Condensation in shed

Darcey15

Darcey15

Teenage Guinea Pig
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Hi there, I've looking for a little advice please. I had a shed built in summer for my 6 piggies and I insulated it fully in advance of winter. The pigs are spending most of the time inside during this very rainy spell & I'm getting a condensation build up. I've bought some dehumidifier boxes and used 1 in there so far but I'm not sure how effective they are yet. The window is open during the day which helps but overnight it builds up again when the window is shut. I've had the fan heater and dehumidifier in there to keep it dry but it's in need of a steady source of heat now. I dont have electricity down there but could run an extension lead.

Can anyone recommend a good heatlamp, are they safe and how do they compare to the dimplex tube heaters in terms of effectiveness & cost? Any ideas most welcome!

Many Thanks
 
Adding a small vent (or a couple) towards the top of the shed to allow constant ventilation (but not draughts) would be my suggestion.
I don’t have condensation issues in my current shed as there is always some ventilation (without allowing draughts.). Unfortunately my current shed has seen better days and I am shortly to be getting a new better insulated shed and I am either having a few small vents added during manufacture or the hubby is going to fit some for me.

Can’t help with the heating though I’m afraid as current shed isn’t heated (I use snugglesafes and measures within their hutch to keep them warm )
 
Thanks, I think because there are 6 of them there's alot of breathing moisture going on! They have snugglesafes too so I'm not worried about them being cold, just the damp. I opened the runaround tube connector as that lets in some air & I have kept the window slightly ajar but I didnt want it to be draughty either. A vent higher up could be a good idea so thanks for that, hopefully I'll get some pointers on heating too 👍 roll on summer eh?!
 
I have a very insulated outbuilding/shed with electricity and use a free-standing electric heater to keep it warm. The heater has a what I think is called 'thermostatic cut-out' but this didn't work well enough to keep the temperature steady and so I would be going in every hour to adjust the dial. I have since bought a plug-in thermostat, to which the heater is attached, set it to the temperature I wanted and it is keeping the temperature in the shed more-or-less at that, going only one degree either way. This seems to be working well, though goodness knows what our electricity bill will be as it is on 14 hours a day. (At night their (very) insulated hutch is covered in blankets and they have snuggle-safes, so the temperature barely drops inside their sleeping area.) I don't have a problem with condensation, though.
 
Admittedly rather a posh shed by the time I'd finished with it (it's just a wooden structure behind it all and I replaced the shed door), this is what I have done to keep the temperature constant. For the sake of the photo I have placed the unit indicating the temperature (actual temperature at the top of the screen, intended temperature below it) in front of the heater, but it is otherwise kept on the shelf running along the wall, up by their hutch (not visible here) to make sure the temperature is correct where they are. You can see the thermostatic plug where the heater is plugged in (there is a red light when it kick-starts the heater again). And as you can see, this was intended as my study … When we bought the guinea pigs for my daughters, I kept saying, 'They are not going in my shed. They are NOT going in my shed. They are not going in my shed.' Two-and-a-half weeks after their arrival, they had moved into my shed. Their run has now expanded to fill all possible floor space.... (BTW the fleece is going to be washed and changed tonight, although they much prefer it covered in hay!) I don't know if this helps at all -- I've gone off topic.

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You might talk with a greenhouse operator--they deal with condensation and have ways to lower it. One way is to have a top vent, and run a heater if the air is cold. You'll need to have an opening low in the building to let air in, so that air can go out the top vent.
 
VickiA said:
Admittedly rather a posh shed by the time I'd finished with it (it's just a wooden structure behind it all and I replaced the shed door), this is what I have done to keep the temperature constant. For the sake of the photo I have placed the unit indicating the temperature (actual temperature at the top of the screen, intended temperature below it) in front of the heater, but it is otherwise kept on the shelf running along the wall, up by their hutch (not visible here) to make sure the temperature is correct where they are. You can see the thermostatic plug where the heater is plugged in (there is a red light when it kick-starts the heater again). And as you can see, this was intended as my study … When we bought the guinea pigs for my daughters, I kept saying, 'They are not going in my shed. They are NOT going in my shed. They are not going in my shed.' Two-and-a-half weeks after their arrival, they had moved into my shed. Their run has now expanded to fill all possible floor space.... (BTW the fleece is going to be washed and changed tonight, although they much prefer it covered in hay!) I don't know if this helps at all -- I've gone off topic.

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Wowzers that is a posh shed 😍 lucky piggies! Thankyou for sharing what you do, its really useful. It would be very simple if I had electricity there but I'm going to get an outdoor socket installed in the new year so for now, I'm going to rig up an extension as a temporary measure and get the heater in there tomorrow to dry it out and order a heating appliance- I'll look at the link you sent. I've put an extra dehumidifier box in there now- I guess I was expecting it to work wonders in 10 mins 😂. I have left the window open today too so air can come through the runaround tube hole at the bottom & vent out of the window, seems to have cleared some of the condensation. I took the insulation off the ceiling too. Funny how the piggies end up with the VIP treatment, I've never kept them outside in winter so far, they used to be in our utility room & it was easy to stick the heater on but we've just extended the house so they now have their own piggie pad. Once the electricity issue is sorted they will be back to VIP status! Thanks again x
 
Canary said:
You might talk with a greenhouse operator--they deal with condensation and have ways to lower it. One way is to have a top vent, and run a heater if the air is cold. You'll need to have an opening low in the building to let air in, so that air can go out the top vent.
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Thanks, Yes I've just been looking at greenhouse heaters, its all a fiddle due to no electricity but I'll get round that (husbands extension lead will be nabbed for a while!).
 
Darcey15 said:
Wowzers that is a posh shed 😍 lucky piggies! Thankyou for sharing what you do, its really useful. It would be very simple if I had electricity there but I'm going to get an outdoor socket installed in the new year so for now, I'm going to rig up an extension as a temporary measure and get the heater in there tomorrow to dry it out and order a heating appliance- I'll look at the link you sent. I've put an extra dehumidifier box in there now- I guess I was expecting it to work wonders in 10 mins 😂. I have left the window open today too so air can come through the runaround tube hole at the bottom & vent out of the window, seems to have cleared some of the condensation. I took the insulation off the ceiling too. Funny how the piggies end up with the VIP treatment, I've never kept them outside in winter so far, they used to be in our utility room & it was easy to stick the heater on but we've just extended the house so they now have their own piggie pad. Once the electricity issue is sorted they will be back to VIP status! Thanks again x
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:nod: Yep, piggies really do get VIP status! This is the nicest space we have (albeit accessible via a mud patch, aka lawn) and I now have to make do with a tiny desk squished into the corner of the sitting room! You have made me wonder whether we have condensation behind all that cladding though, as I'm so worried about rats getting in (we had an infestation in the house [eeek] a few years ago) that I keep the window tight shut and only briefly prop open the door when I am right by it. I think I need to look into that.
 
KHBz said:
:nod: Yep, piggies really do get VIP status! This is the nicest space we have (albeit accessible via a mud patch, aka lawn) and I now have to make do with a tiny desk squished into the corner of the sitting room! You have made me wonder whether we have condensation behind all that cladding though, as I'm so worried about rats getting in (we had an infestation in the house [eeek] a few years ago) that I keep the window tight shut and only briefly prop open the door when I am right by it. I think I need to look into that.
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I'm the same, I was worried a cat might get in so had the window closed but it really would have to be a very skinny & acrobatic cat to do that 😂. Honestly i thought i'd got everything sorted, spent a fortune on the runaround system & shed, pondered for ages on the set up, insulated it all (stuck my hair to the ceiling in the process!) & just when i think I'm sorted, the condensation issue starts & i too have a muddy quagmire to negotiate to get to them....i've put planks of wood down until we get a path sorted. Its never ending but I blame the rain 😂.
 
Darcey15 said:
I'm the same, I was worried a cat might get in so had the window closed but it really would have to be a very skinny & acrobatic cat to do that 😂. Honestly i thought i'd got everything sorted, spent a fortune on the runaround system & shed, pondered for ages on the set up, insulated it all (stuck my hair to the ceiling in the process!) & just when i think I'm sorted, the condensation issue starts & i too have a muddy quagmire to negotiate to get to them....i've put planks of wood down until we get a path sorted. Its never ending but I blame the rain 😂.
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It does sound incredibly sophisticated what you have been doing (perhaps planks are a little less sophisticated though I just have temporary stepping stones sliding about!) But it's a shame that you had to take the insulation (and your hair) off the ceiling. Can't that go back up? Rats can get in anywhere -- if you can get your thumb through a gap, a juvenile rat can get through it too. I don't know about under-nourished acrobatic cats though ...
 
KHBz said:
It does sound incredibly sophisticated what you have been doing (perhaps planks are a little less sophisticated though I just have temporary stepping stones sliding about!) But it's a shame that you had to take the insulation (and your hair) off the ceiling. Can't that go back up? Rats can get in anywhere -- if you can get your thumb through a gap, a juvenile rat can get through it too. I don't know about under-nourished acrobatic cats though ...
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Ha ha- I've only ever seen 1 rat here and he was very fat so seems he is getting his fill elsewhere. The good news is I did a full clean out yesterday and rigged up a little electric fan heater using the extension lead which did a good job of drying most of the damp. I've managed to squeeze the wire through the window in our conservatory so it still shuts on the latch & same for the shed so i can give them a nice bit of heat each evening & morning which should keep on top of the problem, the insulation will keep it warm enough with some ventilation.

Until I come up with a more permanent solution this will do. You live & learn eh!? Attaching some pics so you can see my set up 😊
 

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Thank you for the photos! How lovely it is where you are! And what a brilliant set-up for the piggies, both inside and out! My daughters would love me to do a run-around like that, and it looks fantastic fun for them, but we'd be tripping over it as we have such a tiny garden. I put the same foil insulation on two of the walls behind the cladding, and it is those walls that have been worrying me (since this thread and talk of vents) regarding condensation. (By the time I had moved onto the third wall when converting the shed, I had changed my mind about how best to insulate it and I think those other two walls will be fine -- learning on the job!) As for rats, I had been lulled into a false sense of security, rarely sighting any since we got ontop of the infestation, but as soon as we set up the guinea pigs' hutch and run in September, they were back in the garden. I have rat-proofed both hutch and run to the extent that I am only lacking a moat of broken glass and barbed wire, but I am very uneasy to have rats prowling around again. If they return in earnest when we try to move the piggies back outside in the Spring, even though I can't imagine that the rats will be able to get to them, the shed may have to become the guinea-pigs' permanent home. Will yours continue to live in the shed in the summer, given that they have such easy access to an outside run with your set-up? Lucky piggies!
 
KHBz said:
Thank you for the photos! How lovely it is where you are! And what a brilliant set-up for the piggies, both inside and out! My daughters would love me to do a run-around like that, and it looks fantastic fun for them, but we'd be tripping over it as we have such a tiny garden. I put the same foil insulation on two of the walls behind the cladding, and it is those walls that have been worrying me (since this thread and talk of vents) regarding condensation. (By the time I had moved onto the third wall when converting the shed, I had changed my mind about how best to insulate it and I think those other two walls will be fine -- learning on the job!) As for rats, I had been lulled into a false sense of security, rarely sighting any since we got ontop of the infestation, but as soon as we set up the guinea pigs' hutch and run in September, they were back in the garden. I have rat-proofed both hutch and run to the extent that I am only lacking a moat of broken glass and barbed wire, but I am very uneasy to have rats prowling around again. If they return in earnest when we try to move the piggies back outside in the Spring, even though I can't imagine that the rats will be able to get to them, the shed may have to become the guinea-pigs' permanent home. Will yours continue to live in the shed in the summer, given that they have such easy access to an outside run with your set-up? Lucky piggies!
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It sounds like you've done as much as you can about the rats, they will always be knocking about somewhere, like cats but your pigs are very secure. The condensation I had was on the outside of the insulation so was very visible so i think you'd know if it was damp.

Yes the pig house was put up in summer to house the additional 5 rescue pigs I got to keep my boy pig company so they needed their own space & are used to it so they will stay there all year round (bar bonfire night when they all came inside) the runaround thing wasnt cheap but i found a much cheaper version on ebay & extended it recently to get to the decent grass....my next issue is how to clean the tube out in spring which will be a lovely job 😂.

At each end of the tube there is a hatch which closes & I close it at night, but even now at dusk ths pigs come alive in the outdoor run & jump around so I have to lure them back in with food so nobody gets stuck outside. The things we do eh! X
 
Darcey15 said:
It sounds like you've done as much as you can about the rats, they will always be knocking about somewhere, like cats but your pigs are very secure. The condensation I had was on the outside of the insulation so was very visible so i think you'd know if it was damp.

Yes the pig house was put up in summer to house the additional 5 rescue pigs I got to keep my boy pig company so they needed their own space & are used to it so they will stay there all year round (bar bonfire night when they all came inside) the runaround thing wasnt cheap but i found a much cheaper version on ebay & extended it recently to get to the decent grass....my next issue is how to clean the tube out in spring which will be a lovely job 😂.

At each end of the tube there is a hatch which closes & I close it at night, but even now at dusk ths pigs come alive in the outdoor run & jump around so I have to lure them back in with food so nobody gets stuck outside. The things we do eh! X
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I did wonder about cleaning the very, very, very long tube! That will be fun! Our two youngsters are still very skittish and I can imagine that they would plonk themselves right in the middle of the tube so that no-one could get at them from either side (a technique of theirs with the tunnel that was on their ramp when they were briefly living outside). Your piggies must have a great life with shed, runaround and run. Lucky creatures!
 
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