AIBU or is the Estate Agents?

[Fangbanger66]

We've lived in this property now since end of July.

We have mentioned the window seals on the double glazing in the main bedroom since we moved in. There broken on each window.
Our estate agent done our inspection yesterday and again brought up the windows and the level of condensation.

We have puddles of water on the window sill each morning which we have to towel dry, we have the wall underneath the windows dripping, cant see through windows each morning and dark mould near window (picture). We use condenser as well to keep on top of it.
She replied it wasnt because of the window seals, its because 2 people sleep in the bedroom, the hot air from inside meets the cold air from the outside on the windows and thats what causes the condensation.

I replied if this was the case, then everyones house would be like this, this time of year. I said my friends and family havent got this problem when 2 people are on bedroom. I never had this problem in the two rental properties I had before this one.

She just looked away and said Ill give your feedback to the Landlord but I think its just because you sleep in the room.
I didnt want to argue with her or repeat myself so i just said okay.

Now waiting for a reponse from Landlord. But do i have a point? Can i ask for this to be dealt with? Surely a bedroom shouldnt get like this because "2 people sleep in it"

Im due a baby in 4 weeks which will be sleeping in the room also and i don't want anything bad on the babies lungs.

Any suggestions that I or the Landlord could do?

Factors that I am aware could cause this according to what you are saying is

• too cold bedroom heat it to 18 morning and evening rather than 15.
• not regularly aired
• age of windows - are they old? It’s hard to tell how old they are from the photos. But 20yr old dg windows are not as efficient as new ones.
• property building materials - approx when would you think the property was built?

Fling all the windows open as wide a possible when the heating is on for at least 10 mins when you go downstairs for breakfast. Every day.

I don't think it is normal at all. I have lived in quite a few houses over the years (about 20) - old, new, detached, terraced etc and never had this problem.

The house I am in now is rented and we have a problem with the bathroom. There is terrible black mould on the wall where the window is. I always open the window in there and leave it open often for hours. I use the mould spray but it just comes back.

We don't have a problem in any of the other rooms

The problem is caused mainly because the bedroom window is not open so the damp air can't get out
Ours has a trickle vent that is always open + we open the fan light when we are in the house and usually have it slightly open overnight
It's nothing to do with the seals

You need to open the windows upstairs as well. I usually open our bedroom window at night even in the cold. DD is still alive and kicking even if she has condensation on the windows in the morning. Make sure house adequately heated.

I vac our windows if necessary and have dehumidifier on when drying clothes. Do not dry clothes in bedrooms or on radiators. Ultimately it's your responsibility to ensure the house is warm and adequately ventilated so it does not get mouldy.

Tradionally houses had good ventilation but 20th and 21st century builders seem to want to not do this.

It's nothing to do with the seals

Have to agree with that. We had a similar problem with our spare bedroom, and because the d/g window was old, we replaced it. Didn't make a difference. Still condensation and mould. We solved it by proper ventilation, i.e. open windows. Funny thing was that it was the only room - all other rooms were fine - but it was the corner of the house that seemed to get the brunt of the bad weather.

EA is stupid. No! They have just seen a lot of homes with a lot of black mould cased by condensation, whish is as CAB and SHELTER will tell you a lifestyle factor.

There are other causes of damp, but, as any home owner does, you have to work through all the possibilities, including a damp survey. If the house has been rented for a while and OP is the first to have this issue then the assumption that she is a cause is a fair one.

Or the house may always have had the problem, and OP needs to decide whether or not she will stay.

Many houses have this issue, it is almost always down to temperature and ventilation.

It's nothing to do with the seals I asked about the seals to see where the water was. It wasn't initially clear. Apologies if that confused things!

I will make a point of opening windows every morning for at least 10 mins.

The crystal dehumidifier looks good. We do have a condenser, thought they were the same.

Ill see what landlord says but i just dont feel comfortable having a newborn in a room with mould on walls. I get all houses are different and people do get condensation but it does seem extreme IMO with the mould and the amount of water

I apologise if I am behind on landlord regs etc

but I've rented places like this and I'm pretty sure there's nothing to be done about the condensation other than dehumidifier

I'm pretty sure it's not damaging for new borns, not ideal and I have asthma as well - but it's been fine.

mould is different but there's tons of categories of mould - we cleared a lot of mould in the place we eventually bought and put mould treatment on etc but condensation still occurs. Regular wiping means it hasn't reoccurred.

OP actually re window seals - isn't there an issue with draughts and cold air? If you moved in being told the seals would be fixed, they should be.

Funny thing was that it was the only room - all other rooms were fine - but it was the corner of the house that seemed to get the brunt of the bad weather.

Agree with this - we're semi-detached and the rooms on the party wall don't get nearly as condensation-y as the rooms on the detached wall.

Do you keep a small bedroom open all night op?
As others have said, you must make sure the property is well ventilated at all times.
We always sleep with the window open slightly, even during the winter, and am amazed at how many people think it's acceptable to seal themselves in with no fresh air coming in.

I think this must be a problem that letting agents come across time and time again.
We have got new tenants in a property we rent out, and the need to ensure the property is well ventilated at all times is written in the tenancy agreement in bold print.

I open all the upstairs windows while the bairns are having breakfast then close them again. Just to air it out a wee bit, then make the beds after they’ve been aired.

I’d agree about not doing the mould spray yourself if you’re pregnant, and staying out of the room until it’s been properly aired after use.

We have this in our bedroom- pools of water at the bottom of the windows and have never really experienced the problem in other properties. We also get mould in the bottom of the alcoves on the gable end wall. If you have furniture on your gable end wall check behind there for mould too. We cleaned the walls with mould spray then repainted using anti fungal paint (from b&q). We have one of those unibond things and run the electric dehumidifier every so often. We open windows as much as we can, keep the heating on and have recently purchased a window vacuum. We haven't been able to eliminate mould, just slow it down. On the walls, I think the mould spores are now set in the plaster and we need to replaster. I think the location of he house matters- we are an end terrace, which is colder than mid terraces. We are in a dip so don't get much wind to ventilate. And the bedroom gets very little sun. Re the baby- our baby (now 10 mo) slept in the room and has been fine. Just keep on top of visible mould and clean furniture and bedding regularly. From about late February we find the situation improves as the weather gets warmer.

Yes, the EA is probably right, as other posters have said.

This is often a problem in older houses where double glazing has been put in but there is now nowhere for the condensation to go as there is not enough ventilation (older wooden sash windows were drafty).

I do open the windows when were in the house but downstairs. and of course this is your issue - two people breathing overnight will cause this.
I see that you are now going to start opening the bedroom windows which is good but won't stop the overnight condensation.

I can't see the top of your windows, but is there a small vent at the top with a cover? Open the cover at night. They are there so that a regular small draft can give somewhere for the ventilation to go. If there isn't as it is an older double glazed window, you are just going to have to wipe the water off every morning and no, that won't be harmful to your newborn.

As a previous poster has recommended, the Karcher window cleaner is exactly for this purpose.

Laws of physics. You breathing. Cold window. Maybe less ventilation or draughts than previous properties. Baby will be fine. Buy a window vac.

Happens in my house and many houses I know in rooms where people sleep or water is emitted.

But ....If there is a guttering problem or an actual leak, the landlord needs to fix it. Check for leaks next time it rains, take photos.

Much as you don't want to hear it this is a lifestyle problem, and the land lord cannot fix it, only you can. As people have said the condensation is due to warmer wet air hitting the cold window. You need to air your house daily, and keep rooms warm to eliminate it. It will be worst in north facing rooms, and rooms with more than one exterior facing wall as these will have colder walls.

One flat I lived in had this issue. When the property was empty there was no water or mould on the windows as the air was dry.

We found our condensation got worse after we put new windows in. We just use a window vac now