How to Solve Condensation Under the Mattress?

[zeehag]

with no condensation at lats 17 and 18, i find butter separates rather than just melting....

[SVNeko]

I want to use this stuff:

HyperVent Marine - Putting An End To Condensation

but think its WAAAAY pricey for what it is. I have seen similar stuff used on the floors of showers and laundries etc. Anyone know where to find this coarsely woven plastic mesh material outside the boat industry?

[tmiller1116]

there is a similar material in the roofing industry. can;t recall the name right now.. way cheaper too.. kind of specialized so it is 50/50 if the big box store will know what you are talking about...

[tamicatana]

Originally Posted by tmiller1116

there is a similar material in the roofing industry. can;t recall the name right now.. way cheaper too.. kind of specialized so it is 50/50 if the big box store will know what you are talking about...

ENKAMAT is one name, there may be others. Thanks for the keyword suggestions. Search term "roofing underlayment ventilation"

[estarzinger]

I have not read the whole thread, so I presume this has been mentioned, but I just drilled a bunch of 3/4" holes in the board under the mattress. Holes are 'free' and allow the mattress to breathe (and also reduce weight, not that is very important on most f our boats).

[zeehag]

ok guys.
2 souls came up with same cure for problem, and were not considered--i think yáll just want to throw money at it and have it disappear--drill the holes and save your money for something more important on board.

[SVNeko]

I have fuel tanks under the bunk so would prefer not to open up to their fumes.

[zeehag]

if you have fumes from your fuel tank, you have a bigger problem than merely condensation. i have zero fumes from my tanks as i have a vent and i have good air circulation, as is supposed to be the case.....
i have bilge under my bunk with holding tank and some wet bilge and a shower sump and no fumes from anything can come up thru my mattress....hhmmmmmmm...and i have very sensitive sense of smell....

[SVNeko]

No leaks but just the random smells that I'd rather do without. I guess you just run a cleaner boat than me. Thanks to those who pointed out the non-marine material. Because while I can put a little $$ at it I would rather it not be boat $$.

[zeehag]

neko--my boat is a filthy derelict i rescued and am still in process of refitting--constantly...if there are smells from bilge, there is a problem. if it comes thru your mattress, which is a decent smell blocker, then you have a real problem and condensation is not one of them.
the ONLY time this heap has ever had any kind of odor was when the hoses became loosened or something needed to be changed out immediately. those were dealt with and my boat only has diesel odors from engine while under way-is called normal smells of engine, and they dont come from under bed.
fix your leaks and make your boat function as it should and you will be a very happy camper. if you block all ventilation from bilges you will grow some lovely black mold in places you cannot see, and that will make more than just odor.

btw--i live on mine. i am here with the lovely smells of boating--but no bad ones from any tight and unventilated spaces.

the holes actually help the boat ventilate the bilges that do need ventilation.

[tamicatana]

Zeehag

if I drill holes under my mattresses, I'll have holes through the bridgedeck. Other solutions are viable, k?

[SVNeko]

Hey Z, we live on our boat too. We try to keep bilges clean. They are shallow on this cat and any smells waft right up. Right now the tanks are under the bunks but pretty much sealed away. On the other side they are open under the bunks. There is a slight smell from them. I can't imagine a tank space that does not have some kind of odor and I would not want to sleep on it if I didn't have to. So seems the better route for me is not to take that chance. Thus the look for something to lay down. These non-boat remedies are not going to be big $$. I agree not to pay a lot for something like this. That is why the hypervent seems crazy $$ to me. Seems like someone taking a basic industrial material, saying its for a boat and X'ing the price by 4. I just walked on this stuff outside a shower the other day, and if it works there it should work for me.

[tamicatana]

Neko

try McMaster-Carr for industrial mats, might have the ones you showered over

I have been using the filter media I mentioned and it is working so far.

[skipmac]

Originally Posted by SVNeko

Hey Z, we live on our boat too. We try to keep bilges clean. They are shallow on this cat and any smells waft right up. Right now the tanks are under the bunks but pretty much sealed away. On the other side they are open under the bunks. There is a slight smell from them. I can't imagine a tank space that does not have some kind of odor and I would not want to sleep on it if I didn't have to. So seems the better route for me is not to take that chance. Thus the look for something to lay down. These non-boat remedies are not going to be big $$. I agree not to pay a lot for something like this. That is why the hypervent seems crazy $$ to me. Seems like someone taking a basic industrial material, saying its for a boat and X'ing the price by 4. I just walked on this stuff outside a shower the other day, and if it works there it should work for me.

I have to agree. I have never owned a boat, no matter how clean and dry, that didn't have at least a slightly musty smell from the bilges. I had one boat that had the tanks and engine in a separate, enclosed space and not drop of oil or diesel to be found leaking anywhere. The bilges were so dry they were dusty. This was back in the old days before holding tanks so no sewage smell plus the single head was on the other end of the boat from my bed in the aft cabin. And STILL the bilges under the bunk had that characteristic boat smell.

Another consideration, in my boat the rudder and AP are under the bunk so more holes will also mean more noise in the cabin. Think I will install some sort of under mattress solution and leave the holes in Blackburn Lancashire.

[SecondBase]

You can lose the smell. I wish I had known how 10 years ago.

Clean dry bilges, ventilation ports cut into lockers, 24x7 air circulation, exhaust solar fan in a head & you will not have smell.
I didn't know this until a wise old sailor in LaBelle explained to me that all boat fans simply stay on FOREVER.