PU put up wet

[TweetyBird]

Went camping last week for New Years.  Came home in the rain.  Never had a chance to dry out before we had an ice storm.  Any suggestions on how to dry out and not have mold or mildew?

[chasd60]

Open it immediately. If it isn't too late and the cold weather helped you might be OK. Open it and let it dry even if it means opening it in the rain. Mildew is a hard thing to deal with when it gets on the inside of the tenting fabric.
 
 Of course watch the weather for snow or ice storms, rain doesn't matter.

[TweetyBird]

Thanks for the help.  It just seems a shame to set it up and not be able to go anywhere

[Beer Belly]

Open it up and do some "Backyard Camping".

[gsm x2]

Thanks for the help. It just seems a shame to set it up and not be able to go anywhere

Tweety---that may be true, but beats the heck out of going somewhere, opening it up and being faced with mold and mildew spots or smells.
 
Scott

[Dee4j]

I've had to leave mine up for a week to dry out cause wehad so much on & off Rain. DD has a mold allergy so I have to take steps to prevent it.

[Sltrawick]

Had the same problem. We went camping at Fort Wilderness and it rained everyday. Got home to pop it up to get stuff out and let it air out and the cable broke. So, it was almost 3 weeks before I could get it open. Needless to say....mildew and smelly.
 
I tried everything, and I mean everything and it wouldn't take it away (mildew). Simple Green, stuff from the RV place, etc. Finally, I had had it. So, I took a spray bottle with water and bleach and sprayed it on the canvas. It cleaned it but took all the water proof off it. So, I then had to go the the boat place here in town (tried several differant brands...didn't work). Anyway, (darn it I forgot the name of what I used...I'll look for it and then post it)....well, sprayed it on and whah-la......waterproof.

[Fishin BC]

We had to bring ours back wet in Oct.  We cranked it up about half way in the garage.  Left the beds in and just pulled the canvas out over the sides so it could dry out.

[sandykayak]

I opened up the camper after about 4 or 5 months and nearly died!! one side has mega stains on the tent and the roll-up curtains had obviously gotten wet....  why only one side???

i'll be working on it this weekend....please provide the name of whatever I need to get...i'll pass on the bleach and water.

a friend said he went to a pool place and bought something for algae

[ScoobyDoo]

Wish I had a garage I could get it in.Just folded it back up in freezing rain,I should of took it down before work it was warm inside and felt dry. Can mold form below freezing?

[Sltrawick]

I opened up the camper after about 4 or 5 months and nearly died!! one side has mega stains on the tent and the roll-up curtains had obviously gotten wet.... why only one side???
 
i'll be working on it this weekend....please provide the name of whatever I need to get...i'll pass on the bleach and water.
 
a friend said he went to a pool place and bought something for algae

Good luck.....I too tried EVERYTHING too!  And as a last result, I had to use the bleach and water because it was so bad.  Some sprays looked like it was doing the job, but it wasn't.  
The sealent that I used to waterproof it was:  303 Protectant

[dee106]

if you can open it, do so, what we did was we put the furance and a box heater on full blast to help dry out the sides. if you can take the mattress inside and let that dry fully it will help , also let the wood base fully dry too.
  if you want you can throw a tarp over the ends  if the weather is still  iffy ( it will also help to keep the heat in)
 
 also i recommend  'damp-rid' to put into the camper  to help with the moisture.

[ScoobyDoo]

I don't worry too much about the tent in rain,if it is all closed up it stays dry inside.Freezing rain might buildup and tear from weight.I don't have a furnance but the heater had it dry Monday morning. I should have took it down in the dark before work instead of in the freezeing rain when I got home.I have a tarp big enough to cover the whole trailer, but the only way I can see to cover it is pull it over the p.u. then crank it up.Before I raise that much weight I need to get about an inch of ice off the top. Any idea on this without hurting fiberglass.                Thanks

[flyfisherman]

Getting a lot of use out of the camper in different seasons and in all kinds of weather is just about a guarantee for a certain amount of mildew no matter how careful one might be. We made a long distance trip a couple of years ago where we had to camp two nights enroute and it seemed the rain clouds were just following every place we went and even waiting for us when we got to where we were going; setting up and taking down in the rain was the way it was for that trip, not to mention the condensation formed on the inside during some of this cold, damp rain! Really took some airing out in the sun after we got back home.

Every season I do a major housecleaning on the little Starcraft and there's always some mildew to deal with. The owner's manual has a page for cleaning & maintenance instructions for the Aqualon care maintenance - more importantly, a phone number for the tenting manufacturer (The Astrup Company). I called the Aqualon folks and their favorite cleaning solution for mildew is 1/4 cup of Clorox to 1 gal warm water, plus a squirt of Ivory dish soap (#1 choice) or Dawn dish washing detergent (#2 choice).

Here's the steps from the manual:

1) Dry brush the area to be cleaned to remove surface dirt & dust.
2) Apply the cleaning solution and allow to soak, agitating occasionally.
3) Scrub, using a common household scrub brush or scrubbing pad.
4) Rinse throughly as unrinsed bleaching compounds can cause thread deterioration.
5) Allow to air dry.

For the "after" treatment, the old standby, ScotchGard, is their choice.

Anyway, this is what I've been following and has done a good job for me so far.

Fly

[Sltrawick]

Getting a lot of use out of the camper in different seasons and in all kinds of weather is just about a guarantee for a certain amount of mildew no matter how careful one might be. We made a long distance trip a couple of years ago where we had to camp two nights enroute and it seemed the rain clouds were just following every place we went and even waiting for us when we got to where we were going; setting up and taking down in the rain was the way it was for that trip, not to mention the condensation formed on the inside during some of this cold, damp rain! Really took some airing out in the sun after we got back home.
 
Every season I do a major housecleaning on the little Starcraft and there's always some mildew to deal with. The owner's manual has a page for cleaning & maintenance instructions for the Aqualon care maintenance - more importantly, a phone number for the tenting manufacturer (The Astrup Company). I called the Aqualon folks and their favorite cleaning solution for mildew is 1/4 cup of Clorox to 1 gal warm water, plus a squirt of Ivory dish soap (#1 choice) or Dawn dish washing detergent (#2 choice).
 
Here's the steps from the manual:
 
1) Dry brush the area to be cleaned to remove surface dirt & dust.
2) Apply the cleaning solution and allow to soak, agitating occasionally.
3) Scrub, using a common household scrub brush or scrubbing pad.
4) Rinse throughly as unrinsed bleaching compounds can cause thread deterioration.
5) Allow to air dry.
 
For the "after" treatment, the old standby, ScotchGard, is their choice.
 
Anyway, this is what I've been following and has done a good job for me so far.
 
Fly

That's exactly what I had to do for mine. Only...the Scotchguard didn't do it.....I had to go to the boat place and get what they use on boats (303 waterproofing).