How to Fight Damp and Condensation. Useful tips and information

Transcription

1 How to Fight Damp and Condensation Useful tips and information This leaflet was published November Any older versions are now out of date including those with no date stamp. Better homes friendlier communities... - together

2 This leaflet explains what damp and condensation is, how to prevent it and gives you tips on how to reduce it. Damp in the home is usually caused by a leak from a roof or plumbing and often leaves a tidemark. Condensation is usually caused by the way we live in everyday activities such as cooking, washing and bathing. 2

3 What do we mean by condensation? Condensation can cause black mould on walls, furniture, clothes and curtains. The damp left by condensation will also damage plasterwork and timber windows. The mould looks bad and can even damage your health so it s important to try and tackle condensation. Every home gets condensation at some time - usually when lots of moisture and steam are being produced. Cooking, washing, and even breathing are just a few examples that can cause moisture, which is released into the air. The air can only hold a certain amount of water vapour - the warmer it is, the more it can hold. If this is cooled by contact with a cold surface such as mirror, a window or even a wall, the water vapour will turn into droplets of water - condensation. This is what happens when the mirrors mists up in the bathroom. It is quite normal to find your bedroom windows misted up in the morning after a cold night, which is to be expected and is not indicative of a serious condensation problem. 3

4 Too much moisture being produced in your home: Did you know that one person asleep adds half a pint of water to the air overnight and twice that when active in the day! The following table shows how much extra water we produce. 2 people at home 3 pints A bath or shower 2 pints Drying clothes indoors 9 pints Cooking and using a kettle 6 pints Washing dishes 2 pints Bottled gas heater (used for 8 hours) 4 pints 26 pints or 14.8 litres Total moisture added in 1 day 4

5 How can I reduce condensation? Dry your windows & windowsills every morning, as well as any wet surfaces in the kitchen or bathroom. Wring out the cloth rather than drying it on a radiator. Hang your washing outside to dry if at all possible, or hang it in the bathroom with the door closed and a window slightly open or an extractor fan on. Don t put washing on radiators or in front of radiant heaters. Always cook with pan lids on, and turn the heat down once the water has boiled. Only use the minimum amount of water for cooking vegetables. When filling your bath, run the cold water first and then add the hot it reduces steam (which leads to condensation) by 90%. If you use a tumble drier, make sure it is vented to the outside or that it is of the new condensing type. Don t be tempted to use bottled gas or paraffin heaters. These are not allowed under your tenancy agreement and they produce high levels of moisture. 5

6 Increase your ventilation Ventilation reduces condensation by removing moist air from your home and replacing it with drier air from outside. Reduce the condensation that has built up overnight by cross ventilating your home opening a small window downstairs to the 1st notch and a small one upstairs. These should be on opposite sides of the house or diagonally opposite if you live in a flat. At the same time, open the interior room doors as this allows drier air to circulate. Do this for about 30 minutes each day. Ventilate your kitchen when cooking, washing up or washing by hand. A window slightly open is as good as one open. If you have one, use your cooker extractor hood or extractor fan. Ventilate your kitchen and bathroom for about 20 minutes after use by opening a small top window. Use an extractor fan if possible they are cheap to run and very effective. Ventilate your bedroom by leaving a window slightly open at night, or use trickle ventilators if fitted. Keep kitchen and bathroom doors closed during use to prevent moisture escaping into the rest of the house. 6

7 To reduce the risk of mildew on clothes and other stored items, allow air to circulate round them by removing false wardrobe backs or drilling holes in them. You can place furniture on blocks to allow air to circulate underneath. Keep a small gap between large pieces of furniture and where possible place wardrobes and furniture against internal walls. Pull shelves away from the backs of wardrobes and cupboards. Never overfill wardrobes and cupboards as it restricts air circulation. Don t push beds and sofas against outside walls which are always colder and attract condensation. Make sure there is a 9 inch (225cm) gap. Bedding can get damp if air cannot circulate around it. N.B. However don t over ventilate you home in cold weather as this will reduce the temperature inside making condensation more likely as well as increasing heating costs. Make sure you close windows before you go out! 7

8 Controlling the temperature in your home Warm air holds more moisture than cooler air and is therefore less likely to deposit droplets of water round your home. Heating one room to a high level and leaving other rooms cold makes condensation worse in the unheated rooms. It is better to have a medium to low level of heat throughout the house. It is cheaper to keep your central heating on at a low level than to use electric fires. It is also better to try to maintain a low heat than to suddenly try to heat the house twice a day from cold. If you don t have heating in every room, open doors of unheated rooms slightly to allow some heat into them. To add heat to rooms without installed heating, it is better to use electric heaters (like oil filled radiators or panel heaters) on a low setting. If you have a freezer and keep it in a space that suffers from condensation, heat from its motor will help reduce condensation. Don t push beds or sofas against radiators as this prevents efficient circulation of warm air. How can I stop mould growth? To kill and remove mould, wipe down or spray walls and window frames with a fungicidal wash that carries a Health & Safety Executive (HS) approval number, and follow its instructions carefully for safe use. You can often buy these in supermarkets. After treatment, redecorate using a good quality fungicidal paint and a fungicidal resistant wall paper paste to help prevent mould growth recurring. N.B. The effect of fungicidal or anti-condensation paint is destroyed if covered with ordinary paint or wallpaper. Dry-clean mildewed clothes and shampoo any carpets. Don t try to remove mould by using a brush or vacuum cleaner. Reduce the levels of condensation to stop the problem recurring. 8

9 Useful Contacts For more energy advice and saving money please look at our Every Penny Counts leaflet or ask to speak to our Energy Surveyor by calling or - energymatters@wcht.org.uk To report a repair call freephone To compare gas and electricity prices consult these websites: To report a repair freephone If there is some disrepair that is causing a damp problem, we will aim to correct this for you. However if the underlying problem relates to the sorts of preventive actions listed in this leaflet, please do not be offended if the inspector repeats this advice. He is not ignoring your problem or blaming you for it. Often people are unaware of the links between condensation and ventilation or the effect of something like pushing a bed against an outside wall. Sometimes we have to tackle the cause not the symptoms, and the solution to condensation usually does involve an appropriate change of lifestyle. 9

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11 Notes 11

12 Watford Community Housing Trust Gateway House, 59 Clarendon Road Watford, Hertfordshire WD17 1LA WatfordCommunityHousingTrust t: e: w: Watford Community Housing Trust has charitable status. It is an Industrial and Provident Society registration number 30183R and registered with the Homes and Communities Agency number L4495. P&NB/Tips/1213/V3