I'm sure this topic has been covered before but I still can't work out exactly why some winter mornings I wake up and find my windows and fine and clear, and other mornings the moisture is running down them.
It doesn't seem to matter whether or not the heat pump was on the previous evening, or whether I opened windows a crack before I went to bed. Even my spare bedroom, which the heat pump doesn't reach, has weeping windows.
Short of double glazing, which I can't really afford, or DVS which I've heard conflicting opinions about, what can be done? Sometimes I wipe the windows down with towels in the morning, sometimes I'm so tired of it all that I just open the outside door and leave them to evaporate as the day goes on. Is there a better solution? My house gets no morning sun and I guess this makes it worse.
lythande1,
Jul 18, 11:42am
Buy an old house, with old style wood windows and floorboards. never fails.
My house was built in 1949-'50 and does have wooden windows and floorboards. I suppose the problem might be worse if it didn't!
tweake,
Jul 18, 12:45pm
its simply down to humidity level and the temp drop. at nz average humidity of 70% i think its only 7 degree temp drop for condensation to occur. so even if your house is "dry" the air in the house will be the same as outside and as temps cool down in the evening, the widows cool down and condensation occurs. theres not a lot you can do about it.
however that can hide the fact that your humidity inside the house is higher than outside. in which case you have ventilation issue or moisture issues. an indoor outdoor temp and humidity gauges can tell you a bit.
otherwise its just making sure your not adding moisture to the house. eg from cooking, bathroom, rising damp and leaks in the house. and that the house itself, building and furnishings are dried out. the house will absorb moisture and its needs time and heat to dry. i find it really noticeable with carpet.
venna2,
Jul 18, 12:46pm
And thanks for your suggestion, loukirby. I tried to buy a thick sponge some time ago but could only find thin kitchen sink type ones. I will look more closely at your link and see if I can find one of those devices, they look really good. One of the reasons I get tired of using towels is simply the fact that I go through so many towels and then of course they have to be washed and dried.
However, the device in your link seems to be unavailable for New Zealand buyers. But I'll go on looking.
tweake,
Jul 18, 12:49pm
one thing that can help is to put moisture barrier over the dirt under the house. dirt evaporates moisture at a fairly steady rate and ventilation under houses is typically poor, so that moisture works its way up through the floor.
when i did my place, which probably has better sealed floors than yours, the amount of condensation dropped in half overnight.
venna2,
Jul 18, 12:53pm
Thanks tweake. My house did have polythene or something over the dirt under it, but when I had underfloor insulation put in, they took the polythene out again - they seemed to have their reasons but I don't know what they were.
Here's an idle question - is there any way of knowing when condensation is likely to occur? It puzzles me as on some mornings the windows are clear and on others they're dripping with water. And I haven't been able to detect any difference in temperature etc the day before.
inatiz,
Jul 18, 1:00pm
A karcher would do the job, and good when cleaning windows too.
rdeans,
Jul 18, 1:02pm
We have the same problem, one day good the other bad but I have started shutting the doors in all rooms that are not occupied at night and find that in the morning the windows are dry. Good Luck.
hound31,
Jul 18, 1:09pm
Second the Karcher, best thing for mopping up condensation. About to get double glazing installed, but the Karcher has been a brilliant help in the interim. Best thing since sliced bread those things!
tweake,
Jul 18, 1:13pm
humidity level is the one your missing. you can get cheap sensors. or even the weather stations that will do temps and humidity.
what sort of insulation did they install under the house?
it seams really odd to remove the polythene, i cannot thing of any good reason to do that.
venna2,
Jul 18, 1:13pm
Do you leave the windows in these rooms closed or do you open one or two? This morning the window condensation in my spare room (door closed and one window open) was just as bad as the rest of the house. This room faces south, and condensation is generally worse on my south facing windows.
tweake,
Jul 18, 1:35pm
if you have no moisture going into the room, then your probably better to leave the window closed. that will retain the heat better.
pamellie,
Jul 18, 2:04pm
I have had one of these and they are great, they do the job and not as expensive as the Karcher.
ceebee2,
Jul 18, 4:14pm
Ensure you have plenty of ceiling insulation and that the underfloor insulation is also in place. This helps to keep the house warm. A warm house will not weep. As the air inside cools as well as the outside, then the temp difference will cause weeping. In lieu of double glazing, which the aluminium joinery on double glazing weeps invest in a good quality dehumidifier. If you have a heat pump, most have this function also.
venna2,
Jul 18, 4:21pm
Thanks, unfortunately I have a flat roof so ceiling insulation isn't really feasible. And I can't afford to have the heat pump going overnight, especially when it doesn't heat the whole house anyway.
I'll consider a dehumidifier, though. And I'm glad the Scoopy thing has a good reputation, it should arrive in a few days. I know it's a cure rather than prevention but at least it'll save on towels.
tweake,
Jul 18, 4:27pm
sorry but thats BS. a warm house will have condensation on the window like any other. what matters is humidity level and temperature of the window, which is basically the outside temperature.
a dehumidifier can help but using a heat pump as a dehumidifier is really expensive. a stand alone dehumidifier is much better.
tweake,
Jul 18, 4:31pm
i cannot think of a reason why they would do that. spending time and money to remove something that helps or at the very least does nothing. thats just weird.
i would seriously look at putting the polythene back in. at worse it may do very little, at best it may reduce a lot of your condensation.
One query re dehumidifiers . is there any point in running one while you have doors and windows open? Wouldn't it just suck in the moisture from outside air along with that from inside the house?
I ask because we're supposed to ventilate our houses! I find all this conflicting info and ideas somewhat confusing.
venna2,
Jul 18, 5:02pm
Yes, that looks good. I'll try out the Scoopy first but will keep it in mind. Both could be used for showers as well as windows, I see - I use a towel to wipe down my shower, so that would be a definite plus.
tweake,
Jul 18, 5:13pm
no point running one while windows/doors are open. you either ventilate or dehumidify, one or the other. you also want to use some heat at the same time as that will help get moisture out of the woodwork and furnishings. thats a really big thing as far as looking after a house.
nauru,
Jul 18, 7:02pm
We have a similar problem with aluminium window frames. I use my Karcher window vacuum, it's great, takes 5-10 minutes to clear the weeping windows around the whole house. I also use it for the bathroom and shower. Best money we ever spent.
wine-o-clock,
Jul 18, 7:31pm
karcher vac is less time consuming than those cheap squeegee things in those first 2 links
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