How to prevent condensation and mould problems this winter

In this article, we’ll take a look at some simple solutions to keeping your home warm and free of condensation, damp, and mould. Some are free; others will take a bit of work, and have cost involved but will ultimately save money and have positive health benefits in the long run.

Keep your windows closed

Firstly keep your windows closed, this may seem counterintuitive when you’re standing in a room full of steam. However, an open window in midwinter is one of the main contributors to condensation, mould, and damp problems in UK homes. This is because when the cold air from outside mixes with the warm humid air from the shower it forces the moisture to condense faster forming into larger droplets of water. Keeping the windows closed helps to keep the bathroom warmer and reduces the speed at which water molecules in the air condense making them easier to extract. Additionally, the cold air cools the tiles in the bathroom which adds to the speed at which the moisture condenses.

Wipe down excess water after showering.

When you think about it, it’s pretty obvious. All that water collected on the wall tiles, shower screens, and shower trays has to go somewhere. Yes, some of it will go down the plug hole, but most of it will evaporate and add to humidity issues.

So invest a few pounds in a shower squeegee and spend a couple of minutes getting rid of that excess water. This not only effectively removes all water droplets it will leave your glass and tiles looking squeaky clean.

Upgrade or install an extractor fan.

There are several options when it comes to managing good indoor air quality through the use of mechanical ventilation. We’re often asked “What type of fan should I install?” The answer to this question does vary depending on the property so we’ll take a brief look at some of the best options;

Wall Mounted Extractor Fan

Standard or Axial fans as they are technically known are the most common type of bathroom fan. You’ll find these in almost every bathroom on the wall or ceiling; these are available in a variety of functionalities which include overrun timer, humidistat (humidity sensor), basic on/off, pull cord, and PIR (motion sensors)

The most popular range we sell is the Silent Tornado range.

The Silent Tornado is a great looking fan that boasts the highest extraction rate for a standard 4” axial bathroom fan at 97m3/hr (27 L/s) and is whisper quiet at 25db(A). The Silent Tornado is a mains voltage fan that can be installed in all bathroom zones including the shower thanks to its IP45 rating. (Click Here to learn more about bathroom zones) Unlike most axial fans the Tornado can be ducted up to 5 metres, it’s powerful, as close to silent as you’re going to get, easy to install, and comes with a 5-year warranty, so all in all a great fan. 

To view the Silent Tornado Click Here

Inline Extractor Fan

Larger and more powerful than axial fans, inline fans are one of the best solutions for extracting air from a steamy bathroom. These fans are installed above the bathroom in a loft or a ceiling void.

Inline fans are on average three times more powerful than axial extractor fans. Additionally, they can be installed with little disruption in the bathroom and the extract points can be placed exactly where they need to be.

We stock a range of inline fans from the UK's leading manufacturers including Vent-Axia, Envirovent, Manrose, Tornado, and Airflow.

Of these, we recommend the Turbo Tube Pro 4” inline fan. This unit is extremely powerful and very quiet. On its highest setting, the Turbo Tube extracts 300m3/hr at 32 dB(A).

To view the Turbo Tube Click Here

dMEV and continuous running fans

dMEV or decentralised mechanical extract ventilation are a type of wall-mounted fan. These low-energy fans trickle away almost silently and boost in a variety of ways, most commonly reacting to humidity.

We recommend the Monsoon dMEV. This fan is a cost effective, low energy, super quiet, and attractive fan, suitable for use in bathrooms, kitchens, utility spaces, and living spaces including bedrooms. It features fully adjustable trickle and boost airflow settings. The trickle speed of 18 m3/hr simulates an open window and a boost of 126 m3/hr exceeds the extraction levels of most axial fans. All in all a great fan for a multitude of applications.

To view the Monsoon dMEV Click Here

The Vent-Axia Svara is another popular continuous fan. It features the latest Bluetooth app control which allows you to programme the fan to run just how you want to. Out of the box the Svara is a continuous running fan with timer and humidistat. The app functionality then gives you the ability to tweak the overrun timer, the humidity levels, add room refresh options and quiet times.

To view the White Svara Click Here and to view the Black Svara Click Here

Heat recovery

MVHR also known as mechanical ventilation heat recovery is available in two versions. Whole house and single room versions.

MVHR provides fresh filtered air into a building whilst retaining most of the energy that has already been used in heating the building. Heat recovery ventilation is a great solution to ventilate modern highly insulated homes.

Of the two, whole house systems are more complicated and require professional designs and precise installation. If you’d like to discuss this option, please contact us.

On the other hand, single-room versions such as the Vent-Axia Tempra and the Envirovent HeatSava can be installed in the same way as standard bathroom fans. These fans extract the moist warm air and draw fresh air back into the property using a heat cell that fits through the cavity wall.

To view the Vent-Axia Tempra range Click Here

Vent-Axia HR100 is a loft-mounted unit that is installed in a similar way to an inline fan. These draw the damp stale air from a bathroom and replace it with warm fresh filtered air from outside.

To view the Vent-Axia HR100 Click Here

MEV

Mechanical extract ventilation is a loft-mounted version of a dMEV. These units provide multi-room constant trickle ventilation and boost using a remote switch or when they sense humidity in the system in certain units.

The MEV160W is the latest loft-mounted unit from Envirovent. This compact unit features low energy highly efficient silent DC motor with intelligent humidity tracking and wireless boost. It comes supplied with three 125mm spigots and can accommodate a further four for use in larger properties.

In addition to the inbuilt humidity sensor, Envirovent offers a range of additional sensors. The AirSens range includes C02 Air Quality and Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) sensors which can be integrated into the MEV system.

To view the Envirovent MEV160W Click Here

PIV

Positive input ventilation draws filtered air from the loft space and gently pushes the air through your home where it naturally escapes through the fabric of the building, trickle vents, or through some other form of extraction such as dMEV.

The Monsoon PIV unit is by far the best seller in this range. This unit warms the freshly filtered air and effectively helps deal with condensation and damp issues.

To view the Monsoon PIV Click Here

For more information regarding any of the extraction units or topics covered in this article please feel free to contact one of our technical team.