Green/Grey Mould

[johnandrew70]

Hi all, Hope you all had a great Christmas.
My Van is in storage and just been to check it since way before Christmas, Anyway i was very Shocked and upset to find Green / Grey mould growing on the surfaces inside the van.
I have always made sure that there was plenty of damp crystals dotted around the van and never had this problem with my old van, A friend also has the same problem, is there something that we are doing thats causing this? Do newer vans have less ventilation? My wife says that its because the new van has vinyl floor covering and our old van had carpets.

When we put the van away for winter we wiped everything down with flash wipes and visited the van every week or so and not noticed anything growing, but leaving the van for probably a month its everywhere.
if anyone has any info on stopping this happenning and the best thing to clean this with i would appreciate it.

John

 

[ProfJohnL]

Hello John,

I'm sorry to read of your problem. Lets dispel one suggestion, It has nothing to do with type of floor covering.

Unfortunately mold is almost always is the result of insufficient ventilation preventing the caravan from properly airing, or it might indicate you have a water ingress issue.

I'm not a fan of long term dehumidification such as crystals. I don't believe they are effective in this context, and if you constantly find they have collected lots of water, that should be a warning sign that something is wrong.

Providing the fixed ventilation is not reduced or obstructed, a watertight caravan should have enough air exchange to allow sufficient ventilation to deal with condensation or moisture.

With that amount of air exchange all dehumidification is going to be defeated, You are effectively trying to dry out the world, a rather pointless and expensive exercise.

Heating is not the solution either, As you raise the temperature of the air and wood in the caravans, it can actually attract and hold more moisture, which when the caravan cools down, is deposited as condensation. The condensation provides the right conditions for molds to establish.

The same thing can happen if a stored caravan is subjected to a lot of direct sunlight, The structure warms with the associated problems noted above.

The solution is ventilation.

 

[johnandrew70]

hi John,
i cannot see what i can do with regards to ventilation, as the van is in storage i dont want to leave windows open, the cusions etc are not set up so the vents under the seats are free and not blocked, the only thing i thought is that all the blinds are closed so when the door is shut its very dark, a breeding ground for moulds etc i would have thought??. the van has no smells of damp i have also checked for water ingress and all walls of the van are dry, the mould is almost like a powder everywhere and a green / grey colour, as i said my friend also has the same problem.
I am going to go over to the van tomorrow armed with a spray solution of fendox and also Dettol watered down in a bowl and give every inch a wipe down and see is that cures it.

 

[otherclive]

We used to get it where someone was keen on using Pledge! Now we just wipe all surfaces with a weak Milton solution and as you have done open all cupboards lift cushions etc.

 

[johnandrew70]

i am glad someone else has said they have had it, and now you come to mention it i went around with multi purpose polish spray at the beginning of last year

saying that i dont go much on the flash anti bacteria wipes as they didnt do a very good job, i am hoping that the Dettol and Fendox will keep it at bay will try leaving the blinds open also to see if that helps.

 

[Parksy]

I know that you wouldn't be comfortable in leaving windows open with the caravan in storage but couldn't you try what we always do and leave a couple of them, one near the front and one near the back, and perhaps the Heki rooflight if you have one on the night latch?
I shouldn't imagine that the few millimeters of barely visible gap under the windows on the night catch would encourage break ins but this air gap would be enough to allow air to circulate through your caravan to keep mould at bay, we never have any mould problems.
We don't roll the blinds down in storage to avoid weakening the springs over time, instead we close the curtains to avoid upholstery fade through sunlight and to keep prying eyes away. A weak bleach solution will kill off mould spores.

 

[johnandrew70]

Hi Parksy
Just got back from cleaning the van, got over there at about 10 this morning and its now just gone 3, Be glad to get back to work for a rest

.
I made up a solution of Fendox in a spray bottle and wiped over every inch of the van i kept the door open while i did it to get some air in, The van is looking like new now and i have to say its cleaner now that it was when we bought it. So much for the Dealer valeting it, I could do a better job,

Oh i forgot i am a valetor i have to say though cars are easier to clean by far

Any way everything is looking good, i will pop over every weekend and air it out its only a 30 mile round trip so its not a big deal.
I did notice a lot of other vans in storage were plugged into the ballard behind the vans and did wonder if they had put there heaters on i can honestly say that yes its an idea but where do you stand with your insurance?? and i am suprised the storage owners are allowing it as it could be a potential fire risk.
Does anyone else on here leave there heaters on in there vans while laid up for winter??

 

[otherclive]

How much are the storage fees if they include 24/7 heating? I've never heated a van as apart from when my wife went mad with Pledge when our current van was new we have never had the grey/ green mould. But since then we have just wiped down the interior surfaces, walls etc with a weak Milton solution.

 

[johnandrew70]

We pay £35 a month, for storage, dont think it includes electric, the owner has never said it does, considering he wants £5 for using a hosepipe he would probably want £10 a week for electric

. he used to look after the storage customers by letting them stay on the hardstanding pitches for £12 a night but that soon stopped so we stay on a site up the road for £10 a night when we want to get away for a long weekend he hates it hahaha i dont know who is the tightest me or him, at least the storage area is safe with CCTV and a shotgun haha.
i spoke to my mate who also suffered the green / grey mould he said that he has not had it recently, he has put it down to the fact he has used a anti bacterial solution of some description and has loads of moisture traps everywhere with crystals.
Roll on summer

 

[Parksy]

Hi Parksy
Just got back from cleaning the van, got over there at about 10 this morning and its now just gone 3, Be glad to get back to work for a rest

.
I made up a solution of Fendox in a spray bottle and wiped over every inch of the van i kept the door open while i did it to get some air in, The van is looking like new now and i have to say its cleaner now that it was when we bought it. So much for the Dealer valeting it, I could do a better job,

Oh i forgot i am a valetor i have to say though cars are easier to clean by far

Any way everything is looking good, i will pop over every weekend and air it out its only a 30 mile round trip so its not a big deal.
I did notice a lot of other vans in storage were plugged into the ballard behind the vans and did wonder if they had put there heaters on i can honestly say that yes its an idea but where do you stand with your insurance?? and i am suprised the storage owners are allowing it as it could be a potential fire risk.
Does anyone else on here leave there heaters on in there vans while laid up for winter??

I simply leave two windows and the Heki on the night latch and that keeps the mould at bay, the heater is not needed in storage.

 

[johnandrew70]

I will pop over next weekend and do that, wont put the Heki on night latch though not with the wind we have been having lately.
i did notice that one of the vents in the floor of my van is partially obstructed by the wet locker.and both are under the seating, i remember on an old lunar i had there were vents and the washroom floor at the fron of the van in the middle just in front of the centre chest and at the rear in the middle, never had trouble with mould just a tad drafty

 

[Parksy]

The 'vents' in the floor are really gas drop vents, they are there so that in case of a lpg leak the gas, which is heavier than air, will drop out via these gas vents.

 

[ProfJohnL]

I did notice a lot of other vans in storage were plugged into the ballard behind the vans and did wonder if they had put there heaters on i can honestly say that yes its an idea but where do you stand with your insurance?? and i am suprised the storage owners are allowing it as it could be a potential fire risk.
Does anyone else on here leave there heaters on in there vans while laid up for winter??

Hello again John,
As I wrote previously , Heating is not really a solution. Once you start it has to be maintained for the period of storage, otherwise if its turned off, condensation is likely to result. It may be wrong to assume the plugged in caravans are using heaters, they may using dehumidifiers or just be keeping batteries topped up or alarm systems operational.
When animals and humans breath, the exhaled air has considerably raised humidity. Also when we use the cooker or any open flamed device inside a caravan it will raise the humidity. Over the period of use, the soft furnishings and the wooden structure of the caravan will absorb some of that moisture, so when the caravan is just put into storage its internal moisture content will be higher than the ambient. It is then when a caravan is likely to develop condensation as the average temperature falls.
The use of a dehumidifier for a few days at the beginning of storage may help, but it is really pointless for long term.

Ventilation is the proper solution, and also the cheapest.

The gas drop out holes are both an important safety feature so should always be kept clear, but even though they are small the do help with the ventilation.

 

[RayS]

If you want to increase the ventilation without leaving windows open, fit locks such that they can all be put on the night vent position and locked.
One simple way to do this is to drill a small hole through each window latch ;such that you can insert a pin through the fixed part and through the wide end of the moving part. I use the polypins intended to fixing plastic trip and sheet to the outside of woodwork and just shorten them to suit. The heads are white and neat and you can see easily whether they are in place or not. You can then lock the window in either the fully closed or night vent position. Select the drill size such that the pin is a good fit and cannot be shaken or pushed out too easily.
We also use this method whn leaving the van on a pitch in summer, when it may get extremely hot inside without some ventilation.

 

[johnandrew70]

What a good idea with the pins will give it a go next weekend. I just wish the weather would sort itself out as I still have the solar panels to fit. I guess there are a few jobs inside I can do.