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Slideouts

Yahoo Message Number: 3704
Hi, we are writing this email because we are having a problems with our slideouts on our 2002 Country Coach. Every time we are in cold weather, 38 degrees seems to be when the problems starts. We always turn off the heat at night when we sleep, we crack the window over the kitchen sink and the window by the driver's seat. When we wake up in the morning we have moisture running down the corners in the bedroom slide over the nightstands. There is so much moisture that it is puddling on the nightstands! We also have moisture accumulating in the back of the cabinets above the bed. The cabinet doors are closed all night. It just appears that it is so cold outside that it causes the inside of the cabinets and the wall of the slides to condensate. We also get the same thing in the galley slide. Everything in the cabinets get wet if they are touching the outside wall. We have a closet that goes across the back of the coach and the walls get so cold inside the closet that we have condensation inside the closet. (the closet door is closed when we are sleeping.) We have minimum condensation on the windows, it seems be more on the outside walls of the slides and back closet. This is a problem because I worry about starting a mold problem in the cabinets. We have to move everything out of the cabinets and dry it out each morning.
We had a 2000 Country Coach and we never had this problem with it. It is extremely disconcerting to say the least.
We just wonder if anyone else is experiencing this same thing. Any comments would be greatly appreciated.

Dale Coach # 6129

Re: Slideouts

Reply #1 –
Yahoo Message Number: 3705
Dale,

I have some condensation problems in my 2002 Intrigue with a similar floor plan..... bedroom (with rear closet)and kitchen slide. My problem is seldom with the walls though there has been some but mostly on the windows and windshield. In some of the coldest weather... in the 10 to 20 degree range.... I get ice on the lower area of the glass and on the metal frame of the windows. There has been a very little moisture on the walls of the slides and I have noticed recently that there is moisture INSIDE the wall. I just noticed some rust on the back side of the wall light fixture.
My evaluation... and hope.... is that the walls are just too thin to be properly insulated. (I pray it's not a leak!) I keep my heat at 50 to 55 at night and keep a window in the bedroom open a little. I think this allows some of the moisture from breathing, etc., to escape. Ventilation is the key. We also open the vent in the kitchen when cooking anything that creates steam to keep the moisture level low.
I don't seem to have a problem in the cabinets as you describe. I would guess that it is related to the amount of moisture in air inside the coach.
I think it boils down to the humidity in the coach and air circulation. If we can better control those two factors the condensation problem should be lessened.

Keep us posted.

Dick May

2002 Intrigue, #11438
Dick May
2002 Intrigue, #11438, towing a
2014 Jeep Gr Cherokee ecoDiesel

Re: Slideouts

Reply #2 –
Yahoo Message Number: 3707
Dale

I have experienced the same problem with the cabinets over the bed and the closet walls. I called CC/ John Bickel / and he said that DRY-Z-AIR (not sure if spelled correctly) would help with the condensation.

I have not found DRY-Z-AIR yet, and if anyone knows where it can be purchased and whether it really works, I would appreciate the information.

In addition to the condensation in the cabinets and closet, my windows have large amounts of condensation on them every morning and ice on the bottom when it gets really cold.
Any help with these problems would be greatly appreciated.

Tom Royer

2003 Allure 30858

Full timing in Colorado

where it gets into the single digits at night.

Re: Slideouts

Reply #3 –
Yahoo Message Number: 3708
Dale

We just got a new First Avenue in October and are having the same concerns. The cabinets over the bed were dripping water and there was condensation in the outside vanity cabinets. Water dripping off the windows, over the couch, and beside the drivers seat.
We also had a 2000 Intrigue and had no problems of this nature. We do have an appointment with factory service. Hoping to get to the bottom of this problem.
Gordon...........coach #11587

cdhollick@... wrote:

Re: Slideouts

Reply #4 –
Yahoo Message Number: 3709
What are y'all doin' in those cold climates? Head SOUTH in the winter! No problems here in southern CA with moisture .
Jan McNeill, Fulltimer
2001 Intrigue 11320

ps..try Home Depot or Lowes for the air dry stuff

Re: Slideouts

Reply #5 –
Yahoo Message Number: 3710
Why do these rigs have so much condensation? My previous rig did not have this problem.

I don't have the problem anymore. I moved to the Baja where it is warm and dry
Ree

Full-timin' in a 2003 Allure

Currently at www.eldoradoranch.com on the Baja near www.sanfelipe.com.mx

Re: Slideouts

Reply #6 –
Yahoo Message Number: 3711
Dick,

I just wonder if Country Coach has changed the amount of insulation that they put in the coaches between 2000 year models and 2002. I did not have any problems of this nature with my 2000 coach.

When we have had this happen this has been the scenario: We went to Bakersfield. Ca. to be with family for Christmas. Temperature outside 32 degrees, humidity was 61% and the inside temperature of the coach all night was about 65 degrees. We have a heated floor so that keeps the coach pretty warm inside so we have not had to turn on the Hurricane.
The time before we were in Junction City and we were in service. The coach got so wet inside (we did not realize this was happening until a couple of nights had passed) that all of our clothes in the closet and in the cabinets above the bed got wet (or damp to the touch). My wife got so upset that she went into the service office crying. They took my coach back into service and the 2 people on the team spent the day looking for voids in the silicone on the roof. We then put a dehumidifier in for the weekend and pulled out over 4 gallons of water in 48 hours. We are from Southern California so we went home and figured that we had probably had a leak that had been fixed.
But obviously when we went to Bakersfield and it got cold the problem started all over again. Not to the same degree because we dried all of the cabinets out in the morning. We just cannot figure out why we have this happening. I was hoping that by posting this we would find out how many other people were experiencing a similar problem. I have recently been in contact with CC and hopefully we will find a solution. Thanks for your input. Dale

Re: Slideouts

Reply #7 –
Yahoo Message Number: 3712
try Camping World.

On Mon, 13 Jan 2003 19:33:08 -0000 "Tom and Sherry Royer royerte@...>" royerte@...> writes:

Re: Slideouts

Reply #8 –
Yahoo Message Number: 3725
Dale,

We have coach #5998 and we have never had any moisture like you are talking about. We have a bedroom slide and we also sleep with the heat off, however we do keep the bathroom fan vent open. This is the only outside vent we keep open. We also keep this vent open all day when the heat is on and this works for us.

Bill G. 2001 Magne #5998

Slideouts

Reply #9 –
Yahoo Message Number: 3726
I just want to say thank you for all of the comments and input regarding the accumulation of excessive moisture. Dick wrote the entire article from the camping world magazine....a lot of typing and very much appreciated. Maybe like the article says, the newer coaches are more air tight and better insulated.

I find it very interesting that the people who have replied who have problems are 2002 and 2003 coaches. This is the third country coach I have owned. I had a 1997 Magna with a greatroom slide and I had a 2000 Affinity with two slides. I had NO moisture problems with either of these coaches. I am doing nothing different in this 2002 model than I did in either of the other ones. If fact I do not have a pet traveling with us in this coach and we had a pet in both of the other ones. Any living breathing thing puts more moisture in the coach. We always have the window in the galley over the sink and the driver's window open for ventilation.
One thing that is different in this coach is that I have a vinyl ceiling instead of the fabric like in both of my previous ones. I just wonder if that has anything to do with the cabinets getting so cold in the inside of the outside wall. I would think that the fabric would be a better insulator, but then I do not know for sure since I am not an engineer. It just makes no sense that the walls of the slides would get so cold (on the inside) to make them sweat so profusely. The hydrometers in the coach (I have two) usually read 40% to 60%. We always have the fans on when we shower and we do not do that much cooking. This is very disconcerting to me as there is so much condensation in the slideouts. As I said before, not much condensation on the inside of the windows.

One thing that Brian Keys told me is that in 2001 they used steel in the slide construction. In 2002 they used aluminum instead. But to me cold steel would be the same temperature as cold aluminum. Maybe you engineers out there understand this more than I do and could comment.

So this still remains a puzzle to me and I will still be working to resolve this issue. I am in communication with Country Coach to see if they can figure out why this happening.

Any comments from any of you out there would still be greatly appreciated.

Thank You, Dale Coach #6129

Re: Slideouts

Reply #10 –
Yahoo Message Number: 3727
Thanks for the credit, Dale, but it's just 'cut and paste' to pass along the article. I don't type worth a hoot! Of greater interest is that there are a lot of owners having this same problem and none have said that CC is showing concern. I hope I'm wrong.

And, how about it, Damon? Any comments from your end?

Dick May

2002 Intrigue, #11438
Dick May
2002 Intrigue, #11438, towing a
2014 Jeep Gr Cherokee ecoDiesel

Re: Slideouts

Reply #11 –
Yahoo Message Number: 3728
All this just reminded me. I got a shirt out of one of the cabinets over the bed and it was very mildewed. Another one was slightly. What was strange, it was only two, and the bin was packed. The shirt was had never been worn, so it was not like I put it away damp. The only condensation I have noticed have been on the windshield and windows. Of course, I did not check the walls when this was happening. Now, I am in a nice dry climate where it is warm and sunny, so I won't know until next year, and hopefully not then!
Ree

Full-timin' in a 2003 Allure

Currently at www.eldoradoranch.com on the Baja near www.sanfelipe.com.mx
 

Re: Slideouts

Reply #12 –
Yahoo Message Number: 3732
Dale, I' a Mechanical Engineer. The thermal conductivity (ability to transfer heat) of Aluminum is much greater than steel. But, I'm of the opinion of Bill, that if the coach is well ventilated (i.e., open window & or vent) there will be minimal moisture accumulation inside.
Lee '01 Intrigue #11219