Double Glazing Condensation

jamief

jamief

jamief

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My 4yr old twins share a room, and from Autumn to late winter we have huge condensation problems in that room (and to a lesser extent in the master bedroom). They have 1 large double glazed window, which is approx 15-20 years old (at a guess - we've been in the house 9 years), with the trickle vent always open.

There is a huge amount of condensation on the window and windowsill every morning, and the walls to the side of the window are soaking wet too (they are lining paper + painted - you can visible see the wetness).

The window vents are open 24/7, with the window itself open all day. The room is centrally heated before they go to bed via a radiator. We don't tumble dry in the house.

I notice that if I swing the window all the way open, it is very hard to shut, as if the frame is buckled slightly (and the seals all around feel a bit draughty).

I think what is happening is that the window is leaking air all around, causing the inside around the window (i.e. the walls) to become very cold and having all the moisture in the room condense on the cold walls as well as the window.

Anyone know much about windows? I'm thinking I might just need to replace the unit. I know DG can show condensation in winter, but the amount is ridiculous and I'm concerned at the walls near the window being so wet every morning.
 
I'd be surprised if it was down to the windows being leaky. Even if they were air right, the glass is still going to be cold and cause condensation, especially in a warm room with two people sleeping inside.

Id just say it was down to inadequate ventilation. Try to increase airflow. Keep the door open, open the window a little, see if that makes a difference over a few nights.
 
Opening the window is a bit of a non starter as it was -2 last night! In our master bedroom, with 2 adults, we get some (less) condensation on the window, but none on the walls. It seems a bit wrong that the walls are soaked around the windows every morning in the kids room, when an adults room doesn't show the same behaviour?
 
You mean water soaking into the wallpaper around the frame every morning and pooling on the sill? Doesn't really seem right to me... do I need to buy a dehumidifier?!
 
I woke up his morning and our bedroom window was soaked, but as you say, it was exceptionally cold last night. It is down to the damp air in a relatively warm room condensing around the cold window.

Maybe your children are breathing too much, or the area around their window is colder than yours causing more condensation?

You need to improve airflow to try and reduce the humidity. If that isn't possible then a dehumidifier would work.
 
You need air movement/change. People make moisture, you need ventilation to remove it.

What we do, is open all the windows onto vent and shut the bedroom doors when we go out in the morning, this lets the room breathe and the moisture go away. First job when home is shutting the windows and then leave bedroom doors open.

If this isnt an option then think bathroom extractors, ceiling mounted with pipework in the loft that connects to the outside world. Not a noisy/high air movement one but a continuous trickle extract. This will massively reduce the moisture without making things too cold. It WILL reduce temperature as it is warm air being removed.

A fancier option would be an MVHR system for the bedrooms.. much less heat loss as it robs the heat from the air that is being blown out and puts it into the air that is being brought back in. these recover about 80% of the heat that would otherwise be lost!
 
Given that the window is very difficult to close, could the frame be bent? (it feels like it), which I thought might be letting more cold in and therefore cooling the walls down?

Happy to go down the route of an extractor/dehumidifier, but want to ensure the window is working correctly as it doesn't feel like it is.

We do air the room each day, I just don't feel it is right that the walls are so wet - the water soaks right into the wallpaper on the sides of the window.
 
Crack their door slightly open. May slightly improve it. Otherwise needs more ventilation.

I've got a nuaire drimaster in my house for similar issues.
 
The Craig said:
Crack their door slightly open. May slightly improve it. Otherwise needs more ventilation.

I've got a nuaire drimaster in my house for similar issues.
Click to expand...

Does it work well, easy to install? What did you wire it up to?

I've looked at these in the past. But I should first start by installing extractor fans in my bathroom and kitchen, as at the moment we have to open the windows, and in the winter months, it is freezing!
 
Shower in the morning. Its not the gutters as everything is dry inside in "summer" even when it pours with rain!
 
Well, for now I'll pick up a small dehumidifier and try leaving their door open a bit. Would rather not replace the window right now if possible!
 
I dad just put an extractor fan in their bathroom. He drilled the hole with a regular electric drill and a bit from a set he bought in screwfix. Needed an electrician to wire the fan though.

Edit: They don't sell it anymore, but if you look for plumbers holesaw, it'll get you something similar
 
If your sure its not coming from outside you have a few items to consider
Warm air can store a lot more moisture than cold, so if you heat the house nicely then let the temp drop thats why you get the air at the coldest part dropping moisture
You want to try to avoid too much airflow in that area so ensure you have good curtains against the windows that almost trap the air thats there in that location

You probably need to reduce the moisture in your house in general, dehums are good, or more ventilation.

The problem with just leaving windows open is that you do that when the heating is off and people are not there. So you can to some extent remove the lingering moisture, but then you come home, close the windows, turn the heating up and start cooking etc and aodd moisture to the house. Thats not a problem until you then let it cool considerably and that trapped moisture has to go somewhere.

You could hire or buy a cheap dehum and see what effect it has, put it on in the evening and try to draw out that moisture your adding.
 
We run our dehumidifier for about 5 hours in the evening, we still get about a 2cm strip at the bottom of windows that are wet in the morning but it reduces it massively, while keeping the heat in. Uses about 400w and adds heat so well worth it IMO.
 
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