Under matress ventilation

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Pinnacle

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We have become weary of the need to regularly lift the cushions on the bunks in the boat to allow the damp undersides to air and dry. SWMBO says something must be done.......

Do any of these under-matress ventilators really work? Which is the best one to buy, and why? Would plan to view available options and but at So'ton show.

What does the Panel think?
 
Not sure if this is helpful, but for this year I made a set of slats to go under the mattress. Used 9mm ply and attempted to install it in such a way that it had a convex curvature to it to give some spring. Has certainly cured the problem.
We were going to use bedflex, but fell out with them because of deliery costs.
(Sometimes it's hard to persuade people that the Hebrides is not in another solar system).
 
Pinnacle said:
We have become weary of the need to regularly lift the cushions on the bunks in the boat to allow the damp undersides to air and dry. SWMBO says something must be done.......

Do any of these under-matress ventilators really work? Which is the best one to buy, and why? Would plan to view available options and but at So'ton show.

What does the Panel think?
Click to expand...

If you have a double sized mattress, go to IKEA and get a some flexible bed slats. Got a "Freecycle" set for my boat, and have cut them to size and shape of the berth.
 
plastic plasterers egg box!

I solved it on our cat with some stuff that I saw my local plastering friend loading in his van cant remember its name but its inplastic sheets and it looks like an 8egg box for quails eggs its about 3/4 inch thick we put it ude the matteress and partialy around sides it allowes airflow right under and around just to be extra certain we put a cheap thin felt backed carpet tween the mattress and the plastic egg box stuff

will post the name of the stuff when I remember it unless someone else provides the name
edit its thin light and cuts with a stanly knife fitted in it in 5 mins
 
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kontract 20 post 4 continued

Different types and thicknesses but I used kontract 20

http://basement-living.co.uk/basement-conversion/membranes.html

I got it v cheap as offcut from my plastering friend who was doing a basement at the time

its solved the damp under the mattress problem even when we had 10 days on the boat through that icey spell during xmas new year no condensation under mattress at all
 
Other option is aquire a 8x4 sheet of kingspan insulation and cut it into strips, much lighter and easy to cut to shape and its insulation.Suppose its buoyancy too.Just glue it on with impact adhesive and job done in half hour.
 
And the added advantage of Kingspan is that you can pee the bed with impunity because nobody will notice the smell :D
 
The copious quantity of moisture exuded by the human body has to go some where, insulation just means it stays hidden in the mattress rather than condensing on the bed base. The best solution is developing the habit of raising the bed cushions for maximum ventilation as often as possible, my wife does this routinely every morning and they are stored standing on edge when we are not on board.
 
Quandary said:
The copious quantity of moisture exuded by the human body has to go some where, insulation just means it stays hidden in the mattress rather than condensing on the bed base. The best solution is developing the habit of raising the bed cushions for maximum ventilation as often as possible, my wife does this routinely every morning and they are stored standing on edge when we are not on board.
Click to expand...

the stuff i used isnt insulation it allows a 3/4 free flow air gap but in addition I have found half a doz pot noodle pots under the mattress when we are not on board is a help
 
We're about to recover all our bunk mattresses, and the advice has been to use a waterproof acrylic fabric, same as for cockpit cushions, but maybe that's just for a S.Med climate? David
 
"Vent air" may be another solution. Available from the likes of Hawke House or Toomer and Hayter.

Not cheap though!
 
My boat just has lots of approx 30mm holes drilled in the ply sheets under the bunks. Seems to work fine. But maybe I'm not as sweaty as you lot...
 
pvb said:
My boat just has lots of approx 30mm holes drilled in the ply sheets under the bunks. Seems to work fine. But maybe I'm not as sweaty as you lot...
Click to expand...

I think this has to win the virtual prize for the easist and cheapest option. :D
 
When 'sailing for the masses' became popular in the 1950's it became clear what squalour our masters had put up with...supposedly waterproof vinyl covered mattresses soon became unpopular with internal condensation, so slatted bunk tops and little ( ineffectual but unseaworthy in case of flooding ) ventilators in bunk sides became the norm.

Slatted bunk supports soon became a bit of a snag if one needs to delve into a locker under the bunk so personally I use solid bunk tops with breathable mattress covers, but even now propping up the mattresses to air on sunny days seems worthwhile.

While on the subject of bunk mattresses, most crew even if rough tough racing types appreciate a good night's sleep on a 4" thick rather than wafer thin job - and all modern ones MUST be fire retardant - it can be an idea to have saloon mattresses sized & shaped to fit the cockpit too, but only in conditions one can be very sure they won't get wet...
 
Pinnacle said:
Anyone with experience of this?

http://www.shipshapebedding.co.uk/Dry-Mat_Anti_Condensation_Layer.php?li=dry-mat
Click to expand...

yes - we have it. i think it works pretty well. we have it curled up the sides of the mattress tho`and it seems to wick the condensation away.

we had " ventair " in the last boat. i found it just transferred the condensation from the bottom of the mattress to the bottom of the " ventair ".
you still really had to lift the mattress and dry off the bunk base but the
" ventair " was a lot easier to dry out than a mattress. not sure if " ventair " is still available. couldn`t find it when we changed boats hence change to drymat.
 
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