What do/did you have your heating at & the knock on of not using it?

getmore4less

Humidity problems might be worth tracking it down.

I bought a bunch(5) of these <£5 each

https://www.mi.com/pk/mi-temperature-and-humidity-monitor-2/

UK supplier on ebay a bit more than waiting for a shipment from China.

Portable to move around rooms to keep an eye on the problem areas.

Easy to access historical data(stored on device) by app.

If I get Bluetooth working with my home assistant it will be even better to track and create alarms.

We have rooms closed with no heating, light ventilation need to keep an eye as they store stuff.

Primary sources people, cooking, some clothes drying, then the big one bathroom bath showers.

Ally_E.

Sounds to me like you need to monitor the humidity in your home and keep it under 55%, get yourself a hydrometer and a dehumidifier. It worked so well for us when we had damp and mould problems. 

B0bbyEwing

Ally_E. said:

Sounds to me like you need to monitor the humidity in your home and keep it under 55%, get yourself a hydrometer and a dehumidifier. It worked so well for us when we had damp and mould problems. 

I never really understood humidity readings. It was just a number people spoke about to me. Like 80 or 20 or whatever it may be. A bit like saying this keyboard costs 500000 yen. Great, what's that in English though.

Just google searched hydrometer & the TP50 came up which I actually have in this very room.

Says 61% wet. Funnily a minute ago when I came in to the room it said 58% comfort. 

I don't think it's ever said dry since I bought it 6 months ago. Even when it was scorchio weather I'm sure it didn't say dry.

ariarnia

B0bbyEwing said:

Ally_E. said:

Sounds to me like you need to monitor the humidity in your home and keep it under 55%, get yourself a hydrometer and a dehumidifier. It worked so well for us when we had damp and mould problems. 

I never really understood humidity readings. It was just a number people spoke about to me. Like 80 or 20 or whatever it may be. A bit like saying this keyboard costs 500000 yen. Great, what's that in English though.

Just google searched hydrometer & the TP50 came up which I actually have in this very room.

Says 61% wet. Funnily a minute ago when I came in to the room it said 58% comfort. 

I don't think it's ever said dry since I bought it 6 months ago. Even when it was scorchio weather I'm sure it didn't say dry.

i dont think 61 is to bad. its higher than some places recommend as a max and its probably why your having problems as there could be pockets that are higher in corners of the room where theres less air flow. 

https://www.airthings.com/resources/home-humidity-damage

markin

under 40% is dry and will give some a dry mouth or eyes, 40 to 60 is the comfortable range, Over 60% is wet and starts mould slowly, 70 -100 could mean water running down the walls and fast growing mould.



https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6412215/crazy-amount-of-condensation-in-my-best-cold-house/p1

FreeBear

getmore4less said: I bought a bunch(5) of these <£5 each

https://www.mi.com/pk/mi-temperature-and-humidity-monitor-2/

If I get Bluetooth working with my home assistant it will be even better to track and create alarms.

Looks like there is custom firmware than can be uploaded to the device that makes it easier to link to H.A. or even ESPHome. Dammit. Something else for me to buy and play with...

I have been using a bunch of MODBUS SHT20 temperature/humidity sensors - Not as flexible as a battery operated device as you need to run cables around the place.. The alternative is to use an ESP32 board (got a few mains powered jobbies which are useful).

Petriix

We're running the heating at 16.5 degrees this year, although it's sometimes a little too cold for comfort if just sitting around. We allow ourselves to boost it up by a degree if feeling cold but it automatically resets to 16.5 after an hour unless programmed otherwise. We set 'away mode' if going out for more than a couple of hours but program in the return time to ensure it's up to temperature in time.

We do get some condensation which we manage by a) excluding moisture from the main house (keeping doors from the bathroom/kitchen closed and never drying washing indoors) and b) ventilating for 15 minutes in the peak of the day (when it's warm and dry enough to make sense).

However there is an area of upstairs ceiling which is near impossible to insulate because it's just a diagonal bit of roof with no loft above it. I could maybe add some insulated plasterboard in the inside but it's a big job for minimal gain. So we have to periodically wipe these bits with bleach to prevent mould growing. Keeping the house warmer doesn't especially help because there's still a big temperature difference on those surfaces.

We do also hide out in the living room and light the wood burner on many evenings which, while burning scavenged wood, is excellent value for money. 

dealyboy

Re. mould ... I know its a common curative for black mould but bleach is really not the best for dealing with it. Spraying with white vinegar is better at killing the spores.

... so as long as the mould is not too extensive/entrenched, in order:
- clean with common diluted detergent, and dry.
- spray with neat white vinegar, leave for an hour, and wipe/scrub, and dry. Note: also puts off rats.
- spray dilute bleach on area, leave for half a hour, and wipe/scrub, and dry.

FreeBear

dealyboy said:

- spray with neat white vinegar, leave for an hour, and wipe/scrub, and dry.

- spray dilute bleach on area, leave for half a hour, and wipe/scrub, and dry.

But vinegar is an acid. Walls are plastered with either gypsum or lime, both of which are alkali. Acids react with alkali substances.. You run the risk of turning the surface of your walls/ceilings to a mush if they are porous.

Bleach will react with any vinegar remaining and generate chlorine gas - The quantities will be small, but you should avoid the risk as chlorine does nasty things to the human body.

Ally_E.

dealyboy said:

Re. mould ... I know its a common curative for black mould but bleach is really not the best for dealing with it. Spraying with white vinegar is better at killing the spores.

... so as long as the mould is not too extensive/entrenched, in order:
- clean with common diluted detergent, and dry.
- spray with neat white vinegar, leave for an hour, and wipe/scrub, and dry. Note: also puts off rats.
- spray dilute bleach on area, leave for half a hour, and wipe/scrub, and dry.

Hydrogen peroxide is best for actually killing mould and not bleaching it like you say. The higher the %the better but need PPE if it's above 3% to protect skin, eyes and respiratory organs.