will have migrated up into the luton. Rain is generally cold, so heavy rain will quickly have dropped the temperature of the van and luton roofs. Under the circumstances, it is not entirely surprising that the occupied luton is where the condensation was worst - though I would have expected the windscreen also to have been streaming water! It is possible that the luton roof is not as well insulated as other roof areas. Lutons tend to be curved, and some insulation materials roll down the curve leaving parts of the roof uninsulated. Some insulants are rigid, and have to be part cut through at intervals to take on the curve, which then degrades their performance. As this happened in August, it sounds a little as though your van may be suffering from one of these effects. There is little that can be used safely and practically to improve the luton insulation from inside the van. It really needs to be tackled by removing the internal headlining, which is probably not worth considering unless the problem becomes severe and is always present. The best remedy will be to increase ventilation generally, and to leave some vents open at night when the van is occupied in this way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Franco Posted August 29, 2012 Author Share Posted August 29, 2012 Hi Brian. Tks for insight. I just type a reply now but it seems to have disappeared, so maybe I am repeating the reply. In any event, in hindsight, it all makes sense now, and as you summarised it;- heavy rain, windows closed, cooking, 2 televisions on- one for the kids and one for me! (lol) . I will ensure that there is more ventilation from now on and see how things develop. Tks for your help on this matter. Regards Frank Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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