Are there any drawbacks to this? i have one in there right now because of condensation problems in this damp weather, its bone dry now.... is it possible to be too dry? theres no interior or carpet in the boat right now so thats not a worry

No ignition protection. Could cause a boom if gas vapors are present. Get an extreme bilge heater.it should dry up the condensation

Did you try a damp rid bag? They are cheap and no need to worry about anything.

Actually, I keep one in the cabin's of both of my boats during summer. I found that the fabric became tight and started to prematurely fail at 35% or less. Now I keep them at 40%. Dry as a bone. Normally most boats have some type of passage between the bilge and cabin that I keep open also. Anytime the temp gets below 45* I put a thermostatically controlled heater (in the form of trouble lights) in the bilge since the dehumidifier can't work in that environment.

well its bone dry in there now had the thing running since when i posted this last night and we had torrential showers today. I have it on continuous, i will probably leave it like that for a while because i have some glass work to do in the coming months.

and the tank is also drained btw and has been since last feb

Thats what i use.cheap and dependable. They keep everything dry.the only.drawback is that.if you get in rough water they can spill.

on another note what temp will a single light bulb keep a bilge at so the dehumidifier can keep working when temps are below freezing

I have 2 -75 watt bulbs in mine. Piece of mind really. I take the dehumidifier out for winter. No need. Cold air is already dry. The only time i really get any water in the dehumidifier is if we spent the day swimming.

well i just measured the temp, outside temp is 31 inside bilge with one 75w bulb was 51 and still rising slowly on the thermometer. But for more accuracy i will measure it when i leave for work tomorrow at 5 am

How long can you keep your lights plugged in with out having to worry about them getting to hot?