condensation and dampness

emmas42

Just after a bit of advice regarding my new flat! :j

I have recently bought a ground floor flat in a house that was built in the 1890's. It is double glazed throughout and now that the cold weather has set in I am getting condensation in the bathroom and kitchen. The bedroom can feel a little clammy at times too.
I am getting an extractor put in the bathroom soon, but my main problem is that I am out all day and being ground floor can't leave any windows open to allow the air to circulate. In the evenings, when I am in it's too bloomin' cold for me to crack them open! (I am a wimp and hate the cold!) Upstairs is currently empty and being done up so i am losing a lot of my heat up there. I have been solving this with jumpers and fluffy socks.
Is a de-humidifier going to be any good for my situation? I just want to prevent the condensation from getting worse until the weather warms up enough for me to fling the windows open every day.
Saving my pennies for a kitchen extractor too, but being a FTB the pennies are quite tight and are currently being spent on things like a new fuseboard etc

gmgmgm

Do you really find it too cold leaving a window ajar? I sometimes put a wine-cork under a sash window- this gives enough of a gap for good ventilation.
Probably surprisingly good value to open the window a little bit and turn up the heating. It's good to leave bedroom windows ajar during the night, if you can.

wallbash

I am getting condensation in the bathroom and kitchen

Not a surprise. Can see why you are reluctant to open windows when you are not present , but why not the full window after cooking / bathing .

Have bath, get dressed , open window , close bathroom door .
Its your ( and I'm not getting personal ) life style that causes condensation.
Easy for me to say because I'm in a postion of being able to turn my heating up high enough to combat condensation.

Is a de-humidifier going to be any good for my situation?

Would help , but an wide open window after cooking / bath/ shower is better and a LOT cheaper.

emmas42

Thanks for your replies! Going to see if I can get myself into the habit of keeping doors closed as I am quite bad for leaving them open. (My last flat was very open plan and on the third floor so not many doors for me to remember to shut and i could leave the windows open. Was also very toasty as I had neighbors above, below and to the side)
Kitchen windows are quite difficult to reach, but it is a kitchen diner and the windows by the dining table are quite easy to open.
Got a nice thick duvet so there is no reason why I can't leave the bedroom one open at night too! Going to try this with extra socks to keep snug :-)
I just hope someone moves in upstairs soon! Hopefully will keep my place warmer as my heat won't be escaping into an empty flat.

hartcjhart

If you can, buy and fit on every outside wall a couple of 'hit and miss' vents,one at roughly floor level and one near ceiling level, this will help with air circulation and negate the need for leaving windows open,
as has been said when bathing open the window slightly,same with cooking.
also what type of heating have you got,is it something like a 'calor gas fire'?

emmas42

Ooh, hit and miss vents? Never heard of them, gonna google it
I have radiators in every room.

dampdaveski

hartcjhart wrote: »

If you can, buy and fit on every outside wall a couple of 'hit and miss' vents,one at roughly floor level and one near ceiling level, this will help with air circulation and negate the need for leaving windows open,
as has been said when bathing open the window slightly,same with cooking.
also what type of heating have you got,is it something like a 'calor gas fire'?

Emma,
also when googling hit and miss vent you could google, 'knock a big hole in my wall every where I want to put a vent'!
It's a bit like recommending using leaches to treat everything, airbricks fitted in the wrong place can actually make your problem worse as there is the possibility of creating cold spots which will encourage mould to grow.

Make sure oyur extractor is a continous duty type such as
Nuaire Genie X - good fan
envirovent filterless extractor fan - good fan
Kair eco 150 heat recovery room ventilator - good fan but expensive
There are other but these are the ones I use and install regularly

You might want to consider the installation of a unit such as the Nuaire Flatmaster unit or Envirovent Flat unit, google the names and check out the information on the manufacturers websites.

If you do use a calor gas type heater, that will be making your problem 10 times worse.
DD

TEDDYRUKSPIN

Air vents - no air vents!?!?! You still get condensation.

Simple physics!

Open the window to equal the temperature - inside and out.

Your only solution is to wipe the windows clean from condensation morning and night.

dampdaveski

TEDDYRUKSPIN wrote: »

Air vents - no air vents!?!?! You still get condensation.

Simple physics!

Open the window to equal the temperature - inside and out.

Your only solution is to wipe the windows clean from condensation morning and night.

The world is flat, we'll never put a man on the moon, and elvis is still alive
teddy do you use leaches to cure a cold by any chance?:mad:

27col

I cannot get my mind around the apparent fascination on some of the posts in these forums, for ventilation to "cure" condensation. There is no point in having radiators if they are not keeping the air in the the room warm enough to prevent the onset of condensation. It seems to me that all ventilation is doing, is to ensure, that the heat losses are great enough to lower the temperature enough to ensure that there will be condensation. I have no condensation and also definitely no ventilation. The bathroom has no window, but it does have an extractor fan. However, even without the fan on, there is no more than a slight mist on the tiles. I always ensure that the bathwater is premixed in the mixer tap so as to be at the right temperature for the bath. As this is only about 103 degrees Farenheit, there is no steam coming off the water and hence no condensation. As far as I am concerned, once I have started using the expensive gas, the requirement is to keep the heat in the house. This is achieved by means of large amounts of insulation, not ventilation. I have suffered from severe condensation in the past, but that was in a house that had no insulation, no double glazing and no CH. Never again. The basic requirement to prevent condensation is the application of heat and the use of insulation to keep it where it is required. There is probably no way to prevent severe condensation in badly heated and uninsulated houses.

wallbash

You are completely correct .
Insulation and enough heat , means no condensation. Am in the position that if I am cold will turn the heating up , ( and up :rolleyes: ) til i'm warm . I'm not carbon Neutral and polar bears are on there own , i'm staying warm.

But if you cant afford large heating bills , have little insulation But a bad attack of condensation, open the window ..... cheapest solution.