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Condensation in van...

You can fit one of those roof rotating air vents which supposedly help. I have the same problem, being a water based business the back of our van is almost impossible to keep dry. I want to rip the ply out also as its in an awful state (rotten and a bit mouldy) but only found one person who’s interested in doing it, and trying to organise a convenient time for both of us is going to be a struggle as he’s a builder himself who has big projects happening.
I dont want to replace it myself as worried i’ll make a pigs ear of it and leave the van in a worse state than before i started. Straightforward job for many people but i’m not one for woodwork at all [emoji22]


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I’ve just stuck 2 coats of Protekicote on mine over Christmas. I have wood side panels too which I’ve painted today. 

This is is the second time I’m painting the floor now in 3.5 years.  To be honest it’s only the back part that needed doing that gets most wear, but just did the lot anyhow. 

It does do a great job ? and worth the bunce. 

 
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I use a rubber mat cut to size on the floor. Anyone who’s worked in a bar might remember the rubber mats with holes in them.......so if you drop a bottle they almost bounce back up - that’s exactly what I’ve got. It lets everything breathe and I can pull the out and clean underneath (apart from tank that is still bolted down) 

Still got ply on wheel arches to keep certain bits of kit raised etc

 
My Plan is to take out the ply lining off the floor and simply replace with rubber matting which can be bought off eBay cheap enough I already have some and it's good durable stuff and any spillages are easily mopped up also as I use sill cloths I have an old floor resin tub with a lid and used cloth's go in there and the lid gets snapped on I would say my van is virtually bone dry and gets garaged overnight but as I fill my tank every morning on the cold mornings I still get condensation on the windscreen inside before I set off for work.   

 
Just bought a new van on Boxing Day, striped out the wooden floor painted with bed liner, but did noticed that the roof was full off condensation the day I bought it as it had sat on the owners drive for a couple of weeks and not been used. 

As previous mentioned think I will get a flettner vent fitted. 

 
Aye it looks like good stuff! I may put ply down and then paint the ply with it, what do you reckon on that? The thing is, i put a mower in the van during the summer months so easier getting it in & out when the surface is level. The bare metal is often raised/dipped


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Aye it looks like good stuff! I may put ply down and then paint the ply with it, what do you reckon on that? The thing is, i put a mower in the van during the summer months so easier getting it in & out when the surface is level. The bare metal is often raised/dipped


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Mine was already ply’d.  I am Arjun the paint would take to the world easier but after wear and tear the wood does wear away which is why I’ve recoated mine.  But that is only at the area where I drag my hose in and out.  I’m going to buy a piece of Perspex where I keep my hose reel.. it will slide out easier as well. 

 
Aye it looks like good stuff! I may put ply down and then paint the ply with it, what do you reckon on that? The thing is, i put a mower in the van during the summer months so easier getting it in & out when the surface is level. The bare metal is often raised/dipped
 
I've got a new dispatch, took the ply off the floor and from over the wheel arches to free up room at the sides too. The floor is only held down with a few screws and the wheel arches with 3 screws into the side. Then I used Protectakote on the floor and wheel arches.I painted one of the wheel arch boxes and popped it back on the off side to make a small shelf on top of it. I even took the trim out to paint underneath them and make it fully waterproof.

 
With regard to condensation, we will always have a bit of that. But we try to make the van as water free as possible.

The tank outlet fitting is a prime source for water leaks and often goes unnoticed.

The van is a delivery system so I fill the tank every working day. I now stand by the van and monitor it filling. I've lost count of the number of times I have tried to fill the van's 650 liter tank with 1000 liters of pure.

I don't completely fill the tank. That way I get very little leakage from the tank lid when driving.

We use the hose reels externally so before they are put away we push silicone filled Hozelocks onto the inlet connector to stop any water drips. We both give the brush head a good shake to get rid of any excess water in the bristles and drain the pole hose down before we coil it up and put it inside.

On ocassion I do dry the inside of the roof off with a towel if a see a bit of condensation. The van is parked on the drive so I also open the back doors from time to time to let the back air and dry out.

I've seen vans where condensation drips from the roof.

Flettner roof vents are easy to fit although a little daunting.







Personally, I think they are a good thing to have in summer but in winter they aren't. We all have the problem of trying to keep our vans from freezing up in the winter so we put an electric frostat heater in the back of my van to keep the inside between 1 and 3 degrees. A rotating Flettner will just suck any warmth in the van out. Its probably in winter when we need it most.

.

 
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