How do I stop condensation?

quintwins

alex it sounds like your discribing my house, our house is over insulated we have had vents fitted in our windows now and our insulation pulled back but that has all improved it but we still have abit of an issue, our house is painting so were scubbing walls and paintoing over the top of it so try seal it in but it's only lasts a month or so but i would say your dads right, our house was pretty much air tight (people who owed the house before did the insuation and left no gaps at all) and if theres no where for the mositure to go it's gonna cause mould a dehumidifier wouuldn't help me i'd need one for every room

whiteguineapig

i have a dehumidifier as well , i wouldn't be without it as my house is old and damp as well
i have mine in the worst bedroom but sometimes wheel it to a different room

Nickitree30

I got a top spinner off Freecycle and put wet washing through that first before hanging it up if it has to be hung up inside. It's amazing the amount of water that comes out of clothes that have already been spun in the WM. It means the clothes dry so much quicker and I use the water on my house plants.

Sequeena

I have the exact same thing except our windows are wooden (single pane) I just wipe the windows down as much as possible.

wetter

Linda32 wrote: »

Okay, its started, we get this problem every year. It will go away of its own accord around next June :eek:

Any idea's on how to cure it please we have tried one of those windowsill absorber affairs which perhaps do work, but not in our case.:rolleyes:

The windows are open all day, apart from in the depths of winter, about a month during December - January in our case.

There are rads under each window which is affected and they are on during the evening and weekends as necessary. One of the windows is double glazed and the other isn't. The one that is double glazed is worse affected and is the room we sleep in.

We are talking alot of condensation, more than can be wiped off, unless you want a pool of water on the windowsill that is.

Any help would be appreciated.

this sounds like a major humidity problem, find the cause & then eliminate, old houses with coal fires have great circulation of air and no condensation, remove the fire & seal up all vents to stop drafts and condensation is the result. portable gas or parrafin type heaters put as much liquid in the air as they use = 1 gallon fuel = 1 gallon condensation. heat & ventalation & cut down on all moisture causing habits. the battle is endless, I hope this helps:A

lala1974

I bought a dehumidifier on Monday evening after my DH came downstairs and was mortified by the amount of condensation we had in the bedrooms and bathroom - he'd literally wiped it off the walls (not just the windows) and the towels he was holding were dripping wet :eek:. We were really upset - mostly because it is clearly not healthy for our children.

I don't think that drying washing in the house is the sole cause of this but accept that it may have added to it.

Anyhoo, I plugged the dehumidfier in my daughters room (the worst) that evening and moved it onto the landing at bedtime and have done this for the last couple of days (alternating between sons and daughters rooms)!


WOW!!!! What a difference it has made. We have collected 20+ litres of water so far (and thats without me putting any washing around - thought I'd avoid it for a while so the dehumidifier can work some magic without me adding to its workload). Last night it managed to run all night with out cutting off because it was full.
We used to notice that within an hour of the heating being turned off we could feel the cold when we walked up the stairs. In the space of 3 days we have seen such a huge difference. The windows and walls have remained dry. My DH is a postie so gets up very early - he is amazed that he's been able to check out the weather through the bedroom window in the morning without having to wipe it first :rotfl: and my son threw his blankets off last night because he was too warm, we haven't had the heating on since it arrived. :T

Last night it ran all night without cutting off because it was full to capacity. In a few days I will turn it down so that it only clicks on when the humidy rises to a certain point - not sure what that is - I'll use trial and error.

Basically we are thrilled. £150 well spent.

rosie383

Just trawling through all the posts and thread about condensation. This is a big problem for us since we got cavity wall insulation last year. Reading through, it seems as if I have no option except to wipe down the inside of the windows/ window sill every morning, and open all the windows.
Okay, I'm getting used to doing that, my question is...... what do you use to wipe them down?
I am just using a cleaning cloth. It doesn't seem very absorbent, but I can wring it out easily and it dries pretty quickly. Don't want to use something big like a towel, as I have enough wet washing hanging everywhere trying to dry. Also don't want to use kitchen roll as it is too expensive.
So, what do all you lovely frugal/efficient people use?

ETA: We don't have the CH on yet, so maybe it will help when we do? I know damp washing will make the problem worse, but I have no choice at the mo. Too damp outside to dry it, and don't have a TD. Just have to put up with it, and wash as little as poss til we put the heat on. (Mind you, 'cos we don't have the heat on, no-one is sweating anyway, so less sweaty clothes to wash lol!)

rosie383

BTW, has anyone tried damp traps from Poundland? I got a 2 pack of these and put them in the 2 worst rooms, but they don't seem to be doing much. Am I meant to do something with them? All I did was to peel off the plastic/foil type lid, and set them on the windowsill.

jennyo

lala1974 wrote: »

I bought a dehumidifier on Monday evening after my DH came downstairs and was mortified by the amount of condensation we had in the bedrooms and bathroom - he'd literally wiped it off the walls (not just the windows) and the towels he was holding were dripping wet :eek:. We were really upset - mostly because it is clearly not healthy for our children.

I don't think that drying washing in the house is the sole cause of this but accept that it may have added to it.

Anyhoo, I plugged the dehumidfier in my daughters room (the worst) that evening and moved it onto the landing at bedtime and have done this for the last couple of days (alternating between sons and daughters rooms)!


WOW!!!! What a difference it has made. We have collected 20+ litres of water so far (and thats without me putting any washing around - thought I'd avoid it for a while so the dehumidifier can work some magic without me adding to its workload). Last night it managed to run all night with out cutting off because it was full.
We used to notice that within an hour of the heating being turned off we could feel the cold when we walked up the stairs. In the space of 3 days we have seen such a huge difference. The windows and walls have remained dry. My DH is a postie so gets up very early - he is amazed that he's been able to check out the weather through the bedroom window in the morning without having to wipe it first :rotfl: and my son threw his blankets off last night because he was too warm, we haven't had the heating on since it arrived. :T

Last night it ran all night without cutting off because it was full to capacity. In a few days I will turn it down so that it only clicks on when the humidy rises to a certain point - not sure what that is - I'll use trial and error.

Basically we are thrilled. £150 well spent.

I can only echo what Lala says, mine arrived on Friday, and i can't believe how much water there is, I have used it in the kitchen and on the upstairs landing, its fantastic.

rosie383

Anyone help with what you use to wipe the inside of the windows?