Condensation

[Diver Fred]

Heat exchanging extractor fan?
One that runs more or less permanently...

 

[John D v2.0]

Heat exchanging extractor fan?
One that runs more or less permanently...

Agree, we got one cheap, but at full price it would cost a lot more than a piv. The energy savings themselves are not worth it but it provides a nice environment.

 

[endecotp]

Washing line no use in winter

I use my washing line all year. In the winter, I wait for a dry and breezy day to do the washing. This is in Scotland.

 

[^woody^]

We have always dried stuff inside in front the radiators. No mould no problems.

So why should there be no problems in one house and problems in another? That must mean it's a issue with the house construction, not the action of drying. The house can't deal with it in other words.

 

[JohnD]

ventilation.

All that water has to go somewhere.

Whether you throw it at the wall out of a bucket, or hang it over a radiator.

Or maybe they wash more than you.

 

[JP_]

I lived in a horrible student house once. Had a box room, flat roof, above old kitchen. I suspect that there was no insulation in the walls or roof, as in winter I was cold when sleeping in a sleeping bag under a duvet, with my tracksuit bottoms, t-shirt and jumper on. Cupboard was full of mould, ruined my smart winter coat! I had a terrible cough for about 6 months. I complained to the landlord, but he just said, keep it ventilated, don't dry things in the room. I never did, but he did point out that my bathrobe was damp, and that was the problem. So, sometimes it really is hard to avoid damp and mould, even if you are living as sensibly as possible. Maybe much of the moisture was coming up from the kitchen? Or just me breathing at night in freezing temperatures. So yeah, I got with the construction problem argument too! Plus ventilation. But, ventilation is rarely enough in winter - if it was, why does mould grow on chairs left in outside shelters?

 

[bluesea]

Of course it is. What family does not dry their clothes on an airer inside the house?

People have always done it, and always will. The fact that modern houses have radiators and central heating, means that its done more frequently, and potentially in more or different rooms.

If the house that you let can't deal with that, then that's the problem not the people living in it - just doing things that everyone else does ..... aka modern living.

The first sign of a bad landlord is blaming the tenants. Yes there is a duty for any tenant to act in a "tenant-like manner", but that does not negate the landlords responsibilities to deal with inherent problems with a property.

You say that you have insulated the cavity walls as if to proclaim that that is it, you've done your bit and the damp should stop. In fact, you may well have exhasperated the problem. Did you have the issues diagnosed? Did you have a proper expert survey report identifying the issues and recommending a solution? I strongly suspect not. A good landlord would have.

For your information i have had a survey done by an expert and i am acting on his recommendations guess i must be a good landlord after all

 

[^woody^]

For your information i have had a survey done by an expert

Have you?

Independent RICS, CIoH or PCA member whole property survey with no interest in selling you a solution?

Or a sales rep?

 

[KenGMac]

bluesea, good evening again.

OK your expert? as Woody above??

Did your man check the cavity wall insulation???

Ken

 

[endecotp]

For your information i have had a survey done by an expert and i am acting on his recommendations guess i must be a good landlord after all

So why are you asking random strangers on the internet for advice? Just do what your independent expert says. Oh hang on, you didn’t say “independent” did you!

 

[KenGMac]

bluesea, good evening [yet]again.!

Please be advised, this entire "Condensation Related" roundabout has by its very nature attracted a load of what shall I call them lets try "Snake oil Doctors" [if you get my drift??]

Loads of partly informed practitioners have seen an opportunity in the building market and are hell bent on exploiting that part of the market

Be careful who you place your trust and money with?

Ken

 

[arkie]

My bet is that any tenant that has a dryer and won't use it, Will turn off the vent if they can find the switch, its costing them a fortune! they will say.

 

[pilsbury]

I bet if they opened windows now and again, aired the place and stopped drying clothes on the rads it would sort itself after a good clean.

Woody suggests that drying clothes on rads is modern living..... Only modern in the fact that rads are a fairly modern addition to houses. To be honest, I can picture a scene similar to those you see on TV - the dirty disorganised living, no common sense, heating on full blast feeling like a rainforest.

If it were my house I'd get the mould cleaned properly, lick of paint and tell them what they must and must not do in relation to moisture creation and ventilation. If it happened again I'd boot them out. Rogue landlord or not. Bet if someone else lived there it would be a different story.

 

[John D v2.0]

All the emotive debate is one thing, but from a scientific point of view condensation occurs when (warmer) air at a given humidity hits a surface cooler than its dew point. This is a normal occurrence in every house, but people only notice when black mould forms. Black mould forms when condensation stays on a surface for long periods of time without evaporating.
So from that it follows that there are two sides to the story. One is maximising the temperature of exposed surfaces, and the other is minimising the humidity in the room.
You can increase the temperature of the surfaces by insulation especially on thermal bridges, or by cranking up the heating. You can reduce the humidity by reducing the amount of washing drying and showingsh etc, or ventilating the humid air outside (and warming the incoming replacement air)
Clearly the issue is related to both the house and the way it's used, so ideally management of black mould in existing housing would need to be managed between the landlord and tenant together.

 

[Diver Fred]

Isn't it interesting that mould and condensation problems are more prevelent nowadays...
In the past times with open fires, even open 'gas' fires all of which caused drafts due to the effects of combustion and hot air rising through chimnies (forced ventilation) there was much less of a condensation problem. In my parents house we had a ceiling fixed clothes drying rack over the kitchen fireplace. All rooms had open fire places. Coldest room in the house was the outside toilet and the unused bedroom. Only room that had any condesation was the bathroom after (bath night) use...
Today what do we have; no open fires, in theory no drafts but then no forced ventilation. Sometimes the boiler might use air from inside the house for combustion but that doesn't really cause any long duration forced ventilation (and with the need to stop drafts then I'm sure we will see a rise in balance flue boilers).

Some times the old ways are much better.