moisture on windows

[i3bpvh]

Hi all, had a question that maybe one of you out there could answer. This summer I re-caulked around all the window frames and glass, and repainted the wood. Now that it's been cold out I'm noticing there is a lot of moisture building up on the windows. On some of the windows the moisture goes away through out the day, but on some it stays. It isn't between the panes, it's on the inside of the window. We have a forced air furnace, 3 level split home. Other than the caulking we haven't changed anything else. Any Ideas? Thanx

 

[i3bpvh]

There are vents near some of the windows, but like I said, this hasn't happened in the past 2 winters we've lived here. Maybe it's the huge weather changes we've had here, 60 deg. last week, 30 this week?

 

[i3bpvh]

we do have a humidifier on or furnace, but I even turned that down from where it was last year. No celler. I did put plastic over some of the windows, and those ones have no moisture on the window or the plastic.

 

[LLigetfa]

Too much humidity in the house or letting the house cool down too much at night. Find the source and fix it. Exhaust fans not working, dryer not vented to outside, broken humidistat, cooking too much pasta, etc.

 

[i3bpvh]

[/quote]seems the added insulation of the plastic/dead air space did the trick eh?[/quote]

Yeah, we have a few really old and big windows that need a little TLC every winter to keep the cold out. Just went around and checked the dryer and bath fans, everything seems to be free and clear. Guess it's another good excuse to run the insert 24/7... dehumidify the house!!

 

[i3bpvh]

Too much humidity in the house or letting the house cool down too much at night.

We do drop the thermostat to 63 degs during the day when we're at work, then up to 69 deg at 4 when I get home.??

 

[dave11]

One other explanation is that you have a very tight house.

Mine is tight as well, and when the cold nights first arrive, like now, I always have some condensation on the windows in the AM.

Either you're overproducing moisture, through showers, cooking, etc., or you're underventilating the house. Not enough new air exchange.

I do it too. Hasn't killed me yet.

Just be sure you watch for condensation collecting and pooling into water around the windows. If they're wood, they can rot.

 

[LLigetfa]

Too much humidity in the house or letting the house cool down too much at night.

We do drop the thermostat to 63 degs during the day when we're at work, then up to 69 deg at 4 when I get home.??

Ja, that's the "relative" part of RH kicking in. When the temp falls, it will reach 100% RH and condense on any cold surface. My humidifier has a humidistat and I can also control humidity with my HRV. When we get really cold weather, I turn down the humidity and I don't drop the thermostat as low.

You have three options. Better windows, lower humidity, maintain higher temps.

 

[fbelec]

one other thing that it could be, but it's a remote chance. if you are using a hot air furnace for heat and you are not making excessive moisture (showers, boiling water on stove) check to see if you have a cracked heat exchanger on the furnace. two problems with that would be feeling like you have a humidifier running to high and the most important, carbon monoxide leaking into the house.

 

[i3bpvh]

One other explanation is that you have a very tight house.

HA!! that's pretty funny. house was built in 78, and as we update we're finding that the old homeowners half assed everything. But as far as the circulation of "new" air in the house I'm adding a fresh combustion air intake to my furnace. Just had my insert installed last week and to pass inspection I need it. Apparently the house was "loose" enough before that it could just draw air in through leaks, but now that the insert will be competing for air it's needed.

 

[firefighterjake]

One other explanation is that you have a very tight house.

HA!! that's pretty funny. house was built in 78, and as we update we're finding that the old homeowners half assed everything. But as far as the circulation of "new" air in the house I'm adding a fresh combustion air intake to my furnace. Just had my insert installed last week and to pass inspection I need it. Apparently the house was "loose" enough before that it could just draw air in through leaks, but now that the insert will be competing for air it's needed.

HehHeh . . . seems like some of those homes built in the '70s were built by folks who only had half a clue as to what they were doing . . . I know my wife and I have taken on simple projects like changing out a light switch (a 15 minute job normally) which has turned into a half day project (since the folks who wired the house used the light switch box as a junction box and light switch . . . and the newer switch would not fit into the box or be done per code.)

Time after time we have run into issues with the house which shows the folks really didn't know what they were doing . . . in fact the main reason my chimney runs outside instead of inside is due to the former home owners who ran the 2 x 6s on the first floor, second floor and second floor ceiling opposite from each other . . . in other words the first floor stringers run north to south, the second floor's floor stringers run east to west and the 2 x 6s in the second floor's ceiling run north to south.

It never ceases to amaze me . . . every time we take on a project it turns out to be a lot longer than we anticipated due to the builders taking a short cut or not knowing what they were doing . . . and in regards to insulation . . . well at least they insulated . . . but it was the minimum amount and only in 2 x 4 walls . . . one of the best things we did a few years back was to have a contractor come in and remove the entire front wall and replace it with a 2 x 6 wall to replace the bowed out wall.

 

[woodsman23]

Are your windows single pane or double pane glass. If they are single pane then that is your issue right there. let us know, maybe a pic...

 

[i3bpvh]

one other thing that it could be, but it's a remote chance. if you are using a hot air furnace for heat and you are not making excessive moisture (showers, boiling water on stove) check to see if you have a cracked heat exchanger on the furnace. two problems with that would be feeling like you have a humidifier running to high and the most important, carbon monoxide leaking into the house.

It doesn't feel humid in the house, and neither carbon monoxide detectors have been going off.

 

[i3bpvh]

Are your windows single pane or double pane glass. If they are single pane then that is your issue right there. let us know, maybe a pic...

Single pane. There is almost no moisture today, may have just been the huge swing in the weather lately.


EDIT: Sorry, ment double pane... brain is a little off today, just got back from our first ultrasound... it's a girl!!

 

[LLigetfa]

Time to consider upgrading to sealed double-glazed units. When I built my house, I drove to Warroad MN to buy Marvin Clad Ultimate Double Hung windows with low E and Argon. Even at that, I still have a bit of condensation/frost in very cold weather. At this time of year I keep my humidistat set to 30% but as it gets colder I dial it back. At the coldest, I turn it down to 10% and I don't let the house cool below 70.

 

[i3bpvh]

Last year I kept the humidistat at 30%, but with all the moisture on the windows this year I turned it down to 10%. Wow, 70 deg., I keep the thermostat at 68 deg. when were home, if the stove is going it hangs at a cozy 72

 

[daveswoodhauler]

Are your windows single pane or double pane glass. If they are single pane then that is your issue right there. let us know, maybe a pic...

Single pane. There is almost no moisture today, may have just been the huge swing in the weather lately.


EDIT: Sorry, ment double pane... brain is a little off today, just got back from our first ultrasound... it's a girl!!

Wohooo! Congrats

 

[LLigetfa]

Wow, 68 degrees is the setback temp most of the time. It's up around 72 or 73 in the evenings and warmer than that when we have a wood fire on. I'm 250 miles due North of you.

 

[fbelec]

Are your windows single pane or double pane glass. If they are single pane then that is your issue right there. let us know, maybe a pic...

Single pane. There is almost no moisture today, may have just been the huge swing in the weather lately.


EDIT: Sorry, ment double pane... brain is a little off today, just got back from our first ultrasound... it's a girl!!

congrats on the good news. now get yourself some sleep now, you'll need it after the baby comes along.

 

[mikevolpe]

I am having a similar problem and came here to post this question. I have a small Ranch house we bought in Dec 08. We moved in in Feb. We have hot air heat and had quite a bit of condesation on the windows last year. This year I have not turned on the heat yet and in the mornings the two rooms is the northwest corner of the house have water droplets coming from the celing. All the windows are completly wet and the paint is starting to peel on the sills. Right after we bought the house I insulated the attic and painted everything. While painting I did notice some staining on the celing but thought it was from an old roof leek. Also the paint on the window sills in those 2 rooms was peeled away from moisture.

At some point the previous owner replaced some siding on the sides of the house near the roof and covered over the gable vents. Now there are two small vents in thier place. they are maybe 8" x 12". I left enough room by the eves to let air in when
i insulated. Could the attic ventalation (or lack of) be causing this? The house has a very moist basement as well and the dehumidifier runs alot.

The good new is I just bought a Lopi answer Fireplace insert so I wont need to run the oil fired hot air heater as much this year.

Mike

 

[i3bpvh]

thanks for the congrats guys. first one, due March 3rd!! The dog is going to be gealous

 

[semipro]

I am having a similar problem and came here to post this question. I have a small Ranch house we bought in Dec 08. We moved in in Feb. We have hot air heat and had quite a bit of condesation on the windows last year. This year I have not turned on the heat yet and in the mornings the two rooms is the northwest corner of the house have water droplets coming from the celing. All the windows are completly wet and the paint is starting to peel on the sills. Right after we bought the house I insulated the attic and painted everything. While painting I did notice some staining on the celing but thought it was from an old roof leek. Also the paint on the window sills in those 2 rooms was peeled away from moisture.

At some point the previous owner replaced some siding on the sides of the house near the roof and covered over the gable vents. Now there are two small vents in thier place. they are maybe 8" x 12". I left enough room by the eves to let air in when
i insulated. Could the attic ventalation (or lack of) be causing this? The house has a very moist basement as well and the dehumidifier runs alot.

The good new is I just bought a Lopi answer Fireplace insert so I wont need to run the oil fired hot air heater as much this year.

Mike

Mike, you may get a better response if you create a new post for this question.