Humidity Levels in 2 Bedroom Flat

neas

When i said i opened windows... i was prob rambling.

IO understand the principle of a dehumidifer and yes... leaving window open is silly :P. Before we got dehumidifer we would leave windows open during night...

We got dehumidifer recently... we leave windows open or slightly open to ventilate during day... and then close, heat and dehumidify at night when we come home. No mould on carpet, its cream so dead easy to spot. Only really seemed to effect bedroom... living room kitchen have no signs of mould whatsoever.. why i suspected it was something to do with bedrooms being on 'ground'.

Our flat is small.. we have a DEM10 delonghi dehumifier.. and 12 (YES 12) of those 250g pingi bags... so far spent 150 quid on those things... but the mould in wardrobe had destroyed a 200 quid suit already so was worth it in that sense. we trying everything.. so far no new mould but we will see.

neas

Just trying to get to bottom of problem. Am pretty sure our daily activities aren't extreme or irregular and not everyone uses dehumidifier... so if we still get mould i think we will have to leave flat.... as it seems 'jinxed' or something wrong.. lol

BitterAndTwisted

I'd leave that dehumidifier running 24/7 while keeping the heating on at a lowish temp (13 or 14 degrees celcius) during the day while you're out and see whether that makes an improvement.

neas

if i left dehumidifier on all day it would cost 4 kwh a day... 4x what most fridges use. meaning 1200 kwh in a year... we currently use 7 kwh of elec a day... so increasing our usage 50%... isnt really the ideal answer. hence why windows open slightly during day.

neas

It would be just cheaper in long run if that was what would be required.. to move flats because you shouldnt need to run dehumidifer 24/7 to live... something is a miss..

Fire_Fox

neas wrote: »

if i left dehumidifier on all day it would cost 4 kwh a day... 4x what most fridges use. meaning 1200 kwh in a year... we currently use 7 kwh of elec a day... so increasing our usage 50%... isnt really the ideal answer. hence why windows open slightly during day.

Just trying to get to bottom of problem. Am pretty sure our daily activities aren't extreme or irregular and not everyone uses dehumidifier... so if we still get mould i think we will have to leave flat.... as it seems 'jinxed' or something wrong.. lol

40p a day is a lot cheaper than the £200 suit or £150 on dehumidifying crystals! Leave the wardrobe open while you dehumidify so the air can circulate. If you read around the net the advice is to run the dehumidifier 24/7 until you notice a reduction in the amount of water it collects, thereafter you run it for a few hours a day. You should only need to run the dehumidifier in the winter months, not all year round.

My bedroom is worst affected too, especially when there are two of us breathing (a pint per person per night). My brother's flat is the same: he is ground floor so can't leave windows open and needs a dehumidifier. Many flats have condensation and mould, how badly depends on the lifestyle of the residents (average four pints per person per day from all activities) AND the design of the property (natural ventilation, stable temperature etc). My parents duplex apartment isn't too bad at all, but they have a corner flat so better air flow, extractors that vent outside, ALWAYS open the windows when cooking, have storage heaters so constant temperature ... etc.

Bongedone

neas wrote: »

if i left dehumidifier on all day it would cost 4 kwh a day... 4x what most fridges use. meaning 1200 kwh in a year... we currently use 7 kwh of elec a day... so increasing our usage 50%... isnt really the ideal answer. hence why windows open slightly during day.

I have the same dehumidifier. Run it till you get the humidity to 50% on your sensor then adjust the humidistat till it turns off. It will then only go on when the moisture goes over 50%. Does not run 24/7 when like that.

roger196

The water must be coming from somewhere. Have you checked there are no leaks in pipework from basins, bath, wc and cistern, washing machine, dishwasher, shower, radiators. Check both taps and waste pipes. Lie under sink whilst it is being emptied. Does central heating need constant topping up (look in feed and expansion tank) or re-pressurising if a sealed system.
Go outside and check that dpc is not breached, look for overflowing gutters (preferably when raining) and broken downpipes. Watch outflow from washing machine etc when emptying. Have you checked gullys.
Have you checked there is no leak from flat upstairs eg where is their shower.
Do you have house plants which are constantly watered. A cheap damp meter from B&Q or screwfix may help you detect where damp is. The next stage is to find the cause. Good luck.

neas

Theres no evidence of leaks or water damage anywhere from above... the gutters are above the flat above... but the guttering is overgrown and blocked... But would that cause a problem to us if the flat above is below the guttering and not got humidity?

Washing machine empties fine, no signs on leaks, central heating system doesn't have visible signs of leakage.. only needed to bleed and top up once in last year.

In bedroom, don't have any signs of leakage...

Could it be maybe drains blocked outside of flat (we on ground floor)... or dpc..

So i still got to check DPC and drains outside flat.... How can i tell if DPC has broke? As its a horizontal 'material' a couple bricks up off ground level right? to block water penetration going up brickwork and into flat?

neas

Only other think is when flat above flushes water I can hear the water going down our drainpipes inside our flat... like near outer wall of bathroom.. but again... theres no visible source of water coming out anywhere.. or smell that something has rotten (water laying somewhere etc)