Dehumidifiers

Installing dehumidifier in boat: Nauticat 38

How to install a dehumidifier in a boat? Here we show you an example of how to install an Arida Pro S12 dehumidifier in a boat. The boat is a 1982 Nauticat 38, but the procedure can be adapted to many other boats.Fixed dehumidifier in boat This is an example of how to install an Arida Pro S12 in an older motor sailer of the Nauticat 38 type. Here we see how our customer has done it, and this is intended as inspiration and a suggestion for you. All boats are different, and you must find a solution that suits your boat. We hope that you find inspiration in this article to do equally good work in your boat. If you are unsure of the way, please feel free to contact us by phone 072-5070100. We are happy to help you.Advantages of a dehumidifier in a boat A dry boat is a nice boat Dry bedding and dry pillows, curtains and textiles Avoid mold and boat smell Avoid rust, corrosion and rot A dry boat is a faster boat, with higher speed and lower fuel consumption Start like this: Find a suitable location Take your time to figure out where you want to install the dehumidifier. There are a few things to consider: Preferably install the dehumidifier hidden, inside a bench, a cupboard or a smart little space you have somewhere. Keep in mind that the dehumidifier should be as high up in the boat as possible. You must have an Ø40 mm hose from the dehumidifier and out of the boat. Make sure that seawater cannot flow into the boat through this hose. You should also have a drip on the hose from the dehumidifier out. If condensation were to form in the hose, this condensate should not flow back into the dehumidifier. (See how this is solved in the article here) Think about how you want the hoses for dry air. You can draw air from one place, and you can blow dry air back to another place. Find a suitable way to route the hoses. If you can use hoses with a 125 mm diameter, that's best. If necessary, you can reduce to 90 mm. (There is an adapter for reducing from Ø125 to Ø90) You must have a power outlet nearby. The Arida S12 comes with a long cable, so in a boat, this is usually not a problem, but think about how to lay the cable. Dehumidifier placed in saloon/deckhouse In this boat, the owner chose to place the dehumidifier in the deckhouse. The boat is a motor sailer, with a nice wheelhouse in the middle of the boat. Behind the sofa back in the wheelhouse, there is free space to install a dehumidifier. The dehumidifier is 200 x 200 x 300 mm, and there are also hoses that you need to accommodate. In the picture below, you can see how the owner has created an opening behind the sofa back. This is where the dehumidifier will be placed. This is on the starboard side, so the aft cabin is to the right in the picture. An air hose can then be drawn from the aft cabin, so the dehumidifier draws air from there. The dry air must be blown back into the saloon, thus achieving good air circulation. More on this later.Mount the dehumidifier and secure it properlyIn the picture below, you see the dehumidifier installed. Here the owner has made a small wooden frame, into which the dehumidifier is screwed. You can see some black "feet" that the dehumidifier stands on. These are part of the dehumidifier. They are designed to screw the dehumidifier in place. Note that you can mount the dehumidifier in the direction that suits you best. Here it stands with its feet facing downwards, but the dehumidifier can just as easily be mounted "upside down" so it hangs from the ceiling. It can also be placed on its side, and you have a wall or bulkhead where you can screw it fast. Be creative and find your solution. The four screws are normally a sufficiently good fastening, but if you know that you are often out in rough weather, it does no harm to have a strap or similar to secure the dehumidifier even better.Secure before the insecure! NOTE: The air hoses you see in the picture here are not part of the dehumidifier. They are for the heater and we recommend keeping the air in the heater separate from the air from the dehumidifier. The dehumidifier hoses will come later.Connect the hoses You can connect three hoses to the dehumidifier: Wet air hose to blow the moisture out of the boat. In the picture below, this is the black hose. It is now pointing inwards into the boat, but this is only temporary during installation. Dry air back to the boat. This is the large grey hose in the left picture. Here a 125 mm hose is used, which is recommended. You can also reduce to 90 mm. Moist air from the boat to be dried. This is shown in the right picture. Here it is drawn from the aft cabin outside the picture. Here you can also choose 125 or 90 mm regardless of what you choose for the dry air hose. The illustration in the top right corner shows the principle of the air flows.Hose out of the boat You don't need to use all these hoses. You can draw air from where the dehumidifier is, and blow the dry air back to where the dehumidifier is. That's perfectly fine, and it's a common solution in small boats. This is a 38-foot motor sailer, with several cabins. Therefore, it is advantageous to draw from one place and blow back to another place. This creates a good circulation of air. But it's not like you HAVE to have it. What you MUST have is a hose from the dehumidifier out of the boat. This is to blow the moisture out of the boat. This type of dehumidifier does not produce liquid water that needs to be emptied, but it creates humid air that needs to be blown out. So now you actually have to drill a hole in your boat! Find a smart place to do this. You need a hole for a 40 mm hose. Use a regular hull fitting. As an extra safety feature, you can attach a ball valve just inside the hull. You can then close this when you are out in rough weather. The picture on the left below shows the hull fitting with the hose connected. Here you can see that a combination of black hose and white pipe fittings has been chosen. The advantage of pipes is that they have a smooth inner surface, so the air "glides" easily out. The advantage of a hose is that it can be easier to route. You can also use a combination like here. On the right side you can see the hole drilled in the hull. As we can see, it's a solidly built boat! Wet air hose with gooseneck and insulation The image below shows the wet air hose fully installed. Gooseneck As we can see, the hose goes up into a gooseneck before descending to the hull fitting. This is to prevent seawater from the outside entering the boat. Hose insulation We also see that the hose is insulated. This is a great advantage. This means there is less risk of condensation inside the hose. If condensation forms inside the hose before the air reaches the top of the gooseneck, there is a risk that this condensation will flow back into the dehumidifier. This should be avoided. It is therefore advantageous to insulate the hose when choosing this solution. If you have a drip all the way out, this is not a problem, but not all boats can manage that. Hygrostat The Arida Pro S12 has a built-in hygrostat. It senses the air passing through the dehumidifier and adjusts the drying so you get a consistent and correct humidity. You can adjust the hygrostat by turning a small knob on the unit itself. The most common practice is to set the hygrostat to 50% and then leave it there. This customer has chosen to use this integrated hygrostat. Alternatively, an external hygrostat can be used. This involves connecting a hygrostat that measures elsewhere in the boat, i.e., not the air passing through the dehumidifier. This external hygrostat is connected to the dehumidifier with a cable. The advantage of this is that you can measure wherever you want, and you can also switch the dehumidifier on and off if you want to force it to run or if you want to turn it off for a romantic dinner. An external hygrostat is therefore a nice extra, but not absolutely necessary. Dehumidifier test run "Sea Trial" Then it's just a matter of connecting the power and letting the dehumidifier run. You will now have a dry and pleasant boat. It is much more comfortable to be in, with less odor, less moisture, and a higher resale value. As we can see in the picture below, the customer is satisfied with the result.