If you remember back to grade school, the water cycle had all kinds of science terms like evaporation and precipitation. Perhaps you remember that dew or frost on grass in the morning is caused by a different sciency-word: condensation. Condensation can signal a couple things. It’s often present when something very cold and something hot meet. If you’ve ever left an iced drink on your table on a summer day, you probably have seen condensation on the cup. Condensation can also be a sign of excessive humidity in the air. The reason we experience condensation on cold things in a hot room, is that the can of pop or other cold object cools the air around it. Cold air cannot hold as much water as hot air, so the water the air was carrying condenses onto the can.
While a bit of condensation on a can of pop isn’t a problem, a lot of condensation on your windows can be.
If your doors and windows are insulated correctly and your weather stripping well in tact, you should never have condensation inside your house. Condensation on the outside of your windows is normal and to be expected though. In fact, when your windows have condensation on the outside that’s usually a sign that they are insulating your house well and doing their job. If once the sun hits your window the dew evaporates or “burns” off, you can be double sure that your windows are working just as they’re supposed to.
If, on the other hand, you have condensation inside of your home, that alludes to problems with your insulation – it means the surface is cold enough to cause droplets to form, humidity – there is enough moisture in the air that the cool air can’t hold onto its water, and ventilation – there isn’t enough air movement to dry up the condensation and circulate the air effectively. This is bad new for two reasons: you’re losing money on your heating bill and you’re more likely to have humidity and mould problems develop.
Regular condensation forming inside of your home is never a good sign. If this is a chronic issue for your house, contact the experts at Amity today. Our number is (403) 667-8264; we would be happy to work with you and explain what renovations you can do to protect your home.
