I just put up a 30x40 pole building and put the truck and boat in. I have the engine hatch up on the boat and noticed this morning that the motors are covered in condensation. We just had a 30 degree jump in temps here and humid. I'm in the process of insulating the ceiling with foam board and then foam boarding the sides.

My question: Does anyone else experience this problem? Will insulating the structure help reduce the issue?

Until I get things insulated, I opened the windows a bit to get some air flow to help keep the inside equal to the outside temps, hoping this will reduce any further problems of temperature differential in the mean time......

Had the same weather here in Upstate NY yesterday...went out in the garage to put some things away for the winter and noticed the same thing on my cars. Concrete floor was sweating as well. Think it's just the temp change.

Dave

the warm humidity laden air condences on the cold surfaces in your garage until they warm up.......I served my apprenticship working in cold storage facilities........thats normal.

Did you post pics of the garage???.....after pulling up and moving to a house with a suitable lot the plan is to start mine in the spring.......you must be stoked!!!.....doug

I put up a "portable garage" (just a big azz tent) this summer and the salesman stressed putting plastic down on the ground to reduce moisture buildup. That has worked like a charm! On days like your talking about I can practically see puddles under the plastic, but inside the tent is quite dry.

Unless you keep the surface temps above the dew point this will happen.
Insulation could make it worse, once everything gets cold, it will stay cold longer. Heating to above dew point is the best way to keep this from happening. I just turned up the heat 5* yesterday to avoid condensation, when the weather turns cold and dry the heat goes back down.

This is normal. In spring it will be worse.

my empty beer cans were wet from all the dew in my house garage. Circulation and some heat will clear up. If hatches are closed they should be dry inside.

I make my living designing and erecting metal buildings so I do know a little about this subject. These issues apply to any structure, not just metal buildings. As previously stated by P M Trigger, moist air against a cool surface will create condensation. You need to have a good vapor barrier envelope around the entire building to minimize the humid air entering the building....easier said than done. This starts with a good layer of plastic under the concrete slab and a layer of aggregate to prevent water build up. All roof to wall connections and any other gaps must be sealed tight. This is usually where metal buildings get a lot of air intrusion. Use weather stripping on all doors and windows. Close all of the doors, cover the windows and turn the lights out and go inside on a sunny day to find the sunlight leaks. The insulation itself on the roof and wall panels will usually not keep the humid air out...it just prevents it from coming into contact with the cold panels and makes the building quiet in a rain storm...but you must use an insulation with a good and continuous vapor barrier or the insulation will become wet over time. Thats only a concern when using fiberglass insulation. Our commercial grade metal buildings are usually much more vapor tight than your standard pole barn. Seal up what you can, install the insulation and if you can swing it, a good thru wall A/C unit will certainly help.

If you have a furnace/heater in building run it on these days where humidity is high and a low pressure front moves in other wise you will get the sweating/cylinders rusting,cast iron sweating,concrete damp etc,I experience it myself in my 40 x 100 barn,its sometimes impossible (as in my case) to make it air tight enough to prevent it. As a minimum measure spray everything with wd-40 that you can and fog your motor when prepping for storage. Ive seen ring and pinions in rear axles and gears inside transmissions that were pitted/rusted in collector cars that sit alot in these conditions,Smitty

I keep the temp in my building steady at 50* and also run a dehumidifier year round. Cost a little bit to do, but it's cheaper than having all your tools, collector vehicles, and engine parts rusty. Makes a BIG difference.