Cistern condensation

Baggiebird1nil

Does anyone have any tips on how to stop condensation dripping from the toilet cistern? We had a new bathroom fitted in January and have the CH boiler in the bathroom (only place they could put it) and condensation is just dripping off the toilet cistern even in this weather!! Any tips anyone has would be greatfully received.

Thanks

Kate

alanobrien

We had a similar problem at our old place which i must admit we never resolved.

I did see one with a "fluffy" cover on it once and was told that was because of a condensation problem...it made me grin anyway

wxs

Hi M8s
You need ventilation plenty of it

Ron

Baggiebird1nil

Thanks for the info. Don't fancy having a frilly cover! My bathroom is quite large 7' x 7'6" and I've always got the window open even in winter.

jennifernil

The fact the CH boiler is in the bathroom should not alter things as it should be room sealed so not affecting the moisture level in the room
You need to reduce the moisture level say by fitting an extractor operated by a humidistat. Or you could get a dehumidifier. You could try to increase the temperature of the water in the cistern, if you have stored water then the cistern can be fed from that. This water will not be as cold as water coming straight from the main.
Another option is to insulate the cistern. I have heard of someone who cured the problem by sticking polystyrene sheets to the inside, but I'm not sure if that is a good idea!

Mr_Grumpy_7

The solution to this problem is two fold:

Better ventilation, i.e. fit an extractor fan operated by a humidity sensor, leave a window open, or leave the door open. The key, as 'jennifernil' says is to reduce the moisture level.

In addition, you need to increase the temperature of the cistern. Rather than using polystyrene as suggested by 'jennifernil', you could try bubble wrap which will hopefully take up less space.

Let us know how you get on!!!

Baggiebird1nil

I have a fan in there which stays on for 10 minutes after you've switched the light off and as I said the window is always open. I think the water that comes into the cistern is cold and is not from stored water. Any ideas on how to raise the temperature? I was going to put a Water Hippo in tomorrow to save water and that has some silicone in or something so perhaps that will help. If I put polystyrene or bubble wrap in how do I fix it to the sides? Sorry if I appear thick but I do most of the DIY in our house. My DH thinks DIY means destroy it yourself!! :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

John_3:16

if you want to do it right swap the cistern for a triple wall one more cost but will stop the problem for good. If you are going down the route of trying to bodge eg sticking something on the side.Whatever you stick needs to be semi ridged so you can silcone it to inside. If you so use silcone the sides will have to be bone dry as silcone will not tolerate damp or wet when trying to stick.

If I were you pay the extra and get a new cistern

Of course you could always put a guttering around it and send it to the bath!

Confuzzled

sorry to dredge up this old post but i've been googling a bit trying to resolve my own cistern with condensation problem

this just started on new years eve, nothing is out of the ordinary here other than i had been away for a week for christmas and had only had 2 heaters on while gone, hot water was still being heated then and i left the tap running lightly in the bathtub while gone so the pipes didn't freeze because it's been so cold etc etc.When i got home it was cool at around 17 degrees but not cold.

since i've been back on the 28th i've had all 3 heaters on and after 2 days i was able to get the house comfortably warm despite the very low temps and have turned them back down, actually i would have turned the 3rd one off but it's just so cold and it's storage heating i don't want to suffer if the temp really dips again

anyway i kept finding pools of water and noticed the condensation. after researching i checked to see if it's caused by a constant leak inside the cistern and that is indeed the case. i've read a lot of tips about ways to insulate but what i'd like to know is, how do i actually stop the leak short of calling a plumber?

the water going in is ice cold and i don't think it will warm up outside anytime soon(there's been snow on the ground since dec 16th and it's still really cold constantly), i'm assuming it's mains fed thus the cold water, but i'm in a rented flat so i couldn't change that anyway. if there is something simple i can try between now and monday when i call the letting office that woudl be great, i'm getting a bit tired of sopping the water up or wet trouser legs when i go to the loo!

the problem def is the constant drip and i'm actually letting more air through than i did before when it was still dry, no behaviour from me has really changed. i live in an upstairs flat if that helps but i don't really think the problem is from excess moisture anyways, i think it's from the constant freezing cold water being fed in that keeps the cistern from ever reaching room temp... any advice greatly appreciated

Jonesya

jennifernil wrote: »

Another option is to insulate the cistern. I have heard of someone who cured the problem by sticking polystyrene sheets to the inside, but I'm not sure if that is a good idea!

I replaced a cistern a few months back and the replacement cistern came ready fitted with an polystyrene liner, about 5mm thick, inside the plastic cistern unit.

Steve_xx

A small fish tank heater in the bottom of the cistern would do the trick. But then you might be into all sorts of health and safety issue I guess.