≋ How to remove humidity in the apartment • Get rid of dampness in the apartment.

The microclimate in the apartment is very important for a comfortable stay. It is necessary to maintain the temperature regime, control the speed of the air flow. But it is equally important to monitor the level of humidity. If the air is dry, it becomes difficult to breathe, “sand” is felt in the eyes, the condition of the hair and skin worsens.

In turn, excess moisture provokes the development of fungi and mold, the windows begin to “cry”, a musty smell appears. Water vapor accelerates the wear of household appliances, furniture, and finishes.

In this article, our experts will give a detailed answer to the question of why the apartment is damp. Having dealt with the reasons that provoke an increase in the level of humidity, it will be possible to develop a strategy for improving the microclimate.

What level of humidity is considered normal?

To create a favorable environment for work and leisure in the apartment, it is necessary to adhere to the figures of 40-60%. This level of humidity is considered optimal. In this case, the parameters may vary depending on the purpose of the room:

• In the living room, office, you can maintain humidity at 40-50%.
• In the nursery, it is advisable to ensure that the air does not dry out — the optimal value here is 55%.
• In the bathroom, bathroom, kitchen — 40-45% is enough.
• In the dressing room — 40-60%.
• In the laundry — 60-65%.
• In the kitchen — 60%.

If there is not enough water vapor in the air, the human body begins to experience stress. Skin, hair, mucous membranes lose moisture. Microtraumas on the nasal mucosa and nasopharynx allow pathogenic bacteria and viruses to freely enter the bloodstream, which leads to respiratory diseases. From a lack of moisture, houseplants develop poorly, furniture dries out. You can solve the problem by installing a humidifier.

What are the dangers of staying in an apartment with a high level of humidity?

Heat and moisture are ideal conditions for the development of molds and pathogenic bacteria. Gradually, spores of fungi accumulate in the air — an unpleasant odor arises. Staying in an apartment with damp air leads to a number of diseases:

• The cardiovascular system suffers.
• The risk of strokes, heart attacks, SARS increases.
• A hypertensive crisis may occur.
• There is a general weakness.
• Aggravated manifestations of allergic reactions, asthma.
• Nosebleeds may occur frequently.

When the humidity is over 70%, the temperature seems lower than it actually is, the air becomes «heavy», there is a general malaise, weakness. Children suffer the most from an excess of moisture in the air — they get sick for a long time and often.

Furniture items also deteriorate, metal elements of load-bearing structures in walls and floors corrode. To normalize the microclimate in the apartment, you can purchase an inexpensive dehumidifier. Fortunately, modern manufacturers of climate technology offer a lot of options.

It is not difficult to understand that the apartment is damp. With high humidity:

• there is a distinct smell of dampness;
• bed linen seems wet;
• condensation on the windows;
• corners, slopes, walls near the floor turn black;
• wooden floors swell, laminate rises;
• plaster is peeling off, wallpaper is peeling off.

The fight against waterlogged air is a difficult issue that requires a thorough analysis of the causes. Before you get rid of dampness, you need to figure out what leads to its accumulation, and only then — take action. It is important to understand that moisture can enter the apartment from both external and internal sources.

Causes of high humidity in the apartment

Excess moisture in the air can accumulate for various reasons. For ease of understanding, we divide them into three large groups. The first includes temporary inconveniences associated with construction or repair work. After their completion, moisture is felt in the apartment for a long time, which evaporates from the plaster, self-leveling floor.

In summer, you can open the windows. Ventilation will help dry the apartment faster, provided that the weather is dry outside. But if the repair took place during the off-season or winter, then you will have to be patient — the floors and walls will dry for a long time. If you don’t want to wait, put a dehumidifier in rooms that have been renovated and things will change.

The second group of reasons include internal sources of moisture. Factors of regular saturation of air with water vapor can be:

1. Condensation on windows and walls, which is formed due to temperature differences inside the apartment and outside.
2. Human. Breathing alone releases about 300 g of water per day. Another 500 g — with sweat (with minimal activity).
3. moisture loving plants. They evaporate about 97% of the moisture that goes into irrigation.
4. Rooms in which there is constant contact with moisture — bathroom, kitchen, bathroom.
5. Drying clothes on batteries or in the bathroom.
6. Leaking plumbing in the bathroom.
7. Cooking, washing dishes, cleaning.
8. Large aquarium.

The third group of reasons that provoke an excess of moisture are external sources. Influencing them is the most difficult, since they are related to the quality of work performed at the construction stage (waterproofing, insulation). Among them are the following:

• The apartment is located in an old house. Walls, ceilings, floors are insufficiently sealed and insulated.
• The windows are leaky and need to be replaced — they allow air to pass through poorly sealed gaps between the window frame and the wall.
• Air flows, which are formed as a result of leaks in the construction of walls, at the junction of floors.
• Errors in the performance of waterproofing work.

Not uncommon in apartment buildings — flooding by neighbors from above. Residents of apartments located on the first floors of multi-storey buildings may suffer from dampness due to the fact that there is constantly water in the basement. If the apartment is located on the top floor, the cause of dampness may be a poorly waterproofed roof.

How to get rid of dampness in the apartment in such situations? The answer is obvious — to try collectively with the residents of other apartments to eliminate its causes. Otherwise, the fight against excess moisture will not give tangible results.

You can try to dry out the basement. To do this, you need to hire a team that will fix the water pipes and pump out the water. There are also specialists who can repair the roof. Facade insulation gives good results. Of course, such measures are expensive, but it is better to spend money on eliminating the causes than to constantly invest in unsuccessful attempts to eliminate the consequences.

Summing up the above, we can say that the optimal humidity parameters will be if initially:

• the apartment building is properly designed and built;
• high-quality work on waterproofing the foundation, walls and roof;
• well thought out and implemented ventilation system.

A common situation is that dampness is observed only during the off-season, when central heating is not yet turned on, and it is already cool outside. The temperature in the apartment drops. As a result, the humidity rises. To solve the problem, it is enough to use heating devices. You can choose a convector, oil cooler, fan heater, infrared or panel heater. Recently, many are switching to the Warm Floor heating system recommended by us.

What you need to know about the tightness of buildings?

Speaking about tightness, it is quite common to believe that the looseness of the outer shell of the building has a positive effect on the microclimate in the apartment. That is, through the cracks in the joints of the plates, gaps and seams, air exchange occurs. In fact, such a statement is fundamentally wrong. Through poorly sealed seams in windy weather, there will be a draft in the apartment. If there is no wind, air exchange is disturbed and the flow of fresh air from outside stops.

The second point — with strong gusts, together with the air, precipitation can penetrate into the apartment. This is another reason for the increase in humidity levels. The reasoning that moist air comes out of the apartment through the gaps is also erroneous. Warm air flow, passing through the cracks, is cooled. As a result, all moisture settles in the form of condensate inside the walls. The same goes for windows — they must be installed airtight. Gaps between window frames and slopes (inside and outside) are sources of dampness.

We suggest installing a recuperator for an apartment, because this is a more rational solution. Such devices provide competent air exchange without heat loss.

Why is façade insulation so important?

With regard to thermal insulation, it is important to understand what is happening inside the walls of the building. To do this, we first explain what a dew point is. This definition refers to the temperature at which the water vapor contained in the air condenses into water.

Depending on the thickness of the wall, the dew point can be located outside the building, in the thickness of the wall or inside the apartment. Accordingly, the walls can be dry (if the dew point is closer to the street) or covered with water droplets (if the dew point is closer to the inner edge of the wall). The dew point can shift in one direction or another with changes in temperature or humidity parameters.

Let’s look at this issue in more detail. Suppose inside the apartment the temperature is maintained at +20°С and the air humidity is at the level of 60%. This means that on any surface, the temperature of which is +12 ° C and below, condensate will settle. If the walls in the apartment do not warm up to this temperature, then moisture will constantly appear on them. This situation suggests that the walls are not insulated or not sufficiently insulated, in winter the problem of dampness will constantly arise.

There are situations when the work on the insulation of the facade is carried out improperly. As a result, a gap remains between the insulation and the wall, through which cold air flows can penetrate and bring moisture with it. In such cases, you will also have to face the question of how to remove humidity in the apartment. If the heat engineering calculations are performed correctly, the dew point will be inside the insulation, so that the walls in the apartment will remain dry during the cold season.

According to the State Building Regulations of Ukraine DBN B.2.6-31-2006, thermal insulation of buildings must be carried out in compliance with the following parameters: the difference between the air temperature in the room and the temperature of the inner side of the outer wall should be no more than 4 ° C. This is enough to prevent condensation from forming.

Also of great importance in the fight against dampness are the thermal insulation qualities of windows. Given the climatic features of the geographic latitudes in which Ukraine is located, the optimal glazing is double-glazed windows with low-emission coating. The chambers must be filled with krypton or argon with low thermal conductivity U=0.5…0.8 W/m²K or R=2.0…1.25 m²C/W.

High humidity in the apartment — what to do? Practical advice from Vencon experts

So, what to do if the apartment has problems with dampness? The first step is to establish air exchange in rooms such as bathroom, bathroom, kitchen. The easiest solution is to buy exhaust fans from Vencon. Such devices are inexpensive, but at the same time they are quite effective. Devices will remove waterlogged air to the outside, thereby preventing:

• fogging of mirrors;
• condensation on the walls;
• reproduction of the fungus;
• the appearance of an unpleasant odor.

An alternative to such units is duct fans. Such exhaust devices are more productive than wall-mounted models, but they are more difficult to install.

The cost of duct fans is higher than exhaust fans. This is due to the fact that one duct fan is enough to effectively remove exhaust air in the bathroom and bathroom. But if you prefer an exhaust, then you will need two of them — one for each room.

In the bathroom, a heated towel rail from our range will help fight dampness. Such devices can be connected to the heating system or operate from the network. The heated towel rail maintains a comfortable temperature, dries the air, eliminating the problem of excessive humidity.

Exhaust fans are divided into axial (mounted directly in the ventilation duct) and centrifugal. The latter can be installed where it is more convenient. For example, in the ceiling. Connection to the ventilation shaft is carried out using air ducts.

In the kitchen, we recommend installing a hood. It will remove air saturated with moisture vapor and trap fat vapor. It should be borne in mind that the removal of moist air masses does not solve the issue of inflow. The exhaust air must be replaced with fresh air. In this case, the following rule must be observed: the discharged and inflowing flows must be equal in volume.

You can set up flow in different ways:

• Periodically opening the windows.
• By installing inlet valves or a grate.
• Having mounted supply and exhaust recuperators.

The last option is the most comfortable. Such installations, before supplying air to the room, warm it up, taking heat from the exhaust stream. This allows you to save on heating in the winter.

Options with opening vents or installing a supply valve do not require special costs, as in the case of a heat exchanger, but you need to understand that precious heat will also leave with moist air. If the purchase of special appliances is still delayed, perform ventilation after:

• taking a shower;
• wet cleaning;
• cooking;
• drying clothes;
• washing.

Supply units should be located in the so-called «clean» rooms: living room, bedroom. The air will circulate in all other rooms, drawn out from the kitchen, bathroom. As a result, a full-fledged air exchange will be established throughout the apartment, and hence the removal of excess moisture.

Dealing with the question of how to remove dampness in an apartment, it will not be superfluous to understand the purpose of the ventilation system. It is necessary for:

1. Maintaining optimal microclimatic parameters of air — humidity, oxygen level, CO2.
2. Saving heat, which is spent on heating the supply (cold) air.

If a family of 3-5 people lives in the apartment, the inflow of fresh air should be an average of 90-250 m³/hour. The optimal value is at least 25 m³/ hour for 1 person. At the same time, for different rooms in the apartment, the volume of inflow does not match:

• For toilets and bathrooms — 100 m³/time;
• For baths and showers — 75 m³/time;
• For kitchens — 50-60 m³/hour (with electric stove) and 100 m³/ hour (if the stove is gas).

If at the repair stage they forgot about ventilation and did not perform the corresponding “dirty” work, the best solution is to install a heat exchanger. Such units can be mounted without damaging the interior. They are efficient, reliable and easy to use. You can order the installation of ventilation systems in the Vencon online store. Our masters have the necessary equipment to perform such work.

How to remove humidity in the apartment — what to do with an unheated balcony?

A lot of trouble delivers a balcony on which heating is not provided. In the off-season and the cold season, it can become damp, covered in the floor area with fungus and black mold. You can solve the problem in the following ways:

1. Open windows regularly for ventilation.
2. Drying the balcony, using a small and economical heating device (for example, a convector).
3. By installing a heat exchanger with heat preservation.

In some rooms, ventilation is not enough to remove excess moisture. For example, if you are drying clothes in the room, then use a household dehumidifier. Such devices should be turned on as needed. There are small portable models that can be moved throughout the apartment. The dehumidifiers are designed to operate at temperatures from +5°С to +35°С. Their main advantage over ventilation is the use of recirculated air. That is, in winter there is no need to heat the supply flow.

To some extent, air conditioners that have a heating function can deal with excessive humidity. In the summer, such devices extract moisture from the air to cool it to a comfortable temperature. In winter and off-season, in the heat mode, the air conditioner heats the air, and thereby increases its ability to retain water vapor.

It is worth noting that the majority of air conditioners operate on recirculated air, which means that they can only adjust such microclimate parameters as temperature and humidity. Such installations cannot saturate the air with oxygen and control the level of carbon dioxide.

There are models with the function of dehumidification and fresh air supply, while the price of such split systems is higher than that of conventional counterparts. How comfortable they are in operation is a moot point, since at the moment the ventilation function in air conditioners is indicated in the specifications, but they are not fully capable of fulfilling this task (there are more for show than for user comfort).

High humidity in the apartment? With Vencon climate technology, this is not a problem!

We hope that after reading the article, you have found the answer to the question of how to dry an apartment from dampness. The first step is to determine which group your problem belongs to. If the first, then you need to be patient and wait a bit. If the latter, choose a solution that suits you in terms of cost and reliability. If the problem belongs to the third group — eliminate the cause, then the dampness will recede.

Need advice? Reach out to Vencon experts for help. They will help you choose the equipment (they will recommend a suitable duct or exhaust fan). In Kyiv, we can offer professional installation services — we install recuperators, heating radiators, split systems. All types of work are guaranteed.

Images are taken from open sources.