Electric blanket and condensation query

jaylu

Hi folks!

I sleep on the floor of my flat and am looking to use an electric blanket for the first time this year to save money.

However I am a bit cautious about doing so as I have noticed when I put my bed away in the mornings there is condensation on my carry mat and the underside of my foam mattress is damp.

Does anyone know if my using an electric blanket would be a hazard? Or would the heat from the blanket keep things dry? Or would it actually make things worse?

I have some understanding that the condensation is caused by warm air meeting cold and there being no ventilation but my limited grasp of science can't work this out.

For info my bed consists of a carry mat, on top of that goes the foam mattress, then a mattress cover and then my duvet.

I would be grateful for any thoughts!

Owain_Moneysaver

I would think that using an electric blanket that gets damp could be extremely dangerous.

A camp bed base would keep you and your mattress off the floor, allow air to circulate underneath so hopefully stopping things getting damp, and stop the warm moist you coming into contact with the cold floor.

Something like a fibre futon mattress would also be more breathable than a plastic foam one.

jaylu

Cheers for your reply.

It'd be a shame to not be able to sleep on the floor, it really sorts out my back and I do feel great in the morning!

I've used camp beds like the one on your link before and they are just not as comfortable as the floor.

In case you are wondering I have a very small flat and the mattress I am using is from my sofabed which is now too uncomfortable to sleep on. Can't afford a new one at the moment but it makes an excellent sofa anyway.

Thanks for the tip fibre futon mattress I will have a look into that.

I think its strange that there are no warnings about condensation situations mentioned on the electric blanket literature. Maybe the manufacturers don't expect to sell to odd people like me who choose the floor but there might be one or two mad people out there who may decide to use them outdoors in tents.. there ought to be a mention there somewhere.

fwor

If it's an electric overblanket (I think they all are these days) then you should be fine. It's simply that a carrymat is designed to be impervious to moisture - to keep ground dampness from getting through to you.

In this case, the water vapour escaping from your body is meeting the colder surface of the mat and condensing. Provided it's just a layer on the mat and not a pool of water on the floor, it should represent no hazard.

If you're at all worried, I'd make sure that the supply to the blanket comes via a plug-in RCD.

jaylu

Thanks for your post Fwor.

The blanket I have is a Slumberland one, it is a couple of years old but it is unused and in the original packaging. But it calls itself a 'fully machine washable UNDERblanket'. So I think there may be a problem..or did you mean overblanket in the sense it goes over the mattress and under the person?

Also, sorry for my ignorance but can you clarify what a 'plug-in RCD' is? It has a 'temperature control device' which is detachable from the underblanket. Do you mean that?

Would the electric blanket create more vapour on the mat? It is only a patch of damp on the carry mat and on the mattress at the moment. Would my mattress not get more damp due to the increased temperature?

Yorkie1

An underblanket goes between the mattress and the bottom sheet ideally.

An RCD is a device which goes between the blanket's plug and the wall socket. It trips if there is a problem with the electrical current e.g. if you are using a lawnmower and run over the cord.

rogerblack

I found, when doing this, that to avoid condensation, I could turn the electric blanket up a notch, and take off a blanket from on top.
This means the air can circulate more easily, and stays drier, avoiding condensation.
When doing this without an electric blanket - a rigid block of insulation foam under the matress helped lots.