The windows in your home are a portal to the outdoors, a way to draw light in when you appreciate the view of your garden, yard or scenery. The last thing you want to see is a sweaty window coated in a layer of condensation.
Not only are windows plastered with condensation unsightly, they also can be a sign of a larger air-quality problem inside your home. Luckily, there’s several things you can do to address the problem.
What Produces Condensation on Windows
Condensation on the inner layer of windows is produced by the humid warm air throughout your home mixing with the cold surface of your windows. It’s especially prevalent in the winter when it’s much cooler outside than it is in your home.
Inside Moisture vs. In Between Panes
When talking about condensation, it’s important to understand the contrast between moisture on the inside of your windows versus moisture in between the windowpanes. One is an indoor air quality issue and the other is a window issue.
- Moisture inside a window is created from the warm moist air throughout your home condensing against the glass.
- Any moisture you find between windowpanes is caused when the window seal fails and moisture gets in between the two panes of glass, and at that point the window should be repaired or replaced.
- Condensation in the windows isn’t a window problem and can instead be solved by fine-tuning the humidity in your home. Many things generate humidity inside a home, such as showers, cooking, taking a bath or even breathing.
Why Condensation on Windows Can Be an Issue
Even though you might consider condensation in your windows is a cosmetic problem, it may also be evidence your home has excess humidity. If this is the case, water might also be condensing on window frames, cold walls or other surfaces. Even a slim film of water can encourage wood surfaces to mildew or rot over time, promoting the growth of mildew or mold.
How to Reduce Humidity Inside Your Home
Thankfully there are several options for removing moisture from the air inside your home.
If you have a humidifier operating inside your home – whether it be a smaller unit or a whole-house humidifier – lower it further so the humidity inside your home comes down.
If you don’t have a humidifier going and your home’s humidity level is higher than you prefer, consider installing a dehumidifier. While humidifiers add moisture inside your home so the air doesn’t dry out, a dehumidifier extracts excess moisture out of the air.
Compact, portable dehumidifiers can remove the water from a single room. However, portable units require clearing water trays and usually service a fairly small area. A whole-house dehumidifier will remove moisture across your entire home.
Whole-house dehumidifier systems are regulated by a humidistat, which allows you to establish a humidity level precisely as you would choose a temperature with your thermostat. The unit will start instantly when the humidity level surpasses the set level. These systems collaborate with your home’s HVAC system, so you will want to contact qualified professionals for whole-house dehumidifier installation Cambridge.
Other Ways to Decrease Condensation on Windows
- Exhaust fans. Installing exhaust fans around humidity hotspots like the bathroom, laundry room or above the stove can help by drawing the warm, humid air from these rooms out of your home before it can raise the humidity level across your home.
- Ceiling fans. Turning on ceiling fans can also keep air moving inside the home so humid air doesn’t get stuck in one place.
- Opening up window treatments. Pulling open the blinds or drapes can reduce condensation by preventing the warm air from being caught against the windowpane.
By lowering humidity across your home and circulating air throughout your home, you can make the most of clear, moisture-free windows even in the winter.