Condensation without heater being blower being on

[balltofeet]

I get a little bit of condensation on a morning if I trave without the heater blower being on setting number 1. Has anyone else noticed this? Hey if this is the only worry then it just shows the build quality is so air tight.

However without the heater blower on my heater is not that hot? Anyone else?

[gadgetman]

The ac on will help demist

[Crista]

Not without the fan in it won't. There is nothing to be gained by running without ventilation - unhealthy and the car will mist. Worst case is you will get more and more condensation and then ice on the inside of the windscreen as well as the outside on a frosty morning. Then it will melt and drip on the dashboard. Friend of my wife's never has the fan on and her car is forever misted up and iced in the winter - a real mess.

Edited 8 November, 2012 by Crista

[Rothbard]

Agree with Crista, all cars need the fan on on cold mornings. Condensation is caused by your warm body and breath entering a cold car in cold sourroundings. Nothing to be done about that.

Edited 9 November, 2012 by Rothbard

[catharsis]

Should I say this but... the British way to ventilate and heat their cars or houses make me sometime confused... Seen that, been there. :sun: The fan should be used almost all the time when it is cold or rainy or foggy or hot or... The best is to use heat and air cond (if possible), it keeps the car dry and visibility good.

[Countrigo]

As the colder weather has arrived, I have found my Citigo to be the worst car for condensation that I have ever owned. In the morning, or after work, if the air temperature is under about 5 degrees C, the windscreen is heavily condensated on the inside, and it takes a good three or four minutes with full fan, aircon, full heater, before it clears enough to drive away.

I have searched everywhere for wet carpets, etc, in case I have a leak and this is leading to moist air inside the car, but I can't find anything.

I always drive with aircon on and then adjust the cabin tempereture with the heater. The fan is nearly always on speed 2 to provide a good throughput of air.

Unless someone can suggest something I am missing (gratefully received), I think I must just have a "steamy" car.

[Crista]

Seems strange because mine is always parked on the drive and has very little condensation and what there is clears very quickly. Don't mean to suggest the obvious but you have got the vent set to fresh air and not re-circ haven't you. The lever that moves horizontally.

[MickA]

Was going suggest the above, check vent slider knob.

Mine clears very quickly with aircon on, almost cleared as I reverse off the drive, if not I leave it for around a minute to clear. Even the rear window clears quickly without using of the heater element on there.

Turning the dash vents to blow towards the side windows also helps clear the windows very quickly.

Mick

Edited 13 November, 2012 by MickA

[horkin]

Get this problem in my Fabia sometimes, as has been said, heat blower and a/c used together and hey presto. Also just be careful not to keep any cloth in the car if it has been used to wipe condensation as this will hold moisture and cause mist-up. Wet shoes on the mats will also result in some misting next time use it if the weather has been cold overnight.

[Countrigo]

Seems strange because mine is always parked on the drive and has very little condensation and what there is clears very quickly. Don't mean to suggest the obvious but you have got the vent set to fresh air and not re-circ haven't you. The lever that moves horizontally.

I appreciate the suggestion, but yes, I do have the slider set to fresh air, as the handbook says. As it happens, I saw on the VW up! Forum (I think) that trying it set to recirculate might actually help, but it doesn't.

Seeing this thread has inspired me to have another poke about in daylight at the weekend (I haven't been bothering about it recently because it's been milder, but it will soon be a problem again, no doubt). I am wondering if there is a pollen filter or similar which hasn't been fitted correctly. If I find something, I will post on here in case it helps others.

Thanks for your help, anyway.

[silver1011]

I always chuckle when driving along in the rain and pass cars with all their windows misted up.

DOH! Turn the fan on and get some fresh in there

[pixel_viking]

I have a demist bag in the back of my car:

It's big - about 1 kilogram or 2 pounds. Same material inside as you get in small bags along with your electronic gadgets.

I also have the fan running at setting 1.

No issues until now.

[blackandwhite]

When I used to have a Ka ,I had to put one of those little household damp soaking up thingys , theyve got loads of polystyrene balls inside , paid £1 from asda and it was scented , like pixel kept it in the boot and it excluded the issue .

[CortinaGT]

Silica gel crystals are what is normally used for moisture/condensation absorption. You can buy containers to put in cars from Amazon. Used to be able to buy them in caravan shops too.

[pixel_viking]

Silica gel crystals are what is normally used for moisture/condensation absorption. You can buy containers to put in cars from Amazon. Used to be able to buy them in caravan shops too.

Yep, mine was advertised as for car or caravan. I paid around 5 GBP.

[blackandwhite]

£1 asda

[rwbaldwin]

£1 asda

Thanks for the tip. Yesterday, I had a rock shatter my rear windscreen. I crash wrapped it as soon as I got to work and put one of these things in the boot last night. It certainly has sucked the moisture out.

[Perc]

Should I say this but... the British way to ventilate and heat their cars or houses make me sometime confused... Seen that, been there. :sun:

My thoughts exactly.

I've never ever found a reason to turn the fan off in any car I've driven. It's always at least on the lowest possible speed.

As for British house heating and insulation... apparently single glass windows and centimeter-wide gaps around doors is considered OK, even though it gets cold in winter and energy is expensive. I've never been in a restaurant before where I had to wear my jacket inside to keep me from freezing my proverbial off. They had a small portable electric radiator plugged in, though. That was a nice gesture I guess, even though it was the size of your average bathroom radiator.

But I digress. Keep your fan on to keep your windows clean. End of discussion.

Edited 21 November, 2012 by Perc