Controlling Condensation

[WhiteBear]

hi there,

i was just wondering if anyone know a cheap way of controlling Condensation. i live in an apartment -(top floor) and have massive sliding window, i hardly open it (because of the weather), and i also dont use any heating in the room. But every morning i always see a pool of water leaking from the window, and the windowsill are turning mouldy too. i dont want to buy a Dehumidifier, as they are quite expensive. i think someone said to put a bowl of boiling hot water by the windowsill over night would cure it, is this true?

[Jenga]

You can buy special boxes with crystals in them which collect moisture. They last about 6-8 weeks. You can get them from places like Wilkinson's (Used to be able to get them from Woolwooths). They cost about �4.99 approx I think I remember.

[WhiteBear]

oh thanks Jenga, i think i know which ones you mean, i will have a browse in wilko's tomorrow! :)

[dot.hawkes]

they have them for a quid in the pound shops

[buildersmate]

Bowl of boiling water anywhere does nothing. Water molecules condense into the air, increasing the volume of water vapour in the room. This increases the potential amount of water vapour to condense back out to droplets on a cold surface.
Try analysing where the water vapour is coming from in the first place - no effective extraction in kitchen (when cooking) or in a bathroom, or drying clothes inside are 3 places to start.

[WhiteBear]

do you shop at the � shop very often dot? :D

Builders, the water vapour is coming from the whole of the window, from top all the way round the edge to the bottom. This is the only window i have out of the apartment (this is my living/dinning/study space -so isnt really that big). i dont dry any clothes inside, the bathroom already has an extractor fan, the kitchen isnt really a kitchen, (its a cooker in a cupboard! if youve ever seen one). The apartment is often very cold, around 10- 18 degrees, but i can cope with that.

i thought hot water would help or was it cold water, maybe it was only for ppl who has central heating and they put a glass of water next to it to stop from dehydration. lol

[buildersmate]

I'll try it again. Water vapour condenses from the air in your flat when it hits a cold enough surface - namely the window panes. You can't (in these very cold external conditions) do much about that. It is simple fact of science - less water vapour can be contained within cold air than warm air - that's why it condenses on the cold surface.
The only thing you can do is try to work out where the sources of the water vapour are (in terms of evaporation into the air in the flat) and try and limit those.