Condensation

[duracellbatterybunny]

Has anyone got any tips for dealing with condensation. Our house is Victorian and the bedroom is singleglazed. The amount of water on the window frames is ridiculous. Any ideas?

[duracellbatterybunny]

Has anyone got any tips for dealing with condensation? Our house is Victorian with single glazed bedroom window in our room. The amount of water on the panes and frames is ridiculous. Any ideas anyone?

[noisytoys]

Insulate, ventilate and a new roof. We had to do all 3 before the condensation problem was sorted

[rubydoobydoo]

I had a big condensation problem in a flat I lived in a few years ago - the landlord was going to install a couple of air bricks and a fan thingy in the window for ventillation but that never materialised - however I got a dehumidifier which seemed to help a lot. I found it wasn't as bad in the winter when I had the heating on more.

[PigletJohn]

does anyone drape wet washing around the house or over radiators?

[noisytoys]

I hang wet washing in one room with an extractor fan and a dehumidifier. The washing wasn't the problem

[skandi1]

More ventilation (open windows for a short time twice a day). Does your bathroom have a window? If it does open it for at least half an hour after bath or shower. If it doesn't get a more powerful extractor fan or install one if there isn't one.
Open window when cooking.
Do you have central heating and do you switch it on regularly?
Invest in a vented tumble dryer if possible to save wet laundry hanging out everywhere.
Loft insulation can help if you are a top floor flat.

[LadyMaryCreepyCrawley]

My upstairs windows do this. They are sash windows, so I can't open them a little. There's insulation in the attic, and I don't leave clothes to dry on the radiators. It's always in the morning when I wake, just around the bottom of the windows.

[PigletJohn]

water vapour is lighter than air, so it rises through the house until something stops it.

you are almost certainly breathing during the night, and the exhaled air includes some moisture (breathe on a cold mirror). during the night in cold weather the window glass will always get cold. Some damp air will come out of the bathroom, especially if there are damp towels and no extractor.

Ventilation will always help. You might consider a "dual screw" which is a special window lock made for wooden sashes that enables you to lock them fully closed, or open just a fraction. Old sashes are usually a bit draughty so will give some ventilation even when closed

[LadyMaryCreepyCrawley]

Thank you. I wouldn't feel comfortable leaving them open during the night.

[AntoinetteCosway]

So does condensation happen because the house isn't warm enough? We are getting it really badly (new house-to us) and I'm a bit reluctant to turn the heating up when it's not that cold. It's on 17 all the time at the mo.

[PigletJohn]

no

it happens when there is excess moisture in the air, and it reaches a cold surface. Windows are always cold in winter, and single-glazed windows have colder glass than double.

The cure to condensation iis to ventilate the moisture out of the house, and to put less moisture in.

[fortyplus]

I work in Housing and we produce a Condensation Guide

[AntoinetteCosway]

Thanks for that-it's really useful.

Can someone clarify though-it says to ventilate but not too much in cold weather. How much is too much?

[tricot39]

well balanced sashes can be opened just a little. i sleep with one open a small chink. i don't have a restrictor on it but it was easy to install on the ground floor windows so would very quickly sort the ventilation + security problem for those who are concerned. if not your only option is to buy.lots of cheap towels to wipe up the moisture and then dry them outside or in a well ventilate room inside during the day. but that approach will wreck your windows so it is cheaper and easier to leave one open just half an inch at night.

[PigletJohn]

here you are, Sash Window Locks The "dual screw" type is generally considered best and does not show much.

The ERA one looks identical to the Chubb/Yale one at a lower price.

The company whuch makes the Chubb, Ingersoll, Yale, Union and Abloy locks recently lost the licence to the Chubb name, and the products have been redistributed among their other trade names.

You might find them cheaper at Screwfix or a DIY shed.

You normally have one at each side of the sash, unless it is an extremely small one like you might find in a WC.

[AntoinetteCosway]

We normally sleep with the bedroom window open anyway, but still get bad condensation. We've got double glazing and a fan in the bathroom too, I don't understand it!

[PigletJohn]

"too much" ventilation. There is no such thing as too much fresh air, and the more the ventilation, the more moisture will blow away. However some people will complain about the cold. It is considered good practice to open all bedroom windows every morning while the beds are airing, between getting up and leaving the house. The bedroom walls will asbsorb moisture during the night, and this dries them off instead of letting it accumulate.

[fortyplus]

'Too much' ventilation would be chilling the whole house to the point where you were creating cold surfaces so that when you close doors/windows again you'd be exacerbating the problem. e.g. if you're cooking then extractor fan/window open a little = good, door and window wide open = bad.