Shades open or closed

[Paparaazi]

Hi guys,

Might be a stupid question but I've been told many many different reasons to either keep blinds open or closed on the boat. Some are saying to keep the sun off the woodwork down in the salon and rooms, while others are saying to keep them open to keep the sun coming in to keep the mold/mildew away.

Tried a search but have come up empty.

I've always kept the blinds and shades closed to keep the uv out but apparently all the glass panels are uv reflective? If they're not, how does the 510's manage with an open salon?

Really keen on hearing some opinions and science! What do you all think?

Thanks

 

[Boatweiser]

I've always kept everything closed. To me the heat generated by the sun, UV glass or not will lead to humidity and mildew. I always left the account on humidity control to deal with that.

 

[Gofirstclass]

I have sun shades on the outside of all my windows, but I also keep the venetian blinds closed. That helps to protect the fabrics and keeps them from fading.

If you're concerned about humidity, buy a small counter top model dehumidifier and set it so it can drain into the galley sink.

 

[WDCboater]

We keep the shades closed and the skylights covered 90% of the time. The only time they are open is when we're on the boat for a few days or if we're anchored out on a nice day.

The amount of light that comes in heats up the cabin and the AC struggles to keep the boat cool. It's mainly the skylights that cause this problem.

 

[Z-Worthy]

We keep everything closed and keep it as dark as possible while we're away. Unfortunately we do not have a dehumidifying setting on our A/C, so we crank the temperature down to 68 and figure the A/C will run often enough to keep the cabin dehumidified. The only time we run into a slight issue is during early Spring and late Fall when the ambient temp is lower than our A/C and it doesn't run. Then we do get a little bit of a musty smell. I still haven't figured out a solution, but it's only for a few weeks so I figure I can live with it.