​4 Tips For Beating Condensation in the Home

It’s that time of year again: the temperature starts to drop, the sun islower in the sky and spends less time warming us, and the weather outside isn’t always conducive to hanging out the washing to dry. It’s no coincidence that this is also the time of year that we start to see condensation forming on our windows and doors in the mornings. It tends to lead to more than just damp curtains, but also mold and mildew formation and that familiar smell that means microscopic life has found a way to grow, unwanted, around our windows and doors. In this article, we’ll take a look at a few ways you can prevent the formation of condensation in the first place and keep your home mold-free.

Is your washing machine properly vented?

Washing our clothes turns out to be one of the biggest culprits in the fight against condensation. All that moisture has to go somewhere,and unless your washing machine (and tumble dryer) are properly vented outside, then all that mixture is going to head straight for the nearest cold spot. At this time of year, that’s probably your windows. Make sure those appliances are properly vented, and you’ll see a dramatic reduction in household condensation.

Are you drying your clothes outside?

If you aren’t, you should be! It might not be the warmest time of the year, but as long as it isn’t raining, you should make the effort to hang your drying clothes outdoors. Not only will this save you money on tumble drying electricity but it will also stop all that evaporating moisture from heading straight to your windows and doors.

If it’s warm, open those windows.

When it’s super cold, you don’t want to be leaving all your doors and windows open and create mammoth heating bills. Even just leaving a few of your smaller windows open when it isn’t too cold will give that moisture an escape route and keep the condensation from forming on the rest of the glass in your house. Good ventilation is good practice,and it’s ok to sacrifice a tiny bit of heat to keep a well-ventilated home all year round. It doesn’t matter what sort of windows you have, old fashioned single pane windows or the latest double glazed sash windows; condensation doesn’t discriminate, so make sure you give it a sensible exit route.

Makes sure you’re extracting from kitchens and bathrooms

At this time of year, the water we use to steam our vegetables and wash in the shower cannot wait to hit the cold air, turn immediately to steam, and head straight for the cold points in these rooms, usually the windows. Make sure you turn on the extractor fan when you’re cooking or taking a shower, ideally ensure that you have an automatic switch so that you don’t even have to think about it.

Condensation can be a real pain, but as long as you keep things well ventilated and do everything you can to let that moisture out of your house, you’ll keep your home condensation-free all year round.