How do I protect a golf simulator from damp and condensation?

In summary

Keep the electronics inside the temperature and humidity ranges in their manuals, bring the portable ones indoors between sessions in winter, and keep the room's air dry. Condensation, not cold itself, is what damages kit in a UK garage or garden room. The frame, screen and mat cope far better than the projector, PC and launch monitor.

Why condensation happens

Warm air holds more moisture than cold air. When warm, damp air touches a surface colder than its dew point (the temperature at which the moisture turns back into water), water forms on that surface. In an unheated garage everything cools to near the outside temperature overnight. Then you arrive, switch on a fan heater and start breathing hard. The air warms in minutes, but the projector, PC and launch monitor take much longer. For a while, their cold surfaces sit below the dew point and moisture settles on lenses and circuit boards.

So the risky moment is the start of a session in a cold room, especially if you heat it quickly.

What the makers allow

Here's what each maker publishes. Where a maker gives no figure, I've said so.

• Garmin Approach R50: works from -10C to 55C, charges from 3C to 47C.
• Garmin Approach R10: works from -10C to 55C, charges from 0C to 45C, and won't charge outside that range.
• FlightScope Mevo Gen2: 0C to 40C in use, -10C to 55C in storage, 30% to 70% relative humidity. FlightScope says not to use or store it below freezing.
• Full Swing KIT: 0C to 40C in use, 0% to 85% humidity, non-condensing.
• Square Golf and Square Golf OMNI: 0C to 40C in use. Square says to avoid excessive humidity.
• Rapsodo MLM2PRO: 5C to 50C in use. It isn't water-resistant.
• Uneekor EYE MINI, MINI LITE and XO2: store between -6C and 43C. Uneekor says not to use them where there's high humidity.
• Foresight GC3: no figure published. Foresight says to store it somewhere cool and dry and not to use it in high humidity.
• BenQ AH500ST projector (in our SimSpace packages): 0C to 40C in use. BenQ's manual says to avoid excessive humidity.

Relative humidity is how full of moisture the air is, as a percentage of the most it could hold at that temperature. "Non-condensing" means the range only applies if no water is forming on the kit.

What I'd do in a garage or garden room

1. Measure first. A cheap digital hygrometer (a humidity meter) tells you the room's relative humidity. If it regularly sits above 70%, the top of FlightScope's range, you need to bring it down.
2. Run a dehumidifier between sessions. None of the makers names one, but it's the simplest way to keep the room inside their humidity ranges. Empty it regularly and plug it into a wall socket, not an extension lead.
3. Prefer steady background heat to a blast of heat. Keeping the room a few degrees above outside, with a low-power heater on a thermostat, stops the kit getting cold enough for condensation. If you only heat when you play, start the heater well before you switch the electronics on.
4. Let cold kit warm up before switching it on. BenQ's manual for its GP500 projector says not to use it for at least 2 hours after moving it from a cold place to a warm one, because moisture can condense inside. The AH500ST manual doesn't say this, but the same physics applies.
5. Ventilate after you play. Your breath adds moisture. Open the door for a few minutes when you finish, then close it and let the dehumidifier work.
6. Keep the car out if it's wet. A rained-on car dries into the air of the garage.

Bring the portable kit indoors

Battery launch monitors are the easiest thing to protect: carry them into the house. In winter I'd store any of them indoors between sessions, and the Mevo Gen2 and Uneekor units must not be stored below their minimums.

For longer storage, follow the battery advice. Garmin says to charge the R50 and R10 to at least 50% and keep them somewhere cool and dry at normal household temperatures. Full Swing says to store the KIT at 40% to 50% charge and check it every 6 months. FlightScope says to charge the Mevo Gen2 fully and top it up every two to three months.

When you bring a cold unit indoors, or carry it from the house into a cold garage, give it time to reach room temperature before you switch it on.

Screen, mat and frame

• Impact screen. Damp won't ruin it, but a room that stays damp can leave marks. SimSpace says not to let a wet screen air-dry, because that can leave water stains; dry it with a fan or a hairdryer on low heat. For more, see screen care and lifespan.
• Hitting mat. I couldn't find any maker guidance on damp. If it gets wet, lift it off the floor and let it dry right through before you put it back, so the base underneath doesn't stay damp.
• Frame. Steel enclosure frames handle garage humidity well. Wipe off any condensation you see on the poles.
• PC. If it stays in the room, keep it off the floor, in a ventilated cabinet, and let it warm up with the room before you switch it on.