How to Dehumidify a Bathroom

28th Sep 2018 | |

Condensation in bathrooms is a very common issue and often leads to mildew and mould which, if not dealt with, can have an impact upon health.

What causes condensation?

Bathrooms tend to go through an extreme of temperatures – cold when not in use and much warmer after a hot shower. After usage, the air becomes cooler which results in external walls and other surfaces such as shower curtains also becoming cooler. The moist air is then cooled when coming into contact with these colder surfaces resulting in condensation forming.

Due to bathrooms having more water vapour in the air than other rooms, heavy condensation is a frequent occurrence leading to everything from minor cases of mould and mildew to widespread black mould. This often occurs in bathroom walls, ceilings and in between tiles as these are particularly cold surfaces.

How to stop condensation in a bathroom

To help reduce condensation and keep mould to a minimum on bathroom surfaces we recommend taking the following steps.

  • If you have a window, leave it open as much as possible, particularly at shower time
  • If your windows are single glazed, think about wiping them down quickly when you’re leaving the bathroom to remove excess moisture.
  • If your bathroom has an extractor fan ensure this is in use when showering to provide a way for condensation to escape rather than settle.
  • For an internal bathroom, without a window, it could be worth considering leaving the bathroom door open during the day. This helps dilute the humid air into the rest of the property and reduce the concentration of humidity and amount of moisture in the bathroom
  • Ambient warmth at a good level would help keep walls warm. If you have a heater, consider running it for a reasonable amount of time particularly after showering to avoid cold walls drawing moisture towards them
  • If the bathroom has heavy use, it may even be useful to wipe down moisture from the walls to remove surface water
  • Running a small dehumidifier could be useful if ventilating the bathroom and rest of the property is difficult. A domestic-type dehumidifier could be sufficient to reduce humidity to a more stable level soon after the bathroom has been used.

Getting into the habit of taking these steps can make all the difference in minimising excess moisture and preventing mould and mildew on a day to day basis. If you suspect that the water damage in your bathroom is due to a more serious cause than long term condensation, further investigation will be required.

What to do if my bathroom is water damaged

If you have a water damaged bathroom, such as from a leak from a room/property above then it is important to evaluate whether water may have got behind wall or floor tiles. If the property is wet behind tiles, this can be difficult to dry out without removing the tiled covering. Assessing this can be undertaken with damp testing equipment that companies such as ours use.

Other leaks we regularly see are from flush pipe connections underneath cistern tanks, we well as water supply pipes to the side of cistern tanks. We would suggest regular inspections for these type of plumbing setups, particularly where the plumbing is concealed.

A dehumidifier for drying a bathroom leak could be either a domestic-type or a small industrial machine, depending on overall room size. Where water may have got under baths/showers or even underfloor voids, then fans may be required in order to circulate dry air into the concealed spaces.

For any advice on bathroom dehumidifiers in your home or commercial property, please contact us on 020 7760 7660 or help@dehumidifier-rental.co.uk