Condensation on windows in one room only

becciboop

Lizzybop wrote: »

Hi there,

Sorry to hear about your condensation problems. Would def suggest getting the double glazing checked, especially the external seals.

I've had this problem for the past 11 years, and have heard every excuse in the book about it's the way your family live their lives. Too much moisture, do you dry your clothes on the radiators, do you open the windows when you have a bath/shower, not enough ventilation, open your windows more, open your windows while you've got the heating on, it's your fault, it's not the windows it can't be...blah blah blah I've heard it all.

Having been back to the company that supplied and installed the windows many times over the years, we finally managed to get them to agree to replace the external seals around the outside edges (white mastick stuff, you get the idea.) Turns out they were never properly sealed at the original installation.

There were small gaps in the sealant which have been allowing the cold in so that the inside pane of glass is not insulated from the outside one. So every time we go to bed and funnily enough breathe out, any moisture from that is condensing on the windows which are so cold.

New sealant, problem solved overnight. I don't quite believe it. Double glazing which has been properly installed and sealed correctly should be able to cope with a normal family breathing while they are asleep. This is not an unusual situation.

And trust me, no-one I know takes more care to limit moisture in their house than me.

Good luck with it, I know how frustrating and soul destroying a situation like this can be.

Thanks for your reply. Its is SO annoying...Im constantly checking the walls to make sure they arent wet. I will call someone out to take a look at the seal. We also get condensation when I use the gas oven in the kitchen..its just so annoying!

dampdaveski

Hi becciboop,
If the problem is limited to a single room and the rest of the house is ok,
AND the problem is definately just condensation running off your windows
you could consider a passive air brick such as one of the Ultrovent passive air bricks or a stadium passive air brick.
The stadium one is cheap at around £25 delivered and the Ultrovent ones are around £80 delivered. (though I buy in bulk)
I fit these on a weekly basis at the mo (condensation control is a big part of my business at this time of year)
I don't fit the stadium ones as I don't like them.
If you want to know where I get them from let me know via PM and i'll forward the link on.

In the first instance though as the OP has said it will definately be worth getting the window seals checked before you spend any money.
Good Luck
DD

becciboop

dampdaveski wrote: »

Hi becciboop,
If the problem is limited to a single room and the rest of the house is ok,
AND the problem is definately just condensation running off your windows
you could consider a passive air brick such as one of the Ultrovent passive air bricks or a stadium passive air brick.
The stadium one is cheap at around £25 delivered and the Ultrovent ones are around £80 delivered. (though I buy in bulk)
I fit these on a weekly basis at the mo (condensation control is a big part of my business at this time of year)
I don't fit the stadium ones as I don't like them.
If you want to know where I get them from let me know via PM and i'll forward the link on.

In the first instance though as the OP has said it will definately be worth getting the window seals checked before you spend any money.
Good Luck
DD

Thanks, I have sent you a PM.
There is also some condensation on the wall under the window too...would the air brick solve this?

dampdaveski

it should help, as with all these type of air vents, they help and are worth fitting but they arn't a 'wonder solve everything product'
If the wall remains prone to condensation then it might be worth considering trying to insulate the wall, this can be done relatively easily with insulated plasterboards etc but it is more of a 'building job'
Good luck

flang

We have the same problem with our north facing bedroom and we found the best solution was to buy a de humidifier and run for a couple of days every few weeks.
Your be amazed how much water it sucks out the air within a couple of hours.

becciboop

I wanted to avoid a dehumidifier if possible. It hasn't been too bad today..not sure why!

tiff

Definitely get the windows checked, ours are old and the seals have gone, our bedroom window is running with water in the winter.

Lizzybop

Hi becciboop, your condensation probably wasn't so bad on Saturday morning because the overnight temperature probably didn't drop too far. It was quite a mild night in a lot of the country.

Bet that it was quite bad this morning (Sunday).

It sounds like the outside temperature is somehow transferring to the inside pane of glass. One possible explaination would be the steel inside the uPvc frame.

UPvc on its own is not strong enough to support the window, so the frame is reinforced with steel. Steel is a great conductor of both heat & cold. For some reason (possibly that the window has not been installed correctly) the steel inside the window frame has not been effectively insulated from the outside cold, thus allowing it to transfer that cold to your inside window pane.

You will always have to breathe at night thereby producing some moisture. It's perfectly normal - everybody does it. Funny though how most people's windows don't react the same way. Probably because their windows have been installed correctly with the steel correctly insulated from the outside. It's the only thing which connects the inner glass pane to the outside.

You said that your other windows were fine. Have you tried sleeping in another room (like a sort of control experiment if you will). Does it happen in that room and then is it less of a problem in your proper bedroom??

Possible last resort could be to have the window taken out to visibly check the position of the window and that it is effectively insulating the frame from the outside temperature. A bit of a faff but if it sorts the problem. Do you know a good builder??

I saw a t.v. prog once, with Dominic Littlewood one of those consumer type ones on BBC Daytime. And this was exactly the problem these people were having. Their builder tried to fob them off with all the excuses about moisture coming from the way they were living. So the programme got in a surveyor and removed the window. It wasn't in the right position in the window hole, only off by a few millimetres, but that was enough. So the Builder had to admit they hadn't installed the window correctly and re position them. Nothing wrong with the window unit itself, but nothing the people could do would prevent the condensation and the colder it was the worse it was.

Good luck with it. Feel free to PM me if you like.
L
x

leveller2911

Becciboop how old is the doubleglazing? have you had this problem ever since the window was fitted?.

If the double glazed window was fitted with Low E glass it is possible that the unit was not made correctly. The Low E coating should be on the outside face of the inside piece of glass.If they made the unit wrong and the coating is on the inside face of the inside piece of glass you will have a lot of condensation.

The only way of checking is to get someone in to test it but at least that would discount this as being the problem.

I had one recently where a window that I had made suffered from a lot of condensation, more than usual.I popped over to the customers and checked it with a Low E tester and the unit was not correctly made so the manufacturer is making a replacement unit.First time I've ever hd this problem so it was news to me.

cyclonebri1

I think most of the advice has been given, not read it all.

Up until recently in our well insulated home we had condensation on the big bay in the bedroom we sleep in, perfectly normal and nothing wrong with the house. Yes we could have cured it with ventilation by opening the windows over night, but I prefer to keep warm.

Now I don't normally like to treat the symptoms of an issue rather than the cause, but in this case I differ.

My missus came home with an ex demo Karcher window condensation removing thing, basically a mini vac attached to a window squeegy rubber.

It's ferkin brilliant, best gadget we've had for years.

Takes a minute or less to do the whole window and then the vents are opened for the rest of the day.:T:T