Good news, dry bikes this morning and humidity dropped from high 90's. Maybe it was just the hot damp bike with a cold night and warm day? Will check lunchtime to see if having the sunshine on the roof all morning makes a difference.
Hello peeps, I have a brick garage with a poorly fitting metal up-and-over door and asbestos cement roof. I have had no problem with condensation with any of my Ducatis over the years but my recently acquired Harley was covered in condensation the other day (the 999 was as dry as a bone!!). Lots of cold bare metal I guess. Anyway, following a tip on a well known Harley forum I fashioned a little bulb holder from the frame of a lamp shade and now leave a small 20w bulb lit below the bikes cover. No sign of any condensation since, regardless of weather temp or conditions. Hope this helps. Andy
This was my thought regarding the low wattage garden patio heaters, whether they would raise the temp just the tiniest bit. Btw my garage roof is totally vented at the front, al along the top of the door, it seems to be the walls that are causing the issues
Well, just been to check mine again. The 996 is bone dry and the GSXR has the slightest hint of moisture on the tank, you really need to look for it and can only just feel it. Now, this may be due to the bike still being slightly damp and dirty from Saturday. However, last night i surrounded the 996 with 3x Compact Silica Rechargeable Dehumidifier Compact Silica Rechargeable Dehumidifier I left them plugged in and they get warm to the touch. So, while I don't think it is a long term solution it may have been enough to take the edge off. Anyway, i bought one of these which are advertised on other sites as greenhouse heaters: Buy Hylite HHT210 Slimline Eco 500mm 55w Tubular Heater White And I bought the dehumidifer from ScrewFix as above. I know its not good enough as explained above but between the two hopefully it will get me through until I can insulate the place. I shall let you know how tonight goes..........
Apparently the ScrewFix one has a defrost mode :Coldfeet:, and a timer so I will set to not be going off in the middle of the night when it's freezing.
I have a little cupboard dehumidifier that I put under the bike cover and fleece blankets. Works a treat.
All bikes are bone dry today . Dehumidifier been running solid since 4pm yesterday and probably got about 1 1/2L maybe a little more, in the tank. Its bloody cold in there and the air is humid/damp outside so i'm fairly sure the bikes would b wet today without it. To check the math: I pay 10.853p per kWh Power Output is 265W Running costs: 2.87 pence per hour Monthly costs @ 24hrs a day: £20.70 So if I run it flat out from 1st Nov to 1st March that's £80. Better than a wet pair of bikes. More than i'd like to pay.
Which is why I use a small dehumidifier inside a small space. You could put both bikes adjacent with a cover over both and a little dehumidifier between the two.
I struggled with covers last year. Once the wet had got in the water stayed in the covers. I guess if you can stop it getting wet in the first place....Think i'd need to be putting the covers on perfectly dry bikes and not removing still spring. Don't like the sound of that. Currently I have no covers on. I'd rather they were on for protecting paint etc but it's nice walking in the garage and having them look back at me.
What about a vac bag with gel packs until you get the shed sorted? Motorcycle Vac Bag® Jumbo - Size 3.65m x 2.4m (12ft x 8ft) - Vac Bag Products Ltd
Did cross my mind but i like to tinker and that looks like a ball ache. Maybe if I had a "finished" bike that was very seldom used it would make sense.
if it costs £80 per year to run the dehumidifier it would take 5 years to cover the roof insulation costs. And that is before starting on the walls...... I was going to board a ceiling as well as insulate the roof and walls. Could I just board the ceiling and insulate on top of that leaving the roof not insulated? That would drastically reduce the volume of the garage and insulate it and be cheaper as it is a smaller area and would be easier to fit.
I thought about the bags last year but didn't have any moisture problems so didn't bother. My garage is unheated and it has a chilly steel up and over door. But its built of masonry with cavity walls and the roof has insulation. A timber shed is always damp. It may not leak, it may be set on a damp proof course, the timbers may be treated and rot free but the external boards will absorb moisture and breath that moisture into the interior unless the internal surface is lined and insulated. I think that's where your problem is coming from. Lining with polythene or roofing vapour barrier may help until you can do it properly but set vapour barrier the right way round so that moisture can pass out but not in. That means if using breathable roofing felt (which is also slightly insulative) the surface which would be uppermost on a roof needs to face outwards.
The low stress heater (greenhouse style) in a tube, with a light space blanket TM over the top sounds like the best Mr. Cheap idea so far. Cut a few lengths to make it easy to throw over the bike. Put a bike cover on first if you prefer. EDITED after I was ridiculed (quite rightly).
