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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Dec 2011
    Location
    Hants, UK - Stanmore Bay, NZ
    Posts
    217

    Default Condensation

    Yes, I knew there would be condensation, everyone told me there'd be condensation, but how do you deal with it? I'm spending 20 mins every morning wiping down the windows which, I know, in the grand scheme of things isn't much, but if I don't get a chance to do it before school run and am then out for a few hours, it doesn't get done. Things left on window ledges are going mouldy - even wooden photo frames

    Would a dehumidifier be the answer? I'm reluctant to pay for the electricity to run a dehumidifier but if that's what it takes to counteract the ensuing mould, then so be it.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Posts
    37,822

    Default

    We stayed in a rented house in Henderson Valley (on top of the ridge, go figure!) in the bush, in August, so there was a lot of damp around. There were dehumidifiers in all the bedrooms. On advice from our Kiwi family, we used to run the dehumidifier for 20 to 30 minutes in our room before going to bed, and in the bathroom for about the same time after having a bath or shower, and together with having the log burner going when we were in, and airing the place if the weather was suitable, that kept things down. It was also fantastic for drying towels and washing - otherwise, they just hung there and stayed wet.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jul 2008
    Location
    North Canterbury, New Zealand
    Posts
    865

    Default

    A dehumidifier will transform your damp home. Not only will it solve the condensation problem it will make the whole place feel warmer and more pleasant. The better ones have a humidity control so you can choose your level of comfort and just leave it running in some central location like a hallway. Once you have dried the place out it will only run a few hours a day anyway so the running costs won't be great; Contact Energy estimate 7c/hour.

    In a damp home you are wasting some of the energy used to heat the house so in theory your heating bills would drop slightly.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Dec 2011
    Location
    Hants, UK - Stanmore Bay, NZ
    Posts
    217

    Default

    Thanks folks - will get researching now on the best/best value one to buy

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jul 2008
    Location
    North Canterbury, New Zealand
    Posts
    865

    Default

    A cheap Warehouse one will do the job but ours only lasted a few years. I would definitely go for a quality model such as a Mitsubishi.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Dec 2011
    Location
    Hants, UK - Stanmore Bay, NZ
    Posts
    217

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by mylesdw View Post
    A cheap Warehouse one will do the job but ours only lasted a few years. I would definitely go for a quality model such as a Mitsubishi.
    Thanks - can you recommend a good review site by the way? My hubby does like to do his research before committing to anything

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Jul 2008
    Location
    North Canterbury, New Zealand
    Posts
    865

    Default

    I don't have any particular favourite site for reviews. For any appliance that I expect to use for years and years I nearly always go for a name brand who does a lot of business in that field.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Aug 2011
    Location
    Hawkes Bay
    Posts
    78

    Default

    I second the dehumidifier advice, ours has been a God send. Lukcily we brought ours from the UK (we lived in an old house back home so used it every so often in the winter!)we've got one that claims to do a three bedroom house over two levels, and we don't need to move it from the back hallway for it to be effective in all the bedrooms and bathrooms at the back of the house.

    I'm a big believer in airing the house too, especially in the mornings after a night of having the fire/heat pump on. Blast the house through with some fresh air, then wipe down the windows, close them, let the rooms get back to an acceptable temp and stick the dehumidifier on for a while. Though the problem's worse in our house here, even back home in our double glazed, centrally heated old house we used to get condensation, so it hasn't been that big of a deal for us to have to deal with it here as well!

  9. #9
    Join Date
    May 2009
    Location
    Blenheim
    Posts
    1,620

    Default

    To answer the question about reviews- it would be probably this site:
    http://www.consumer.org.nz
    you might want to look at. You can view specific products and pay for the access of the full report, unless you decide to sign up for a whole year (or so, not sure). I used it once for a kitchen machine, you can pre- view what models/ brands they test and then decide if you think it is worth it.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Nov 2010
    Location
    NZ to US to NZ. Opua
    Posts
    1,470

    Default

    According to www.consumer.org.nz, it costs 1.15 - 2.30 to run a dehumidifier for 24 hours. I monitor the humidity level in my house. When it gets close to 60% I run the dehumidifer until it drops to close to 50% and don't have mold or condensation in my house. (my house is insulated but the windows are just single-pane).

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