Enhancing the alaskan camper's R - value.

[MT6bt]

I am planning on spending a lot of time in my 2003 10' alaskan camper C.O., and was wondering what other people have done to prevent/reduce condensation from potentially destroying the camper. I've already spent about 5 days in it, and it's gotten to the teens one night. The thing that concerns me most is the lack of insulation on the whole lower section of the camper

This appears to cause a breeding ground for condensation and, in turn, will begin to eat away my camper

Does anyone have any remedies?

Sent from my SM-S975L using Tapatalk

 

[Freebird]

Do you live in, and/or plan to use this camper in a particularly wet/humid climate?
My Alaskan (10' CO) does quite well staying warm "stock", due to the small space. The stock furnace vents the exhaust/combustion moisture outside, so it is just "metabolic exhaust" (breathing) that dumps humidity inside.
2 adults and a small dog (experience) do not noticeably cause a condensation issue even down into the twenties except a bit on the inside the windows. If you add bringing in wet clothes etc from outside, that would change the balance, as would more bodies breathing.

 

[fisher205]

On my old Alaskan I lined the bottom inside with ensolite pads. It seemed to help some as far as heat retention. But for condensation, we just cracked the upper window and it seemed to vent the camper well. We had 2 adults and 2 labs in the camper to -7F with the heater. Camped to -12F but had an electric heater and plugged into shore power.

Your rig is looking good.

Brad

 

[mike dominick]

I'm having Alaskan pull the AC on my '04 and put in a vent / fan for more airflow. If you're able to plug in, I'd run an electric heater to dry things out. How was it last night, it was -1 at my house over here on the west side.

 

[MT6bt]

Thanks for the replies, everyone. Currently letting my eyes take a quick break from the road (I have to get back to bozeman for work tomorrow) so I'm just dropping a quick note, and will catch up when I end up setting up to camp for the night

Sent from my SM-S975L using Tapatalk

 

[Freebird]

Check behind the drawers and see if there is enough room behind them for the reflective bubble insulation. Doesn't take much room.
If you place it there, and in the back of all the cabnets/cupboards, that might make some difference.
I just remembered when it was in the low 20s we covered the door(s) (up/down) with a thick terry beach towel that provided additional noticeable insulation. The beach towel just happened to fit that space perfectly. It was "quick n handy", but if I were planning on regular use at those temps (we're not), I would rig up something tighter with more R value. The single pane window and thin doors transferred very noticeable amounts of cold into the camper.
Good luck.

 

[MT6bt]

Do you live in, and/or plan to use this camper in a particularly wet/humid climate?
My Alaskan (10' CO) does quite well staying warm "stock", due to the small space. The stock furnace vents the exhaust/combustion moisture outside, so it is just "metabolic exhaust" (breathing) that dumps humidity inside.
2 adults and a small dog (experience) do not noticeably cause a condensation issue even down into the twenties except a bit on the inside the windows. If you add bringing in wet clothes etc from outside, that would change the balance, as would more bodies breathing.

I don't plan on using it much in wet/humid areas, no. I did notice that keeping the inside free of condensation and moisture in the Pacific Northwest last week was a challenge, but I'm sure that's the same for any truck camper in that area.

Sent from my SM-S975L using Tapatalk

 

[MT6bt]

I'm having Alaskan pull the AC on my '04 and put in a vent / fan for more airflow. If you're able to plug in, I'd run an electric heater to dry things out. How was it last night, it was -1 at my house over here on the west side.

I have been on the road since I picked it up in tacoma last week. Last night I was just west of Spokane, and temperatures dropped to about 15 degrees. It felt a bit drafty! Right now I'm just north of anaconda, MT and is lingering around the same temperature. Definitely need to do some work as it's quite drafty!

Sent from my SM-S975L using Tapatalk

 

[Freebird]

In the middle of the night I woke up with an additional thought.....
If condensation/moisture is your primary concern, instead of lining the base of the Alaskan with the plastic reflective bubble insulation, a better move would likely be to line it with a high wicking insulating material/fabric like the polly fleece from a fabric store. You could buy any old color/patern on clearance sale since it would ultimately be hidden. Go for the thickest fabric you can find. I would staple it into place to avoid glue which might seal the wood. R value would likely be less, but theoretically less of a condensation trap against the wood.
My thoughts, anyway...

You said drafty....
Replace both of the Pirelli seals that "seal" the the top to the base of the camper if it is not relatively new. That is needed every couple three years if you camp in cold windy locations. Also make sure your battery access sliding doors are closed all the way on the base. Additional sealing there might be good.
Think drafty inside.... because there is wind outside .....equals ventilation .....so no internal condensation issues....

 

[fluffyprinceton]

I bought a $100.00ish down comforter from LLBean and cut/sewed it into panels that fit the 3/4 ply lower wall surrounding the bed/seating area in my non-cabover. You could do the same with the upper bunk area. They attach with neodymium magnets about the size of a quarter let into the walls just below the rim. Went with down because they stuff down to nothing and it looks good - a poly/thinsulite comforter or batting would work well & be easier to modify as the down wants to fly around when you cut it...It helps cut down the cold radiating from the walls - both when sleeping & sitting. The sleeping area is just long enough so I didn't want to decrease it with any permanent added insulation like blue board foam. Thin, high R-value aerogel $$$! insulation would work as a permanent fix with minimal loss of sleeping area length.

No harm in adding insulation behind the cabinets - a fussy job & not particularly effective given the heat transparent windows & 3/4 ply lower structure.

I'm surprised an apparently new Alaskan is drafty - they are not ever really tight...but shouldn't be drafty. When it gets cold & you are sitting next to a wall panel @ 10 degrees it will feel "drafty" even without air movement. Add insulation on the 3/4 panels like mentioned above, keep a vent open, blow heat around & wear down booties is about the best you can do with standard Alaskans. Floor radiant heat is the ultimate fix because there's no way a camper floor @ 10 deg is ever going to be cozy...Moe

 

[Freebird]

OP indicated CO camper 2003 model, so some tightening of seals might be in order....?

 

[MT6bt]

I bought a $100.00ish down comforter from LLBean and cut/sewed it into panels that fit the 3/4 ply lower wall surrounding the bed/seating area in my non-cabover. You could do the same with the upper bunk area. They attach with neodymium magnets about the size of a quarter let into the walls just below the rim. Went with down because they stuff down to nothing and it looks good - a poly/thinsulite comforter or batting would work well & be easier to modify as the down wants to fly around when you cut it...It helps cut down the cold radiating from the walls - both when sleeping & sitting. The sleeping area is just long enough so I didn't want to decrease it with any permanent added insulation like blue board foam. Thin, high R-value aerogel $$$! insulation would work as a permanent fix with minimal loss of sleeping area length.

No harm in adding insulation behind the cabinets - a fussy job & not particularly effective given the heat transparent windows & 3/4 ply lower structure.

I'm surprised an apparently new Alaskan is drafty - they are not ever really tight...but shouldn't be drafty. When it gets cold & you are sitting next to a wall panel @ 10 degrees it will feel "drafty" even without air movement. Add insulation on the 3/4 panels like mentioned above, keep a vent open, blow heat around & wear down booties is about the best you can do with standard Alaskans. Floor radiant heat is the ultimate fix because there's no way a camper floor @ 10 deg is ever going to be cozy...Moe

I'll have to look into that down option, fluffy. I just bought some R5 1" insulation as a potential temporary solution until I can remedy something more asthetically appealing and useful.
I was contemplating using thin plexiglass and cutting it to fit perfectly over the single pane windows for all the smaller ones but that's just a hypothetical at the moment.
The larger windows I might just keep my eyes open for a deal on some thermal panes, but I'm guessing that's more of a wild goose chase than anything.
I might just break down and use that aluminum bubble wrap after all. I don't want to, but it seems to be the cheapest option for now.


Sent from my SM-S975L using Tapatalk

 

[MT6bt]

OP indicated CO camper 2003 model, so some tightening of seals might be in order....?

My thoughts exactly. Bryan at alaskan campers was kind enough to squeeze me in for a couple hours to replace the very, very old and worn out outer pirelli seals. I certainly need to redo all of the ones around the folding segments on the C.O. and the door as well. After that and some custom fabrication on the inside lower portion of the camper, I think that it'll be a lot better off.
Keep in mind that I am quite cozy at the 35 degree temps I'm seeing currently!
It's when the temps drop into the single digits and below that I'm most concerned about!
I'm putting this camper through the ringer: spend a full winter in Montana.


Sent from my SM-S975L using Tapatalk

 

[Freebird]

My Alaskan is a 2002 10' CO. We turn off the furnace at night (dry camping) to save on both intermittent noise and the furnace fan draining the battery. In the morning the temp comes up fast when it is turned back on. DW & I both do well with plenty of warm covers.

One thing I was going to do for winter camping (if we did more) was to use a big corrugated heavy duty cardboard box cut diagonally corner to corner. Each half of the used-to-be box would be three sided, and would fit into the front bed corners full height for additional insulation. The mattress would rest on the bottoms to hold them in position. The corrugated insulation supplement would fold flat to travel. Unless it was really cold it might not be worth the bother to position under the corners of the mattress (that part could be reduced for ease of placement), but if staying put a few nights while cold and windy it likely would be worth it. Cheap, easy, and might be worth the effort? The box pieces could additionally be lined with reflective bubble insulation if real cold and deemed worthwhile.

 

[MT6bt]

Pics?
Good news today! I finally figured out where the main draft was coming from. Turns out, the vent for the refrigerator was open

I've also placed a windshield sun screen, which essentially seems to be the metallic bubble wrap over one of the large windows (budget is very limited at the moment to just what I already own), and appears to help a bit.
Aside from that, the camper itself is sitting on R-5 1" blue board.

Not sure if it actually helps or not, but I'd imagine keeping the camper off the cold, cold truck bed or even a rubber mat will help a bit.

My Alaskan is a 2002 10' CO. We turn off the furnace at night (dry camping) to save on both intermittent noise and the furnace fan draining the battery. In the morning the temp comes up fast when it is turned back on. DW & I both do well with plenty of warm covers.

One thing I was going to do for winter camping (if we did more) was to use a big corrugated heavy duty cardboard box cut diagonally corner to corner. Each half of the used-to-be box would be three sided, and would fit into the front bed corners full height for additional insulation. The mattress would rest on the bottoms to hold them in position. The corrugated insulation supplement would fold flat to travel. Unless it was really cold it might not be worth the bother to position under the corners of the mattress (that part could be reduced for ease of placement), but if staying put a few nights while cold and windy it likely would be worth it. Cheap, easy, and might be worth the effort? The box pieces could additionally be lined with reflective bubble insulation if real cold and deemed worthwhile.

Sent from my SM-S975L using Tapatalk