Drying out Boat/Garage

[Atrain89]

Just curious to see what some of you guys do that store your boat inside a garage when it's soaking wet to help dry things up. I usually put a box fan on the boat to dry it out, but in the meantime the garage gets very humid and stinks like a livewell for a few days.. My garage is attached to the house so the smell cant be avoided very much. I'm considering adding a ceiling fan this spring and have been thinking about adding an Exhaust fan out there as well to help suck the moisture out of the air. What are your thoughts?

[Orion922]

When I get back and it is soaked (this past weekend) I immediately steam clean the carpets. My wife's steam cleaner has an attachment that I use. Light soap and hot water and I run over all the carpet. After that, I open all compartments for a day or so and let the residual run where it should. Takes care of 90 percent of the stank, and water. I will also use my blower at times for hard to get to spots.

[Thermodude]

I have two 52” ceiling fans plus a through the wall heating & cooling unit that does a great job in mine....

[Phoenix Jim]

Used to have ceiling fan but did not think for me it did a good job. First I use wet vac and then I put like 3 carpet fans on boat you buy at any home improvement store. This has worked great for me other than sunlight

[CatFan]

Switch from the box fan to a more commercial fan. Tractor Supply has a 20" fan for about $50 or you can get wall mount versions as well. These move a lot more air than a box fan. You can also step up to fans that move enough air to annoy you from across the room. Open a window if at all possible, and open the garage doors whenever you can to exchange air.

You can also hit it with a wet vac to get a head start on the drying process.

[MasterCASTER!]

I installed 2 ceiling fans in my garage. Run them on high all summer long - works just fine.

[RANGER487]

If it's real bad I will shop vac out the carpet and suck up all the water then open all the compartments. I have heard of the fan deal many times but have not ventured there yet.

[Atrain89]

Yeah I've been thinking about picking up a couple good carpet fans but also wondered how the ceiling fans work for keeping it dry and riding of any stink. I usually always have a window open, I'll open the garage door if I'm home, but not while at work.

[4Kboater]

Two ceiling and a carpet fan for me. During the summer it's usually 95 during the day inside the garage so water evaporates quickly.

[DrewFlu33]

The Harbor Freight "Portable Blower" works very well. LINK It's lightweight, compact, got different feet on it so you can angle it basically any way you want, and moves a ton of air. I generally just move mine around until everything's dried out.

I've used a shop vac on the carpet in the boat before but don't really feel it's necessary if you have a fan that can move a lot of air.

[jtracc]

I use a shop vac if the boats going in the garage to suck up as much water as I can. And this helps as the vac fills with water. If I can leave the boat out in the sun for whatever reason, I use a portable air mover. These are used to dry large areas soaked with water. They sit low to the ground and are very powerful. They look like a massive hair dryer. I leave the fan in for a day or so moving it around every 3-4 hours. Drys up in no time.

[Rick H]

I do a combination of things. Ceiling fan directly above the cockpit with all lids opened at least on medium as long as we didn't get caught in the rain all season till winterize the boat. A shop fan aimed at the length of the trailer to help dry the bunks and circulate air in the garage. I don't leave the garage door up but will raise it about a foot for a few hours daily. I have a 36 mile one way drive from the closest lake so the bunks are fairly dry when I back into the garage. I'll run the big fan at least two to three days during the season after each outing. Seems to work well for me.

[83chickenman]

A dehumidifier works great as well. Wicks the moisture out of everything. I leave my lids open and in a day or two it is nice and dry

[jwcfbd]

I have a horrible moisture problem in my garage. I put in a big dehumidifier and plumbed the drain line out the back wall. During the summer it runs a lot but the garage is always dry now.

[brushsjigs]

I always use a squirrel cage and motor out of a furnace. Ton of air and a furnace guy gave me one. Cant get any cheaper than that

[crank68]

Ceiling fans and dehumidifier for me ....

[Atrain89]

Well sounds like the ceiling fan is a good route to go. Now just curious if an Exhaust fan or Dehumidifier would be better to help suck the moisture out of the air. Need to get that smell out of the garage quick..

[JR19]

Well sounds like the ceiling fan is a good route to go. Now just curious if an Exhaust fan or Dehumidifier would be better to help suck the moisture out of the air. Need to get that smell out of the garage quick..

In my opinion ceiling fans have the tendency to eat fishing rods. I run two box fans in my garage. They are on timers to kick on/off. If the boat is wet I bypass the timer and run them constant.

[crawdadking]

Switch from the box fan to a more commercial fan. Tractor Supply has a 20" fan for about $50 or you can get wall mount versions as well. These move a lot more air than a box fan. You can also step up to fans that move enough air to annoy you from across the room. Open a window if at all possible, and open the garage doors whenever you can to exchange air.

You can also hit it with a wet vac to get a head start on the drying process.

[Rick H]

In my opinion ceiling fans have the tendency to eat fishing rods. I run two box fans in my garage. They are on timers to kick on/off. If the boat is wet I bypass the timer and run them constant.

True if you forget it's up there I've got 10.5' ceiling but did center my ceiling fan on a down rod on a high velocity fan installed and position to dry the boat. Instead of blowing across like box fans do the air from a ceiling fan blows down and in the compartments so if they are wet they dry pretty quick. Doing what I do most of the time by day two when I walk into the garage the moisture smell if it isn't gone it is just about. If we get caught in the rain and soak the boat add another 24 hrs. So with that in mind I feel what I'm doing it working even when the humidity is high which is most of the summer.