Winter all over cover going on- Must be getting colder.

[salamis]

I have my tube heaters mounted on base boards to keep them from falling over ( 2 of my "many" ) )

Yer but I bet the ones in Tremlet are Rivaesque shiny varnished versions, knowing what you and your brother are like working in marine wood.

[jokaboat]

I'm still up top.

Last year we didn't bother with the heaters as the motor was winterised and the fresh water drained. By leaving the cabin door open to maximise ventilation it was fresh as a fresh thing in the spring so we might do the same again this year.

[ian h]

Have been thinking of installing a dehumidifier this year,
Has anyone tried 1 and if so what do they think?

[T 15]

I have my tube heaters mounted on base boards to keep them from falling over ( 2 of my "many" ) )

Yer but I bet the ones in Tremlet are Rivaesque shiny varnished versions, knowing what you and your brother are like working in marine wood.

none in Tremlett 15 as she is in a nice "boat shed"

[T 15]

Have been thinking of installing a dehumidifier this year,
Has anyone tried 1 and if so what do they think?

yes, great job but get a dessicent dehumidifier, last year I changed to a Meaco as it got top marks in another mag..... & the guys on "the other channel" seem to think they are the best too

a current link

http://www.meaco.com/proddetail.asp?prod=DD122FW


make sue the one you get has an auto by-pass drain & that when set on a time clock that the model is one that will turn its self back on after being cut off by the time clock

[ian h]

Have been thinking of installing a dehumidifier this year,
Has anyone tried 1 and if so what do they think?

yes, great job but get a dessicent dehumidifier, last year I changed to a Meaco as it got top marks in another mag..... & the guys on "the other channel" seem to think they are the best too

a current link

http://www.meaco.com/proddetail.asp?prod=DD122FW


make sue the one you get has an auto by-pass drain & that when set on a time clock that the model is one that will turn its self back on after being cut off by the time clock

Thanks for that, I have been looking at that model as it has good reviews but always prefer to hear from a fellow boater

[salamis]

I have 2 decent sized shrouded ventilation holes on my winter cover and the bellows action of the cover moving in the wind seems to keep the insides very dry. As thIs is the first year I have had electicity available to the boat for heating in years it will be interesting to see how improved it will be keeping everything dry.

[Warpa]

I have 2 decent sized shrouded ventilation holes on my winter cover and the bellows action of the cover moving in the wind seems to keep the insides very dry. As thIs is the first year I have had electicity available to the boat for heating in years it will be interesting to see how improved it will be keeping everything dry.

Thats interesting, is it worth loosening the poles fron and rea from my popper cover to allow the cover to flex and move the air a bit? it would make sense as i always have them very taught.

Here is an old pic of the cover, you can see the pole in the bowrider section, there is one in the rear out of view.

[salamis]

Warpa it is always best to keep the cover very tight with a pole to make a high point to allow rain water to run off otherwise you will have quite a few gallons of water build up with no run off point. The flexing is only slight but over a prolonged period it’s just enough to move air around. I actually have two poles under my cover to stop rain water puddling.
This is my cover, but as now drystacked is tied off to the racking:

[markanddawn]

We went out in Cardiff Bay for Bonfire night, having not used the boat for 2 months. Tested everything and all was fine, got out of the marina and the nav light failed back in we went.

I fitted a tube heater during summer (I knew it would be a horrible job once cold) to the engine bay and is now a permanent attachment.

As I moor all year round, I normally remove all soft furnishings but haven't yet. The result - two soaking wet pillows and damp cushions in cabin, even though the temperature hasn't really dropped too much yet.

I will this week strip all interior furniture that isn't fixed. Although we will still use her, we will not be using cabin so the cushions can stay off until March.

Will put another tube heater in cabin and two moisture absorbing devices (rechargeable type). Roll on summer!

[Matt13]

Will put another tube heater in cabin and two moisture absorbing devices (rechargeable type). Roll on summer!

I bought a couple of these ready for the winter, not sure how good they are.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Pingi-Rechargea ... 953&sr=8-1

[markanddawn]

I have these but not tried yet, my neighbour has borrowed them to dry out car after windscreen leak (not just boats then). For £15 worth a try.

[salamis]

Hi markanddawn, dampness under the cover is due to lack of ventilation, my cover has two ventilation holes covered by plastic shrouds and damp is not a problem. The tube heater are to protect plastic and rubber pipes and seals against freezing. Warming up damp air with no means of venting it out is going to cause considerable condensation issues.

[JORIDAPILOT]

Have been thinking of installing a dehumidifier this year,
Has anyone tried 1 and if so what do they think?

yes, great job but get a dessicent dehumidifier, last year I changed to a Meaco as it got top marks in another mag..... & the guys on "the other channel" seem to think they are the best too

a current link

http://www.meaco.com/proddetail.asp?prod=DD122FW


make sue the one you get has an auto by-pass drain & that when set on a time clock that the model is one that will turn its self back on after being cut off by the time clock

Thanks for that, I have been looking at that model as it has good reviews but always prefer to hear from a fellow boater

I use exactly the same model but different badge and it has kept the cabin bone dry. I didn't remove anything last year, even had a load of old teeshirts in the bin under the seating and everything was kept dry. I do keep everything closed and the cabin door locked. It is not airtight but pretty good. I would thoroughly reccommend this particularlar type. One point to note though, the sales blurb states "The air coming out of the DD122FW will be about 10 to 12°C warmer than the air that goes into it. Very useful for drying washing and warming cold areas of the house." This is only the case when the machine is drying off the dessicant wheel, not all the time, generally the air out is the same temperature as the air in, the machine is sampling the air and checking the RH, if it is not extracting moisture it does not heat it.
I have used the bags of granules in the past, similar to http://www.amazon.co.uk/Pingi-Rechargea ... 953&sr=8-1 in Matts post and found that they absorbed a lot of moisture but eventuall they are "full" and just hung in the cabin like a big wet rag. You need to take them home and dry them out regularly, probably once a week.
I also have an oil filled radiator in the engine bay with a frost thermostat. If set correctly this keeps the bay at between 1.5 and 3 degrees even on the coldest nights. I have a max and min thermometer in both compartments and often the cabin records lower temperatures than the engine bay.

Of course I am totally relient on a power supply, if that goes down, I'm stuffed.

[Matt13]

The ones I linked to you just put in the microwave for 6 minutes to dry out so if I do that once a week I shouldnt have a problem and I can do that on the boat. So do you not bother with winterising the engine then JP?