Drying car interior ... car kept outside .. thoughts

[ajlsl600]

I used to do the same when the Smart was on the driveway year before last. May do the same with a timer now it winters in the barns as last time there was evidence of a small amount of damp in the car (SL on the other hand is bone dry ).

those tecno jobs have a pipe fitting on tank so its not an issue to use timer very good they are .use in bedrooms once ,2x a week in winter during daytime, can get 4,5 litres sometimes from each room !!

 

[LostKiwi]

those tecno jobs have a pipe fitting on tank so its not an issue to use timer very good they are .use in bedrooms once ,2x a week in winter during daytime, can get 4,5 litres sometimes from each room !!

We have a smallish industrial one in the house in France - its an Ebac Powerdri 18. It runs 24/7 all winter and has a pipe and an humidistat. Bit more than €90 though! So far been totally reliable and does do a great job sucking out water.

 

[DREAMER NO2]

Thought about this and the mice . But i have a security light outside it comes on if cats about .But i will possition a trap under the car lol.

 

[LostKiwi]

Good tip from ajlsl600 (cheers!) squirt everything in sight with WD40 as the mice don't seem to like it. Also try one of those ultrasonic mouse scarers - we have a couple in the house in France after finding some mice in there last year and since installing a decent one no mice ever since (the cheap ones don't work).

 

[Submariner1]

Ah but Sub does....

Definitely does

But wont go near chemical car litter ... only the dried wood pellet types.
But only once in an emergency in the last 3 years has he used it, and tht was to be sick.

He always goes out ... through his cat flaps!
Very low maintenance is Chucky!

 

[Submariner1]

watch the rodents dont take a liking to yr bed cover,then yr wiring if its cosy in there they WILL.

Too true ,
One of our friends, who have a conerted Gites in Provence, found the car had been savaged by rats. Did a lot of damage ££££ to the wiring and ripped out the stuffing in the rear seat.
The main BMW dealer said it was very common with cars kept in barns!

They now have a couple of moggies.

 

[Submariner1]

Thanks for all the useful tips and comments.

Testing the rear dashcam and adjusting the polariser lens circa 20 mins! was enough from just my body heat to fog it up.
I do have 2x 500g silica gell bags came with a jack.

I noticed the garage thermometer and hydrometer said the humidity in there was 97%!

 

[SRE]

.... 2x 500g silica gell bags came with a jack.

2 x 500g... You should be able to lift them without a jack

 

[Submariner1]

Bought a Peltier Dehumidifier £24.
500ml tank, 250ml extraction per day.

Fairly dinky and well made ... a real pity my memory is not what it was.
I thought the ‘Peltier’ model drew air over the hot side to to prewarm the air, in advance of the condensation process, and then over the cold to perticipate the “dew”.

Seeing the recomended Ambient temps in the manual as >15C ( sadly no mention of this in the sales specs on Amazon ... kinda useful info .... ) made me refresh the old grey cells, as to how the Peltier model works.

Drrrr it actually draws air first over the cold side, condensates then, then pulls it over the hot side and expels the warmer dryer air.
Hmmm so not ideal for using outside at 5-7C

Maybe it would still be useful with a small heater to preheat the input.

Will Experiment just in case it works.

But overall not such a smart idea.

 

[Submariner1]

Oh well thats never going to work.
1.5 hrs and 2 drops.
Took out water tank and looked at the cold side fins.

Yep frosted up like a freezer needing a defrost. Pic taken after 5 mins inside the house, initially it was all furred up like the parts of the fins deeper in.

But Obviously working ... in that the fins are colder than the ambient air temp.
But its got so cold, its frozen the dew on the fins.
Guess its about 4C outside.

This is going to need a heater.
But what type tube heater just in front of unit or a little fan heater generally getting inside of cab warm.

Maybe if it was used after a decent run, and the temp boosted at the end to 28C it would work, but I guess only until it cooled down to about 15C, (as the manual said). But thats a pretty short working window.

Shame as it would have been a neat, compact (thats an iphone 7 plus in the pic) easy, one-piece solution for an outside car.

Makes you wonder about the IQ of designers, ..... selling in Europe ... why not have put a small heater element in front of the intake. Thus making it more efficient above 15C and also able to run in temps down to say 1C.