Drying car out

wba31

So like most other people I imagine the first 5 mins of my morning involves waiting for the windscreen to defrost on the inside due to condensation. I have tried putting newspaper down and cooling the inside of the car down before getting home but still facing a lot of condensation.

I have read that putting bags of silica gel in the car is a good thing to do, and after buying a new suitcase i found it has 2 small packets of silica gel in there.

1) will these tiny packets (teaspoon sized) make a difference in the car? I have 2, do they both need to be in 1 car or will 1 packet be enough (so i can put one in Mrs WBA's car)?

2) where do i place them? under a seat? on the dash? door pockets? does it not matter?

3) how long do i leave them for? is there a limit to the amount of moisture they will take on?

4) so i don't have to keep buying suitcases, where can i buy more to repeat the process?

facade

You need kilogrammes of the stuff, and yes it does work. You stick it on the dash top every time you park up.

It comes in nice bags with damp indicators on, you dry it out in the oven when it is damp, the best way to tell is simply to weigh it, mine will increase in weight by about 33%, and dry out back to the original weight.

Don't buy the calcium chloride stuff, it turns to liquid and is not suitable for a car.

I just bought some from a diving shop on amazon uk (seal products damp eater): search "silica gel "

Can't recommend them yet, as although I have had the despatch email, I think it is coming by horse drawn barge with delivery for 5th Jan.

If homebase ever get any back in stock, they sell a Pingi XL 450g bag with a cute blue penguin, that goes pink when it is time to dry it out, but as it is currently on offer, you have no chance.

It says to dry it out in the microwave, this is a bit hit& miss as if it is not 100% damp, it will get so hot it melts the bag (and the plastic tray in your microwave, despite a good layer of paper towel) I have a jar full of silica gel pellets in the kitchen right now!

GwylimT

I have a moisture trap in the well in each door at the front of my car (a pack of two from pound land) and it has stopped the issue for me, particularly handy as it takes around 15 miles for me heater to produce any heat!

Marktheshark

Make sure the drain bungs under the windscreen bulkhead are clear as this can let damp in to the heating system that makes the heater air very damp making the issue much worse.
You would be surprised how many cars have this issue.
Once unblocked change the pollen filter as this will be damp as well and the humidity in the car should fall.

dacouch

When you use the car heater, make sure it's not on the recirculate setting as otherwise it just recirculates the damp air within the car.

Also make sure you remove any damp clothes or wipes you use from the car at night

Marktheshark

GwylimT wrote: »

I have a moisture trap in the well in each door at the front of my car (a pack of two from pound land) and it has stopped the issue for me, particularly handy as it takes around 15 miles for me heater to produce any heat!

Get a new thermostat fitted as it will be using lots of fuel until it warms up as well.

wba31

GwylimT wrote: »

I have a moisture trap in the well in each door at the front of my car (a pack of two from pound land) and it has stopped the issue for me, particularly handy as it takes around 15 miles for me heater to produce any heat!

is this what you use?
http://www.poundland.co.uk/damp-traps-2-pack

GwylimT

Marktheshark wrote: »

Get a new thermostat fitted as it will be using lots of fuel until it warms up as well.

Unfortunately there is nothing wrong with it, it's just rubbish so it won't make a difference unfortunately. When I altered the system a while ago I did find a small plastic dinosaur in one of the blowers, that was a surprise!

GwylimT

wba31 wrote: »

is this what you use?
http://www.poundland.co.uk/damp-traps-2-pack

Yes, the lavender scent ones, if they are somewhere secure you don't need to empty them very frequently.

facade

If you use them be warned they produce a nasty liquid that will run out if they tilt, they are the calcium chloride ones, and are not reuseable.

wba31

dacouch wrote: »

When you use the car heater, make sure it's not on the recirculate setting as otherwise it just recirculates the damp air within the car.

Also make sure you remove any damp clothes or wipes you use from the car at night

i think i may have had re-circulate on, was never sure whether it was best to be on or off, makes sense now. ill make sure it's off when i go out in a bit...