Welcome to Motorhomefacts, we are a thriving motorhome community (Largest in Europe). Why Not JOIN NOW and get instant access to more of the website. It costs nothing to join and only takes a few minutes. We have 200,000 different people visiting our site monthly and this amount of motorhomers in one place guarantees a fast response to any questions you may have. We also have unique facilities not found elsewhere such as our Online Logbook, stopover tracker, Motorhome directory with Ebay type feedback and the largest repository of motorhome campsites reviews found anywhere
We have a problem with the headrest of the passenger seat of our van attracting moisture. During the winter months the top of the headrest always feels damp and a damp meter shows high readings.
I guess that a previous owner of the van has draped wet towels on the seat after swimming in sea water and all efforts to Google a solution have been ineffective, unless you're interested in incontinence adverts. I have tried leaving the seat back in the horizontal position to be absolutely sure that the source of the water is not leakage from above.
I use a dehumidifier in the van but the seat always seems to be more tempting to the moisture in the air. Are we alone in suffering from this problem? Can anyone suggest a remedy? All comments gratefully received.
If your assumption is correct (and it sounds feasible) you need the advice of a chemist.
You are never going to get all the salt out of the headrest, so you might have to soak it in something harmless that will chemically react with the salt and turn it into something that isn't hygroscopic.
In answer to your next question, "I don't know - I'm not a very good chemist!"
You obviously understand hygroscopy, and it could go on for years as the (presumed) salt absorbs moisture and gets soggy, then dries out again repeatedly. The salt will remain chemically unchanged, so the cycle is likely to continue.
I can't think of a permanent solution - but I bet somebody will.
With a name like "Brine" I know a bit about what it is but not much about what to do about it.
I've just done some measurements and the worst reading is 35 across the absolute top of the seat back. The back and front surfaces are almost normal at less than 5 near the top and zero a few inches below. The driver's seat top shows a zero reading. Thanks for your concern about Mrs Brian's head, which contacts the front rather than top surface.
The top is not "soggy" but I am concerned about the fabric rotting over the years. It is not a problem when the van is occupied and wasn't noticeable when we overnighted for the new year. The relative humidity would of course have been lower as the van was heated.
I had hoped that the problem was not unique to us and someone else on the roundabout would have found a motor-home friendly solution.
Dont count on the salty towel theory, unless the headrest and seat have the same covering fabric and filling.
We have two padded sunloungers at home which seem to have a similar problem. They can be perfectly dry but magicaly feel damp to the touch next day if left in the garage over night.
We have tried storing them in various locations but they seem to have an uncanny ability to absorb what we assume to be moisture.
They have never been used by the sea or had the towel scenario. Have not subjected them to a moisture meter though.
Sorry I can't help further.
Davy
______________________________________________________________ Dont wait for your ship to come in, swim out to it.
You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum You cannot attach files in this forum You cannot download files in this forum
France
