Bathoom condensation

[wilsarnie]

Our bathroom gets terribly steamy and full of condensation after showers; up the wall, on the windows and on every surface. I open the window to air but we're on ground floor level and it's not safe to leave when we're out.

I also see some mildew stuff around the corner of the outside wall, which I zap with mould & mildew remover but it keeps coming back. However now I've noticed some bubbling of paint on that wall.

Outside there's a really old iron air vent but the grill is broken. I don't really know if that air vent actually works or what good it's doing.

Is it possible the old owners have plastered over the air brick on the inside which results in it not working?

How can I cheaply counteract the problem, any ideas? Pref something I can do myself and don't have to get others in!

[Scarlett]

How about getting a brand new ventilator plumbed in?

I have the same problem and am going to get one of these, or similar..

http://www.kiltox.co.uk/ventilat.htm

[buildersmate]

If you don't fancy knocking a hole through the wall, you could get an extractor fan that fits into a window pane. As the above implies, you actually need something that sucks the water-laden air to the outside, not just ventilation.

[Steve_Luts]

I had this in a Victorian terrace I used live in; bathroom was a 'single brick addition' i.e. one brick thick - lots done in those days, standing for 100 years, structurally sound but does not meet modern building regs.

We ended up buying a small dehumidifier from Comet, and ran that during the day whilst we were out at work, and whilst showering (it was a big room, so no danger of it getting wet - check on the safety aspects of this, but I used one fore 5 years without frying myself to a crisp).

That cured it, you would be amazed how much moisture gets removed from the air by one of these.

[wilsarnie]

thanks for all suggestions peeps.

and Steve_Luts that's exactly it! It's a victorian ground floor flat conversion, and the bathroom has been added on to the kitchen as an extension.

I'm presuming the dehumidifier didn't whack loads onto your elec bill?

Can you tell I'm a first time buyer with not a bean to my name and trying to do things on the cheap?!! ;)

[raysparx]

In my job i come across this problem constantly and a surefire solution is have a Humidity controlled fan installed this will cure it I would think, ask the advise of a local registered electrician Good Luck