Dri-dek vs. hypervent

[Frank C]

I see that Oliver is now offering the Hypervent material for under the mattresses as an upgrade.  Anyone ordered it recently from Oliver on their build?  And how does it compare to Dri-dek for cost?

[AndrewK]

I don't know about the comparison but Oliver is charging $269 for Hypervent on the standard floorplan and $179 on the twin.

[Rumline]

That's a fair price.  I think I paid ~$100 for the material.  I would have paid $180 to avoid the hassle of cutting/shaping it myself.

[BackofBeyond]

Hyper vent off the WWW  - $12 foot at 40 inches wide - 12 feet is $144 plus shipping, and you would still have to cut to dimension and install. Seems Oliver has fairly priced the option.

 

I don't yet have an opinion on the need to use an air barrier under my mattress.

 

RB

[ADKCamper]

Hmmm... might be worth a try! We camped in 19 degrees (F) one night last week and definitely had some condensation under the vinyl cushions and associated bedding.

[Try2Relax]

I've had the dri-dek for a while and will be purchasing some hypervent at some point soon. Just this week I had to pull both mattresses out and remove and wash the covers, the rear half of the mattress all around the curve, was completely soaked (I thought the window leaked, it hadn't) I will get enough of the hypervent to also go up the outside wall.

 

When first getting the dri-dek know that it SMELLS and really needs to air for quite a while.

[topgun2]

I've never had a problem with moisture under the mattress.  However, as a precaution I did cut a piece of 3/4 inch foam board to place under the mattress and as Randy did I came up each side about four inches.  I still haven't had any moisture problems, but, I have not camped in anything below about 25 degrees since I added the foam board.

 

Since foam board is a bunch cheaper than hypervent, it just might be worth a try.

 

Bill

[CedarForks]

I bought 13' of 39" wide hypervent back in September and paid $170 for the material.

 

Cutting the material to fit the contours of our ordered twin beds took some time and effort.

 

Oliver's quoted price for this feature is excellent value and would result in a more professional cutting job, I'm sure.

 

However, preparing the material it occurred to me for the first time that this product depends on AIR FLOW and that its edges should be EXPOSED.

I think this probably precludes tucking bedding over the edges or jutting it too tightly against the inside shell.

If this is a problem, how do I keep the mattress away from the inside shell by, say, 1/4"?

Also, be sure to recess the inside (passage) edge by 1/2" -- the cut edge is quite sharp and could easily scratch legs.

 

Are any of these observations real issues or am I just overthinking the problem?

[Rumline]

Regarding scratching legs, does your hypervent stick up above the lip of fiberglass that holds the mattress in?  Mine is only an inch or so thick and does not stick up/out to where scratching legs would be a problem.

 

But yes the cut edges of a DIY job are sharp.  I first used duct tape to enclose the cut edge, and then later when I had time, melted them slightly with a heat gun.  That dulled the sharpness.  I did not have any issues with scracthing occupants, but my bedding did catch on the sharp edges at first.  If I hadn't done the duct tape immediately I'm sure I would have torn a sheet at some point.

 

I think you're right about needing to keep the loop material exposed so air can circulate.  That's what we do and we have had no problem with condensation, even with three people and two dogs inside with the outside temp in the 20s.

[SeaDawg]

If you look on the boating forums, there are a lot of alternatives... dridek, hypervent, foli system, ikea slats, aire-flow. (Much like hypervent).....

 

Each of the products work by channeling moisture to the deck. But, just as in our boat, that moisture has to be given a path to evaporate.

 

For us, it's pulling cushions away from the hull a bit. For mattresses, its a bit more work...

 

We still use cushions, not a mattress, and the fabric cover is water repellent,  so I've never actually  experienced a wet cushion...  when we store the ollie, i always raise some cushions on their sides, balance others, and leave air flow. All i use for a base is a very good, bumpy,  shelf liner...when we are camping.

 

It's different for everyone, based on how much humidity you and the climate generate. We spend, usually,  , nine hours a day inside.  I  make coffee, and sometimes  breakfast,  inside,  but rarely generate a lot of moisture.  It's mostly us, the 9 lb dog, and a tea kettle.

 

Even if you get dridek, hypervent,  or the ilk, you'll need to give the the moisture a path to evaporate.  IE, pick up the cushion or mattress, and give some breathing room, once in awhile... if you are generating a lot of moisture,  or camping in severe weather. Daily, weekly, depends on what you find...in local conditions.

 

Sherry

 

 

[Bruce W]

Would it help to drill some holes thru the platform / support that the mattress lies on?

[aquestell]

We have had the hypervent since we took delivery of our Elite II.  Never had an issue with condensation or mold.  In my opinion, hypervent works very well.

[Bruce W]

Does the hypervent tear your sheets at the edges?

 

 

[Frank C]

We added the Hypervent to our build sheet list for our Elite II twin floor plan (May 2019 delivery, hull # TBD).  Seemed like a pretty good deal and cheap insurance against moisture problems under the mattresses.  We are pretty much just 3 season campers anyway (late spring, summer, early fall) so I don't expect to deal with extreme cold temperatures that may cause condensation, but it's always a good idea to have some air circulation under the mattresses in any case.   Looking forward to meeting some of you at the rally in May.

[aquestell]

No. We have had no problems with sheets being torn.

[Mike and Carol]

We haven’t had a moisture or mold problem. Camped in heat and in cold, no issues. I’m not sure why some do and some don’t.

[Ray and Susan Huff]

We have identified all the options we might possibly want and are in the process of deciding which we actually need.

1. The Hypervent moisture prevention mat sounds like a good value. Questions:  does the mat make it more difficult to access the under bed storage (twin beds)?  How heavy is it?
2. Do the edges of the mat damage bedding or the inside wall of the berth?
3. We plan to use back cushions along the wall; will this matter? 

We live near the Oregon coast, but have had zero issues with moisture or mold in our van.  We flip the mattresses on edge when the van is garaged and place  Dri-Z-Aire dehumidifiers throughout the cabin.

Would you order Hypervent again?  If you don't have it, do you wish you did?  An easy add on later, but Oliver has it fairly priced.   

[Galway Girl]

We have had our trailer for 10 months. We have the hypervent under our upgraded mattresses.
It's smooth on the side facing the mattresses and isn't causing any snagging or marking of the body of the trailer.
Getting under the mattress requires some lifting and shifting...and the hypervent is the least of the issues.

Luckily, getting under the mattress isn't an every day occurrence.  
When I do need to access I tip the mattress up against the wall...or move it all the way out of the way into the aisle temporarily.

C. Short

Hull 505

Galway Girl