Moisture in the home? Everyone gets it from time to time. Moisture problems pop up more often during the winter months, when it’s cold outside and nice and warm inside. Even with proper ventilation, sometimes it can’t be avoided. High humidity can not only cause ailments in your home, but your health also suffers. But what can you do to avoid humidity problems?
Help, I have moisture in the house
No matter how hard you try, moisture sometimes cannot be stopped. Suddenly it’s there. But why is it there? These are the most common causes of moisture problems in your home:
- Condensation
The No. 1 biggest cause of moisture is poor ventilation. Moisture does not always come from outside the house; we ourselves are often the problem. Condensation is caused by moist air that cannot leave and then clings to cold surfaces, such as windows and walls, as condensation. The condensation soaks into the walls and the damage is done. Moist air forms while cooking or during a hot shower without proper ventilation afterwards.
- Rising damp
Rising damp is mainly found around the baseboards in your home, thus causing moisture spots on the walls and floors. The origin of this moisture comes from outside and occurs under the house in crawl spaces or basements, for example. The groundwater soaks into the masonry and affects the walls. This can be a major culprit in older houses where no water barrier has been laid between the foundation and the walls.
- Penetrating moisture
In this case, the moisture literally comes through the walls. Large moisture spots form on the inside and outside of the walls. Penetrating moisture occurs mainly on basement walls that are wet for long periods of time due to groundwater or on interior walls of home whose facade is damaged. Rainwater seeps into the facade, causing the interior walls to become damp.
- Leakage
Leaks can occur in various places in the house. They are often accompanied by damage to pipes, and because they are usually concealed in the wall, it sometimes takes a long time to notice them. You almost always need special equipment to detect leaks. Contact an expert in leak detection to professionally address the underlying problem.
Say no to moisture problems
With these 5 handy tips, we’ll help you get started on reducing the likelihood of moisture problems:
- Don’t set your thermostat too low
For the past few months, we’ve all had the heating turned down a few degrees. But not heating your home for too long is not healthy for either you or your home. In fact, heating your home below 15C° quickly attracts mold, which then causes moisture problems. So make sure you have a comfortable temperature throughout your home, even if it is vacant for a longer period of time.
- Ventilation is key
We can’t say it enough, everything starts with ventilating your home. Create a healthy environment by allowing your home to breathe. Give it a daily dose of fresh air by opening bedroom windows for at least 15 minutes every morning. This is how you keep the humidity in balance.
- Shower different
The bathroom, the most humid place in your home. A good extraction system will go a long way and prevent fogged-up mirrors. Is this not present in your home? Then shower as briefly as possible and not too hot. Close the door while showering and dry the walls after use. Afterwards, leave the window or door ajar so the warm air can escape.
- Don’t forget your fume hood
Always turn on your cooker hood while cooking so that the damp fumes don’t creep into your walls or ceiling. This small action will work wonders. Also, check the filter regularly: with a clean filter, your hood works 10 times better.
- Hang your laundry outside
Are you also using your dryer less with these energy prices? Make sure you dry your laundry in a well-ventilated area. With nice weather, it’s best to put your laundry outside, but otherwise opt for a laundry room, office or garage. You can easily ventilate these spaces without losing too much heat over the other rooms.
Even when buying a new home it is important to detect moisture problems, nothing so annoying to discover only afterwards. Use this checklist during your viewings so you don’t overlook anything. Do you, as a tenant, detect damage to the property? Find out if you have to bear the costs or if the landlord is responsible.