Condensation on front windscreen......general

[Iain&Shani]

Hi,
I've been getting condesation on the front windows on a fairly regular basis recently. I am talking about general parking up and not while using the 'van. Tomorrow morning I know that I am likely to have to clear the inside of the front windows before I can drive off. When the Cali is parked up for a couple of hours it is likely to condense back up again.

Any thoughts?

Iain

 

[Stu]

Are you regularly running the Air Con?

 

[Martin]

Have a look here aswell Iain ..

viewtopic.php?f=20&t=47&p=225&hilit=condensation#p225

 

[muttley]

Just for info, I have a facelifted Cali and don't have this problem at all in day to day use. I do leave the A/C on in the winter though, as the screen tends to mist up a little without it.

Simon

 

[Iain&Shani]

Thanks folks. I had searched the forums but didn't see the above linked thread!! Doh! My experience sound very familiar to those posted.

The windscreen was clear this am but I did remotely put the heater on for 15 mins. Also I removed the cloth I had wiped the windows with yesterday thus removing an element of damp.

I'll monitor it and try some of the ideas mentioned previously.

Thanks again.

 

[timhutch]

Apologies for being really dull but remember the reasons for condensation or particularly the Dew Point...

The dew point is the temperature below which the water vapour in a volume of humid air at a constant barometric pressure will condense into liquid water. Condensed water is called dew when it forms on a solid surface.

The dew point is a water-to-air saturation temperature. The dew point is associated with relative humidity. A high relative humidity indicates that the dew point is closer to the current air temperature. Relative humidity of 100% indicates the dew point is equal to the current temperature and that the air is maximally saturated with water. When the dew point remains constant and temperature increases, relative humidity decreases. (Thanks Wiki.)

Basically, there is moisture in your van, which when the temperature drops to the Dew Point, will condense on the cold surfaces. If you leave a wet coat or boots in your van (like I do) this will happen frequently at higher temperatures, but as the temperature drops like in recent days, the % humidity required for a water build up reduces too.

There is no solution really, other than removing any source of humidity and ventilating, but as all mammals exhaust water this is somewhat difficult.

I really do amaze myself with my % dullness.

Meaningless chart attached to add further lack of interest.

 

[Iain&Shani]

That's exactly how my windscreen looks.

Seriously...interesting, thanks Tim.

 

[malc]

thanks Tim got me off nicely to an afternoon nap....

 

[Custardtart]

I've got the same problem.

Brand new Cali - no sign of any leaks but the front windows (windscreen and door windows) get dripping wet on a regular basis.

I always have the air-con on when in use - climatronic on high fan auto setting.

It's definitely down to changes in temperature - ie going from warmer to cooler and the moisture in the air condenses but it never happens in my other vehicles just my van. I can't figure out why.

I've resorted to putting a kilo of silca gel crystals in the van. It's helped a lot. No dripping screen now but still do get steamed up after big temp drops.

I could only guess that it's down to the volume of air in a van being able to hold a lot more moisture compared to a car and if it all ends up on the cold surface - ie window - then it's more obvious than in a car.

Anyone got any better explanations and/or solutions?

Many other people suffer from this problem?

Doesn't seem right for a £40k plus vehicle....

 

[swigle]

Same for me. Bog standard climatic (? Well, not climatronic, anyway) takes ages to clear it - had the time yesterday so decided to see how long it took to clear on full blast - 15 minutes before I had a clear screen! Back to wiping screen this morning.
Not yet tried the parking heater suggestion - I park on the street, not always directly outside my front door, so a bit wary of giving this a go.
Have actually had it freeze on the inside! Covering screen overnight solved that one, and also meant no condensation in the morning - I assume cover means screen isn't as cold.

 

[Custardtart]

Covering screen overnight solved that one, and also meant no condensation in the morning - I assume cover means screen isn't as cold.

I think so.

Only reasons I could think of were:
- larger volume of air in a van so can hold more moisture
- lots more windows so acts like a green-house and gets warmer inside, so more moisture?

S'pose it's nice to know I'm not alone with the problem!

 

[CannellWalker]

Same here at the mo. We have just been away for 3 nights and I think that has "added" moisture to the inside of the van. Will see how we get on.

 

[Andy]

The thread that CaliKev posted link to was one that I started on the old forum winter 2011.
I still have the problem. Every now & then I find something, like damp in one of the under sink cupboards, having cleaned it up I think it will cure this issue but it still persists.
A rite royal pain in the rear end !
As Mark suggested I may one day try a dehumidifier to dry it out.

 

[calikev]

It may also be to do with the fact the Cali is insulated unlike a car so it is always going to
Be warmer than the outside temp the carpet holds a certain amount of damp this time of year
So combine the 2 factors could be a reason for the condensation as mine also steams up overnight

 

[m4rky]

Ours doesn't really have this problem but we use it everyday which may be a factor

The other thing I have found with previous vehicles is that whilst air-con helps to dry the air, the minute it is turned off the evaporator starts to defrost which allows the moisture straight back in.

We turn the air-con off when demisting the screen - give it a go

 

[CannellWalker]

Ours has got better as the week has gone on. Quite sure it is related to us using the van last week.

 

[Andy]

Ours doesn't really have this problem but we use it everyday which may be a factor

I travel 6 miles each way to work daily in my Cali & get this problem every now & then. Was really bad a couple of days ago, had to use a towel on windscreen which I hate doing, as well as leaving engine running with the blower running for 15 minutes.

 

[Custardtart]

I've put 10 bags of 250g silica gel into the cali - spread around, in door bins, cubby holes and a couple on the dashboard and haven't had a wet or steamed up windscreen since I did. That's been over a week now and the temps are fluctuating - nearly freezing overnight and about 8° by day so I would definitely have had problems.

Next questions for me are - can I get away with less bags and how long will it last.

I expect I'll have to bring them in the house and dry them out sometime - maybe once a month during the winter?

My main reason for doing this is not just the inconvenience of a wet windscreen - plus the humiliation as it looks like my expensive VW camper is leaking - but more because I want to avoid mould and mildew.