Is a Black CT too hot

[InMotion]

Im looking at an Elite model CT from Adventure Campers and wondering do they heat your contents unusually-Thanks

[Bird]

I would say it would be like a black car....

[chillipepperz]

You can't escape the laws of thermodynamics: black will always be hotter.

Cheers!
Andrew

[Beachman]

My previous car was black and my current is white and the difference in cabin comfort is very noticeable.

In the middle of summer with my black car I always needed the A/C on full blast and always felt the heat radiating through the roof.

Now with the white car it’s still hot in the middle of summer, but I no longer feel the heat coming through the roof while driving along.

Plus in my opinion black with show every stain and mark possible. 

[BaseCamp]

I'm looking at getting the roofs replaced on a couple of properties atm....     The roofing people have given me a swatch of colourbond colour sample cards...   

On the back of each colour card is a "heat transfer" rating....    I was amazed to see that the silver and white roof colours etc only transmitted about 30% of heat; whilst charcoal and black etc - according to the cards allowed 80% -90% heat transfer.....   Hopeless for Qld then...

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[Bird]

I was amazed to see that the silver and white roof colours

I know they are only samples, but I cant imagine a white roof on a house... :S or silver... WTF?

[Redcherokee]

I agree with the comments about black being hotter.   But, I am not convinced it matters for a camper trailer. 

Most heat will come in via the roof. You may well have a boat or other items on the roof reducing that heat intake anyway.  Just under the roof you have your bedding, and I think the canvas (been a while since I have seen an adventure camper in the flesh).  I would reckon on bedding being a good insulator for the lower contents of the trailer, and frankly it doesn't matter if the bedding gets warm.  The first thing you do is pull it out and put up the canvas over it, so it will be at ambient in no time flat.

The area you sleep in is under canvas. Way more important to your comfort than the temp of the trailer. The adventure campers usually have a mesh bit under the bed you can open, so a really well ventilated camper.  A non problem, imho.

Heat coming at the sides is mostly only going to impact one side at a time.  Most of the stuff in your camper can take a bit of warmth without it being an issue.  Clothes etc are just insulation, really.  The main items of concern would be fruit and veg, eggs and chocolate deteriorating if they get a bit warm and are out of the fridge.   Now, melted chocolate would be a tragedy. If the carrots get warm they won't last quite as long, and I wouldn't consider that an issue.   Mine would be in the fridge anyway, so non problem again.  Someone will mention beer, but I am pretty sure that goes in the fridge before consumption.

The fridge might have to work a little harder to keep its contents at the correct temp.  This could possibly mean your battery gets used up a bit faster.   On these campers, is the fridge on the kitchen side?  Because if it is, then it is shaded by the awning when set up.  So this is only an issue when you are packed up or driving.

When you camp, you set up paying attention the the sun direction if possible anyway, regardless of type of camper. If you are in a caravan park and don't have a choice, you can have electricity so no problem either.   

I have a black camper trailer, with a light grey cover.  Heat has only been an issue when opening the toolbox - burny to the touch if it has been in full sun for hours on a hot day. Inside I have never noticed an issue.

If the black one has a bunch of other features you like, then go with it.  And put your chocolate in the fridge if you find it melts.

[tk421]

White cars are cooler if you have all the windows closed. But not by much. Open the windows and I think it would be different.

Auto trader did a test with some Fortuners - after a few hours the internal temp in the white one was 45C and the Black one was 54C. Berkeley Lab Environmental Energy Technologies Division had two cars in the sun for an hour, one black and the other silver. After an hour the Silver one had a cabin air temperature of about 5-6°C lower than an identical black car

But conversely wearing black keeps the human body cooler as black also absorbs heat from the body whereas white will reflect it back to the body - hence the dark clothes used by those living in desert areas.

I'm looking at getting the roofs replaced on a couple of properties atm....     The roofing people have given me a swatch of colourbond colour sample cards...   

On the back of each colour card is a "heat transfer" rating....    I was amazed to see that the silver and white roof colours etc only transmitted about 30% of heat; whilst charcoal and black etc - according to the cards allowed 80% -90% heat transfer.....   Hopeless for Qld then...

Generally white is a good reflector and poor radiator of heat whilst black is good reflector and good radiator of heat, that's why all the Mediterranean homes walls are painted white - to reflect the sun. Black looks black because it absorbs all the wavelengths in white light and reflects none. All the light coming from sun hitting a dark roof doesn't just disappear never to be seen again. Instead, as the light is absorbed, it gets converted to other forms of energy, usually heat, which is then emitted by the object. The darker the object, the better it emits heat, because it’s a better absorber of light.

A lot of manufacturers are providing dark coloured paints that reflect the infrared portion of the light. But I'd go for a light roof in a hot climate. Temps under a black roof can get to 60C

[BaseCamp]

I know they are only samples, but I cant imagine a white roof on a house... :S or silver... WTF?

Mate - think   ..different strokes for different folks....

I would consider the silver  (ie zinc etc); or the white because in my application one of the dwellings is a commercial character shop; the other next door - is on an arterial road...  so no biggy for both....   

Actually I will be going the silver because the house is pre WW2 circa 1920s; so that look will fit into the area well. ..

And as they are old BNE "tin & timber"  SUDs / dwellings - saving on heat transfer is king to me!

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[Goose]

I think its worth noting that most caravans are white or at least majority white... perhaps for this heat reason. 

[Redcherokee]

I think its worth noting that most caravans are white or at least majority white... perhaps for this heat reason.

Agreed.  The difference is you live inside your tin can with a caravan.  You live on top of or alongside your tin can with a camper trailer.

[muzza01]

Mine is black but most of the top (90%) is aluminium chqr plate so not really much of a heating issue.

[slydar]

(quietly looks out the window at his black camper, with the replacement zip-on cover which came in black, and where he painted the new plastic stormwater-drain pipe pole carriers black to match it on the weekend...)

[muzza01]

(quietly looks out the window at his black camper, with the replacement zip-on cover which came in black, and where he painted the new plastic stormwater-drain pipe pole carriers black to match it on the weekend...)

If you paint stormwater pipe up my way they sag from the heat.

[slydar]

reckon mine has too :-( - it aint straight any more...

[nab]

But conversely wearing black keeps the human body cooler as black also absorbs heat from the body whereas white will reflect it back to the body - hence the dark clothes used by those living in desert areas.

I always wondered about that theory. The white will also reflect the heat from outside/the sun whereas the black will absorb the heat, so if it is hotter outside than you body temp the theory should be reversed...

[tk421]

I always wondered about that theory. The white will also reflect the heat from outside/the sun whereas the black will absorb the heat, so if it is hotter outside than you body temp the theory should be reversed...

Only works if you have baggy loose clothes. My understanding is that your hot body radiates heat too. Heat is really light ie infrared light waves. White reflects all light waves, so the IR waves would be reflected back to you by white clothes heating you further. Black absorbs the heat (IR light). This absorption also creates convection currents to help draw heat away from the body. But it also needs a way of dissipating from the black clothes. Baggy loose clothes billow and swirl allow the heat to dissipate better

Also look at evolution. Humans that evolved /adapted to live in hot climates have what colour skin? Light or dark?   Humans that adapted to colder environments have white skin. White is a bad radiator of heat. Ideal for cold environment where you need to keep warm. Black is a good radiator, ideal in a hot environment when you need to keep cool

Look at attic foxes and polar bears. White fur. Etc etc


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[Shaun99]

Believe it or not, their hair isn't actually white! Their long outer hairs, which protect their soft, thick undercoat, are hollow and transparent. The thinner hairs of their undercoat are also colorless. Polar bear hair looks white because the air spaces in the hairs scatter light of all colors.

The white color helps the bear hide itself from its prey. Incidentally, polar bears actually have black skin, to better absorb heat from the sun, and translucent fur. The outer guard hairs, which are longer, are hollow on the inside; the air trapped inside scatters light and make the bear look pale.

[tk421]

Believe it or not, their hair isn't actually white! Their long outer hairs, which protect their soft, thick undercoat, are hollow and transparent. The thinner hairs of their undercoat are also colorless. Polar bear hair looks white because the air spaces in the hairs scatter light of all colors.

The white color helps the bear hide itself from its prey. Incidentally, polar bears actually have black skin, to better absorb heat from the sun, and translucent fur. The outer guard hairs, which are longer, are hollow on the inside; the air trapped inside scatters light and make the bear look pale.

Yeah there are other evolutionary benefits to light coats in the Arctic  - camouflage etc, and in hot countries dark skinned humans get a natural sun screen of sorts

Getting back to the OP. Thinking about this further last night,  if your're moving the airflow across the trailer would provide some cooling. So it would only be when you're standing still. As others have said its more about your canvas. Though the external surface of the tub would be hotter with black paint.

We were away over Xmas with another 2 campers that had black tubs, one with blue and one with grey canvas. I can't say they were much hotter inside than our green one with grey canvas. It's the same as white vs black cars. Open the windows and there's not much difference in internal temps.

[wilson79]

Wow, we have gone from black camper trailers to polar bears 

[tracker]

Wow, we have gone from black camper trailers to polar bears 

 Quick....get out the hemma map.....we're lost ......... !!!!!!!....

                                Cheers Tracker.

[below sea level]

I know they are only samples, but I cant imagine a white roof on a house... :S or silver... WTF?

I grew up in a house with a silver iron roof. Back in those days it was the only colour you could get. Kind of like a black Model T Ford.

[Bird]

I grew up in a house with a silver iron roof. Back in those days it was the only colour you could get. Kind of like a black Model T Ford.

Silver Iron is different to silver tiles! I quite like the old corrugated iron tin sheet roofing.. looks good on older style houses, and sounds great in a hailstorm!

[tk421]

Silver Iron is different to silver tiles! I quite like the old corrugated iron tin sheet roofing.. looks good on older style houses, and sounds great in a hailstorm!

But a bugger  when you're watching TV and it is raining. 

[BaseCamp]

Also look at evolution. Humans that evolved /adapted to live in hot climates have   (sic) ...dark colour skin?

Humans that adapted to colder environments have white skin. White is a bad radiator of heat. Ideal for cold environment where you need to keep warm. Black is a good radiator, ideal in a hot environment when you need to keep cool
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That shows how much I know don't know...   I always assumed that in evolutionary terms; the branch of humankind with modern-day charcoal skin; evolved that way from countless eons of generations getting sun-burnt; where their skin eventually became blacker... as a form of coping mechanism whilst wandering around all day naked in the sun; like an evolutionary advantage?  LOL...   But on second thoughts; with the way many of our aboriginal and African brothers get treated by 'whittie'; it could be argued the other way around - that it is no evolutionary advantage at all...