The windows in your home are a portal to the outdoors, a way to draw light in as you take in the view of your garden, yard or scenery. The last thing you want to see is a sweaty window coated in a coating of condensation.
Not only are windows plastered with condensation unsightly, they also can be evidence of a more serious air-quality deficit within your home. Thankfully, there’s multiple things you can try to correct the problem.
What Creates Condensation in Windows
Condensation on the inner layer of windows is produced by the humid warm air throughout your home reaching the cold surface of your windows. It’s especially commonplace over the winter when it’s much chillier outside than it is in your home.
Inside Moisture vs. In Between Panes
When dealing with condensation, it’s important to understand the difference between moisture on the inside of your windows in comparison to moisture in between the windowpanes. One is an air-quality issue and the other is a window issue.
- Moisture inside a window is caused from the warm humid air inside your home collecting along the glass.
- The 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 needs to be repaired or replaced.
- Condensation inside the windows isn’t a window situation and can instead be solved by fine-tuning the humidity across your home. Numerous things produce humidity inside a home, like showers, cooking, taking a bath or even breathing.
Why Condensation on Windows Can Be an Issue
Although you might consider condensation in your windows is a cosmetic concern, it may also be indicating your home has high humidity. If that’s 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, fostering the growth of mildew or mold.
How to Decrease Humidity in Your Home
The good news is there are numerous options for removing moisture from the air inside your home.
If you have a humidifier running inside your home – whether it be a smaller unit or a whole-house humidifier – lower it further so the humidity inside your home decreases.
If you don’t have a humidifier running and your home’s humidity level is excessive, consider getting a dehumidifier. While humidifiers put moisture in your home so the air doesn’t become too dry, a dehumidifier pulls excess moisture out of the air.
Smaller, portable dehumidifiers can eliminate the water from a single room. However, portable units require emptying out water trays and usually service a somewhat limited area. A whole-house dehumidifier will eliminate moisture from your entire home.
Whole-house dehumidifier systems are controlled by a humidistat, which allows you to set a humidity level the same as you would select a temperature with your thermostat. The unit will start immediately when the humidity level exceeds the set level. These systems work with your home’s HVAC system, so you will receive the best results if you contact qualified professionals for whole-house dehumidifier installation Phoenix.
Alternative Ways to Lower Condensation on Windows
- Exhaust fans. Putting in exhaust fans in humidity hotspots like the bathroom, laundry room or above the oven can help by pulling the warm, moist air from these rooms out of your home before it can increase the humidity level across your home.
- Ceiling fans. Spinning ceiling fans can also keep air flowing within the home so humid air doesn’t get caught up in one spot.
- Opening your window treatments. Pulling open the blinds or drapes can decrease condensation by preventing the damp air from being trapped against the windowpane.
By reducing humidity in your home and moving air throughout your home, you can make the most of clear, moisture-free windows even in the winter.