House A/C and Heater experts

powerboatr

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I am looking for a simple device i can install in my floor heater ducts to dehumidify the air in my RV without having to bake at 80 degrees
I have a portable dehumidifier but is a pain to have it sitting in the middle of the room. so i was thinking using my heater return and supply ducts and route a dehumidifier inline to run on a separate fan to dehumidify my RV.
any ideas or i am nuts
thanks
 

BIG JOE

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Kinda Shadetree but it works..... heres what my Dad does:

There are non-mechanical, non electrical de-humidifiers called, Dryz-air (sic?). He hinged the heater intake grill and sets 2 or 3 of these inside the intake. as the intake air passes over the.... whatever , the moisture is drawn out. These things are about the size of a soup bowl. They work well.

Don't know if thats the way you wana go but....:dunno

JOE

On edit... you'll need to buy replacement packets of the ..whatever, as they wear out.
 
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Hoss 350

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I guess I don't understand the application you are looking for. Are we talking 80degrees ambient under cooling load, or cold ambient under an 80 degree heating load?

The reason I ask is because your air conditioner unit should be dehumidifying the air by itself, so if you have humidity problems under cooling load, something is wrong.

Now, humidity problems under heating load is a different story. Propane heaters make humidity, so if your humidity is more inside than outside, you may have an exhaust leak from the heater into your ducts. If so, then you have bigger problems to worry about than humidity. If the humidity is more inside than outside, but you do not have an exhaust leak, then you may have condensate or an actual water leak inside your system. Try running the heater for a couple days, on a low-humidity day with the windows open to see if you can dry out whatever the problem is. If you cannot, then there may be water leaking somewhere.

If the humidity inside is the same as outside, but it is warmer inside, so it causes problems, THEN I would do what Joe said and get a couple DRI-Z-AIR units and build a little plenum at the intake and put them in there. There are also smaller units. Your local RV store will be able to give you ideas, too.

I am from dry Spokane, so I always assume humidity problems to be something other than environmental humidity (since we have none). YOur problem may very well be environmental humidity, so an in-duct or in-intake dehumidifier is your best bet.

Where I come from, we spend BIG money to add humidifiers to our HVAC systems so your nose and eyes don't dry out all the time in the winter, because it is so dry. Big difference.

I spent very little money on the cast iron kettle that I put on top of my wood stove and let the boiling water humidify the air. Why pay big money when you can do it cheaper?


PS, the nice thing about DRI-Z-AIR is they do not use any juice to run. THey are completely autonomous and will not add extra drain and strain to your e-system...
 
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powerboatr

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ok
more info i see my intial post was like i like to say missing some info
I prefer in the winter to keep the cabin/coach temps in the rv at about 74 (winter) (I prefer not to be hot at home)
we maintain this really easily without running the propane furnace (35k btu)
with the fireplace it has a 5k btu heat coil and the bedroom a/c has a heat strip good fro 5600 btu. they work very well except ... the coach is so well insulated ( much like a space shuttle) that the hot moist air from us breathing, bathing and cooking cant get out, without running the fantastic breeze roof fan which moves a boat load of air ( and draws in COLD iclandic temps from outside)and has helped me find all the air leaks, or cranking up the propane heater and let her run for about 20 minutes , which about 15 to long cause it works very well at heating us up. but not drying off the windows.
If i run the a/c it flat removes the moist air with zero issues. but having the coach at a temp of 65-70 is too cold fro winter time comfort, especially right out of the shower :D
So purchased a real nice portable dehumidifier from homey d and it works well at removing gallons per day of moisture, its just a PITA to keep moving it each night out in the middle of the living room so it dries all the windows and such, then moving it back in a corner in the morning, makes nice fresh water,
so i installed a few electronics cooling fans in odd laces to ensure good air circulation int eh main caoch and it helped keep the moist air off the windows but its not perfect.
so i was looking for a system short of replacing my overhead a/c unit with a heat pump that runs on low 24/7 at a prescribed temp which will in effect dry the air

that i could utilize existing air tubes to move air to and from a dehumid device that could be located in the basement storage area.

wow this is long
thanks
guys
 
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BIG JOE

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OKAY.... Now I git'it... What I do, in my FW. I'm on the: Why Should I use My propane, when I can Use Thier Electricity.... cuz I'm paying X amount to stay here.... program

Years ago, I bought 2, 1300/1500 watt "Milk House" heaters (Wally World). They seem to cook the moisture out of the air. I put 1 in a out of the way corner of the bedroom on 1300 watts, 1 in the living room, behind my Lazy-Boy, on 1500 watts, adjust them to keep the temp about 72*. I adjust the bathroom vent to just barely open (bout 1/2") My windows stay dry and it's very comfy in the Rig.

An example of that would be, this past weekend, at the Coast. Rainy day, Outside humidity was 80%. Inside was 20-30%. Dry windows. Warm'n Fuzzy inside.

Works for me :sweet
 

powerboatr

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Big Joe
BIG JOE said:
OKAY.... Now I git'it... What I do, in my FW. I'm on the: Why Should I use My propane, when I can Use Thier Electricity.... cuz I'm paying X amount to stay here.... program
yes sir
nail on the head

at 300 a month lot rent that inlcudes everything but propane, you bet use the electricity first

never thought about milk house heaters will go look at em

13 and 15 amps they are 120 volts right.

our FW is set up to run all essential items on 12v, so we could dry camp until i fill the poop tank :roflmao
6500w lp generator (fuel hog)
a/c and fireplace and deep freeze, fridge (it's by power) is only 120 volt appliances
 

Hoss 350

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powerboatr said:
that i could utilize existing air tubes to move air to and from a dehumid device that could be located in the basement storage area.

Ach, sooooo...

So, your current unit, does it pull air in one side and push out the other side? If it works good, then I am thinking you just need to build an insulated plenum (box) under the floor in a good location, then put the unit in the box, and seal the intake side of the plenum from the exhaust side of the plenum.

Can you post a link to your unit? If I get bored today, I could probably figure some way to set this up so that you won't even know it is there. I would get away from using your duct system. Like in a building, those setups are tested, balanced and adjusted so that they push air evenly throughout the unit, depending on demand. YOu could screw that up, have hot/cold spots, maybe...
 

powerboatr

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hoss
thanks
yep its a hampton bay holds about 1.5 gallons ina resivior and is set up to hook a hose to drain which would be easy enough.
I have room in my basement to place it and put two vents in.
it sucks through one side and blows warm air out the other and has compressor in side. its like a a/c unit on wheels cept it puts out hot air vice cool

the RV is http://www.forestriverinc.com/nd/fl...cedar&direc=fifthwheels/cedarcreek/floorplans
 
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BIG JOE

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Yip... 120 v. They really work good. I'v past this method on to my Buds. We all use'm. They are made by several portable heater makers but the ones I have are HoneyWell. Kind of a rectangular box look'n thing..... on the box it will say "Milk House Heater" for the style.

My Rig, like yours, is well insulated.... we turn the one in the bedroom off at night..... even when it's in the 20-30* temps.... even if it snows.

Even if you don't use'm as your primary heat source... they would off-set yer propane costs
 
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