Stopping mold

[Splangj]

I live on the coast, so during winter, it gets pretty damp.My RR does live in a garage, but it’s definitely not air tight, unlike my ex girlfriend . I’ve been using desiccant for years in the car, but it always gets damp and moldy. I recently started drinking better quality booze, and had an epiphany. I’ve been using a small electric heater in the car for weeks, and man, it loves a 65 degree temp. Anyone else done this, and experienced any negative issues?

Thanks all!

 

[QuickBpBp]

I have put a dehumidifier in before storing vehicles making sure they are dry... On another note.

"but it’s definitely not air tight, unlike my ex girlfriend"

And just who and where is this girl so none of us run into her?

 

[4mulas]

Maybe potential fire hazard?

 

[Splangj]

Maybe potential fire hazard?

Yes, I’m aware of a fire hazard, but I check the car at least twice a day. Even when the heater is on a low setting, nothing is even warm to the touch, but the air…..is nice and warm and dry, like the high desert!

 

[jimbosride]

I have had good luck with these. I put them inside and under the hood and trunk areas.

Under the hood they work well in cutting down the "Sweating" of the block.

I empty and fill every month or so.

have 9 of them in 3 cars.

 

[RR Fan Dan]

Hot air isn’t going to reduce the humidity. I live in a high humidity area. The humidity is almost always over 70%. My cars were molding in the summer and winter. I tried all kinds of quick fixes that didn’t work. My garages are insulated and pretty tight but not climate controlled. I ended up spending the money on industrial dehumidifiers and problem solved.

 

[Bird 426]

How about an ozone generator? Going to try it in the motor home this summer.

 

[gkent]

Maybe potential fire hazard?

Seriously ?!?! Where you live people haven't been using in-car electric heaters for the past 75 years or so ?

 

[6PKRTSE]

I keep the furnace on all winter and the A/C on in the summer. The furnace keeps EVERYTHING from freezing, being damp and mold free in the spring, winter and fall. The A/C keep out the humidity in the summer months. Doesn't change the gas or electric bill much to run each one.

 

[gkent]

Yup, 65 degree heat in winter and around 72 degree a/c the rest of the year. And I never work with any doors open. They only get opened to move the car in or out.

 

[#41]

They sell small dehumidifiers. You just need to empty the water every once in a while.

 

[RR Fan Dan]

They sell small dehumidifiers. You just need to empty the water every once in a while.

They sell these with an automatic pump

 

[Splangj]

I have had good luck with these. I put them inside and under the hood and trunk areas.

Under the hood they work well in cutting down the "Sweating" of the block.

I empty and fill every month or so.

have 9 of them in 3 cars.

View attachment 1985865

This is exactly what I’ve been using for years. I needed to drain and fill it pretty much weekly, and my car was still musky inside.

 

[Coelacanth]

My garage is unheated and winters in Alberta are typically very dry. But in the summer, I put a dehumidifier in the garage.

 

[zyzzyx]

Unfortunately for where you live the best "set-and-forget" remedy for you is putting your car in a bag and
putting Nitrogen in it. It might sound like overkill but this works, and you don't need to have heat on. Nitrogen
sucks the moisture out of everywhere and the mold cannot get a foothold. In Northern Illinois where I live
my heat is on all winter. It's the price I pay to keep my car dry. Better than the moldy scenario! Pick your poison.

 

[Bird 426]

I drive my cars in the summer, no mold. They get stored in the winter, one is in a storage building inside of an enclosed trailer, the other two are in a garage at about 40°, no mold. My motor home sat last summer, because of sugery, inside storage, white mold. Easy to remove. Got there because a circulating fan froze. To kill the mold and a little easy cleaning, Ozone generater. Been through this before. Check it out.

 

[zyzzyx]

We Illinoisans don't have the moisture problems that they do on the east coast. Sorry you got mold in your R.V.,
but the mold grows on every surface, not just on what you see. Some people can get really sick breathing in the
spores that blow around and yeah they make your car smell. When I watch those guys pulling the cars out of
garages that have been sitting for thirty years, I cringe because if the Mice poop all over the interior can become
airborne and it could have Hantavirus in it. Gene Hackman's Wife died from that exposure. Even the small stuff
can send you to the hospital. Just being cautious!

 

[Bird 426]

So true.

 

[Charles Cook]

This works well in South Carolina

 

[Splangj]

Hot air isn’t going to reduce the humidity. I live in a high humidity area. The humidity is almost always over 70%. My cars were molding in the summer and winter. I tried all kinds of quick fixes that didn’t work. My garages are insulated and pretty tight but not climate controlled. I ended up spending the money on industrial dehumidifiers and problem solved.

Oh I beg to differ. humidity is much lower right now, and it’s starting to rain. I can feel it’s dryer air when I poke my head inside. Cooler more humid pick is with heater off for 24 hours, other pic is on for 24 hours