Cold sleeping test.(UPDATE on page 2)

[kirkman]

OK guys last night I slept in my non insulated (except for the roof) 5'x8' tear. I do this all the time in the winter but it was going to be real cold here (-10) so I wanted to see how much condensation would be on the walls in the AM. I have a walmart electric heater that I have wired so the fan runs constantly to keep the air circulating and was hoping this would keep the moisture from freezing on the walls . There was 16 " of hard packed snow and Ice on top so opening the roof vent was not possible. I instead had one window open just a crack for fresh air. I did notice there was a cold draft coming from all the walls when ever I woke up. In the morning there was a 1/6" of ice on all the walls up about 9 inches. I think this might be do to a couple of things one of course it being so freaking cold, 2. The warm air not getting down low enough, 3. and the other not having the roof vent open so the moist air could escape out the the vent. Every other time I have camped when it was cold I did not have this condensation problem so I am just going to have to go clean off the roof and sleep out there again tonight to see if having the roof vent open helps! Dang...LOL....Oh yea I forgot to mention my wife thinks I am crazy.

[SonofT@B]

OK I vote with the wife. I have only camped in weather down to 20 degrees F and had minimal problems. But 16 in of snow and below 0 weather is something else. Condensation is always a problem in low temps. Towels along the wall at floor level help absorb the condensation.

I haven't found a perfect solution...maybe move from Atlanta to Florida...hmmm?

[Big Dan]

What was the inside temp with you in the camper? Did you check? The human body expels lots of moisture while breathing in cold temps. I think more heat and or more ventilation would help. Do you have wood or carpet on your walls? Yes towels or blankets hung on the walls would help insulate and catch moisture.

[Mightydog]

I second the nomination on your being crazy, it looks like the motion carries.

Other than the ice, how did you sleep? We've never camped in that kind of weather, I'm just curious what kind of night's sleep you got.

[bobhenry]

OK guys last night I slept in my non insulated (except for the roof) 5'x8' tear. I do this all the time in the winter but it was going to be real cold here (-10) so I wanted to see how much condensation would be on the walls in the AM. I have a walmart electric heater that I have wired so the fan runs constantly to keep the air circulating and was hoping this would keep the moisture from freezing on the walls . There was 16 " of hard packed snow and Ice on top so opening the roof vent was not possible. I instead had one window open just a crack for fresh air. I did notice there was a cold draft coming from all the walls when ever I woke up. In the morning there was a 1/6" of ice on all the walls up about 9 inches. I think this might be do to a couple of things one of course it being so freaking cold, 2. The warm air not getting down low enough, 3. and the other not having the roof vent open so the moist air could escape out the the vent. Every other time I have camped when it was cold I did not have this condensation problem so I am just going to have to go clean off the roof and sleep out there again tonight to see if having the roof vent open helps! Dang...LOL....Oh yea I forgot to mention my wife thinks I am crazy.

Wife and I have 4 winter shivarees under our belt and have learned a lot on each and every one.

Our 5x8 is insulated with 3/4 blue foam on the walls and 1 1/2" in the floor and then...... We have the lexan roof a 3 /16 piece of hi dollar plastic between us and the outside. I have taken copious readings on the outings and it is truely amazing that inside temps can vary 40 to 50 degrees due to the lack of circulation. I have had the ceiling at 95 degrees and the bed is a brisk 45. Frost builds up on the walls about 12" near the bottom.

I have taken to installing a 14" round fan pointing upward to wash the warm air back down the walls to eliminate the stratification and it helps greatly. It hangs from a grab bar I installed in the roof spars.

[kirkman]

OK so I'm crazy!...The inside temp up by the ceiling was 70 but down by the mattress I am sure it was more like 50. I have wood walls for now this spring I am going to buy the closed cell foam camping pads from walmart and glue them to the walls for insulation. They work great keeping the cold off you when sleeping on the frozen ground so I think they will work great as insulation. Plus they are cheep! Last time I checked they where only about $7 and I will only need 10 or less of them to do the entire interior. I think the biggest problem was not having the roof vent cracked instead of the window.

[kirkman]

Great tip Bob that is why I rewired my electric heater so the fan runs all the time but I think a Fan would increase the circulation!

[Miriam C.]

I don't think you are crazy because I escape to the TD in all weather...I don't have a condensation issue and have 1" insulation on the walls and 1 1/2 on top. MY Td is by no means air tight and never will be. Fan to the ceiling sounds like a good idea. My floors do get cold....

Have you checked the cost of foam insulation?

[happy_camper]

"kirkman":

Thanks for an unbiased battery of tests in pretty challenging conditions. Look forward to further results that might benefit anyone else faced with similar circumstances, planned or not.

The heater you mention running constantly is 120 VAC? And your trailer walls are constructed of 3/4" plywood?

Good luck tonight!

[jjjonz]

I don't think you are crazy because I escape to the TD in all weather...I don't have a condensation issue and have 1" insulation on the walls and 1 1/2 on top. MY Td is by no means air tight and never will be. Fan to the ceiling sounds like a good idea. My floors do get cold....

Have you checked the cost of foam insulation?

Did you have condensation on the windows ?

[pete42]

Dang...LOL....Oh yea I forgot to mention my wife thinks I am crazy.

I have found it does not pay to argue with someone who knows more than I do, I know that goes for your wife.

[asianflava]

I've never slept in the camper when it's that cold. You aslo have to remember that there will be more moisture when 2 are sleeping. I dunno, you may be sleeping by yourself anyway when it's that cold.

[stumphugger]

I wrapped the same blue pads around a cat carrier to make a warm place for the shop cat. He likes it. I do not know if he has condensation problems. I don't think so as the front is open.

[Jazzy Lynn]

Oh yea I forgot to mention my wife thinks I am crazy.

She ain't the only one.
Barbara

[Miriam C.]

I don't think you are crazy because I escape to the TD in all weather...I don't have a condensation issue and have 1" insulation on the walls and 1 1/2 on top. MY Td is by no means air tight and never will be. Fan to the ceiling sounds like a good idea. My floors do get cold....

Have you checked the cost of foam insulation?

Did you have condensation on the windows ?

I don't think so! My daughter is the only one who stayed in it over night and there wasn't any icing. They were in it at 20* all night. The one thing we do is keep it pre-heated so the walls, floors and windows aren't real cold.