Ventilation

[Everly18]

The home we've recently moved into seems prone to condensation, mainly in the front bedroom and dining room which we use as a sitting room. I can't seem to find an actual answer as to how long should you ventilate the home for, is it best to leave windows open slightly all day in the rooms that suffer the most or just for short periods of time throughout the day? We've also not been using the heating so not sure if switching it on now and again would help too?

If the pointing outside looks like it is not intact, that needs doing regardless. Can you suggest that the landlord gets that done, then see if the damp goes away?

wonder why building regulations insist on 100mm min cavity wall insulation on every current new build/ extension ? 🙄

Because the government is more concerned with meeting it's pollution/energy consumption targets than whether people live in damp homes.

Funny how plenty homes without cavity wall insulation were fine for years then developed damp once installed. The stuff is shit.

Always ventilated my homes. Condensation only occurs in the ones with a damp problem. Blaming it on tenants is a landlords favourite pastime. If there's no damp problem it's perfectly possible to repeatedly dry washing on the radiator without getting condensation or mould problems, as long as the room is well ventilated by open the windows periodically. If the property has a damp problem normal life causes it to worsen.

our current house is retrofitted with cavity wall insulation 65 mm cavity and no signs of a hint of damp . Some of the older methods of wall insulation have been known to cause issues and this is where cavity fill gets a bad name. Modern materials ( the little grey beads ) and the slabs they use on newer builds now have no issues. Ours is a white foam type that crumbles easily when you touch it and water seems to have no effect on it, it just rolls off of it.

condensation in homes can be caused by a variety of things , some people will have a damp lifestyle, drying clothes, cooking , showering etc and not ventilating properly. Some houses will have damp issues, usually old houses solid walls , no damp proof membrane in floors maybe penetrating damp/ rising?
Some houses will just have that little insulation that just putting the heating on will create condensation on the cold house ( walls , floors ) Keeping the heating on all the time will solve the problem for many but who can afford to do that now ? People on here say “ you just need to open the windows everyday “. Then the house is freezing cold and your back to square one.

A good energy efficient dehumidifier is a good place to start. That way you can keep the windows shut , keep the heat in and suck the moisture out.

Insulation is the key to a warm dry home, a well insulated property will need very little heat to keep it warm.

So here's a little update!

They've sent some one out today to see if he could find the source of the damp, The guy agreed it's nothing we're doing and we've done everything we can in the house to prevent it. He looked for leaks etc but couldn't find any and he agreed the house needs repointing, there are some areas (especially in the areas where the damp is) where the mortar has crumbled away and missing. He's called the estate agents and they've agreed to have the house repointed. Thanks to everyone who commented and gave advice, fingers crossed this solves our damp issues.

Glad to hear you might be on your way to a solution! If that is the problem, be aware that if the walls are damp it might take several weeks to dry them out. And while they are wet, they will also be colder (like wet clothes are) so they will probably be more prone to condensation as well as penetrating damp until they dry.

The good news is if the walls do dry out , the rooms should be easier to heat and easier therefore to keep dry in future.

You do still need to ventilate though!

Depends on the age of the property.

Newer buildings have it as standard. There as you are asking for problems just filling up the gaps in older buildings.