Old, damp, cold house - windows opened or closed when going away for a few days

[Ilovefran]

I live in an old and cold and damp house.

Before I used to leave my windows open 24/7. Now I my bedroom, i usually have a dehumidifier running with the windows closed.

I am due to go away for a few nights and I don't want to leave the dehumidifier running and I want to turn it off.

I don't know what to do with my window. To close it or leave it a little bit open.

You see I closed it before and came back after a few nights and there was a musty smell.

This time my plan was to close it and leave tubs of salt and kitty litter around to soak up any moisture.

I have a pet hamster in my room and I don't want it getting too cold.

How do I manage my bedroom window? Open or closed?

Could you leave the bathroom/toilet window open a couple of millimetres??

I don't have an ensuite

If you’re living with an elderly parent could you not leave your bedroom door open a bit so when they hear the house you have air flow into your room to reduce condensation?

I have to lock my bedroom. Also another thing is she is obsessed with opening windows and leaving open all day long and the house gets too cold then. If I was to allow her access to my room, it will likely get too cold in my room. She will also likely plug out the wifi where I have a pet camera hooked up to it.

I just don't feel comfortable allowing her access to my room.

If she was to behave properly I would be able to give her instructions but she won't do it. She will go into my room and snoop and root and take and judge me. And freeze the whole entire room too for my hamster.

Gosh OP from what you say about your elderly parent is it safe to.leave her for 5 days? Does she have people coming in to see her?

@Ilovefran neither do I but still leave the bathroom window open just a little..... Never had mold in the house

I know. I hope she will be ok. She should be ok. She is still reasonably independent and can do a lot of things herself but there are a lot of what in the holy name of fucking god almighty moments. It's all just strange behaviours and moods.

I know right now, the house is freezing. My room is ok because I have the door closed. I opened the windows earlier for an hour or two. The window is closed again. And the temp in my room is ok right now.

It's just my mother is ordering me to leave my window open while I go away and I just don't feel comfortable about that because it will likely just get too cold.

But then I have another issue in that moisture does appear on the window even late at night when I am not even in my room. I think it's to do with my window and poor seal.

If it was anyone else, maybe they might be able to without boundaries but my mother won't uphold boundaries and she will likely just panic too at seeing anything plugged into my room.

I think I will likely just after to lock her out from the room.

To reiterate.

When the air temperature drops, the water vapour starts to condense on the coolest (or driest) surface. That's how dehumidifiers work. In the absence of a dehumidifier, the coolest thing is probably a windowpane.

If you need to lock your room, it is safe enough to buy some chemical dehumidifiers without worrying about your DM doing something odd with them. Poundland certainly used to sell the cheap, short life ones.

I don't think I would chance leaving a hamster for 5 days (but I last owned one a good few decades ago).

Please do not leave your hamster alone for five days - it's cruel. Worst case the water bowls will dry out and it will die, or if the house is as cold as you say it could freeze to death.

You need to take it with you, drop it to a friend, or get a pet sitter. It is neglectful to leave your pet for this amount of time. Please please don't do it.

I read on Reddit that some people do leave their hamsters alone for 3/4 days even 5/6 days with plenty of food and water. Several sources of water. I have three water bottles set up currently.

You see if I leave my hamster in the main house where there is an adult, it will freeze because the house is so cold.

My room is the only place in the house where the cold doesn't hit you strongly. I don't leave my windows open all day long and close them after a little bit of airing. My room should be ok as it is. She's currently living there happily with me.

Now I will be going away for a few nights. I have to lock my room to prevent access from my mother otherwise she will be in there open ING the windows all day long.

I would love to get a pet sitter but I can't get someone to come into my house and my room.

The enclosurer is too big to move and apparantly moving hamsters between enclosurers can street then out too.

So I figure staying where she is with plenty of food and water sources should be ok.

I would love to give my mother access to my room and ask her to mind my hamster but it will cause more harm than good to be honest. It really really really will.

Hamsters are solidarity creatures and especially my hamster. She knows me and my voice. I have a camera set up where I can talk to her through that and watch her.

I know it's not ideal.

Do you have a nice neighbour who your mother would tolerate? You could exchange mobile numbers and give them a key to your room, to be used in an emergency if you see on the camera that something is wrong with the hamster?