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I’m not sure if this is the right place for this Q, but here goes. My parents have this moisture problem in their house that they have been battling for quite some time. They live in the Beaufort,SC area and are typically confronted with 90+ degrees and 90+ % humidity in the summer. Here’s the particulars – the house is 14 years old, about 1400 SF, stick built, wood siding, slab on grade, with high ceilings (~15′) in the kitchen and great room and a fairly open floor plan. There are skylights in the kitchen and master bathroom – the installation in the bathroom is “interesting” – the ceiling is your typical 8′ height, but the skylights are some 15′ above with sheetrocked “tunnels” in the intervening 7′. It’s heated and cooled with a heat pump as is typical in that area.
The problem exhibits itself in that master bathroom – during the warmest summer months there is excessive condensation around the air supply vent, it positively drips. It’s especially bad when there is extra moisture in the air, such as from cooking in the kitchen, 30′ + away and not in a straight line. This has at times caused mold, mildew, and separation of the “popcorn” ceiling. There is no noticeable condensation at any other supply vent in the house – the inside air temp is ~78 degrees and the humidity is ~50%.
They have a dehumidifier (not sure the exact capacity, but it’s bigger than a breadbox) and a new oversized exhaust fan in the bathroom. They have replaced the skylights (now vented) and had that contractor back out to address some installation problems (leaks, condensation on the skylights).
The heat pump and air handler have been recently replaced with a high efficiency unit – not to address the problem, but it ought to have helped, no? They have had the HVAC contractor out – in the bathroom they re-insulated the duct, replaced the vent and dispensed such sage advice as “hot air comes down and seeks out cold air to make the condensation happen”.
Given the apparent cause and effect relationship between cooking and condensation, my parents think that there must be some air current between the two locations. Given that it still occurs (though to a lesser extent) when an intervening door is closed, I think it’s coming out of the vent itself, but I can’t explain why it’s not happening at any other vent.
Any ideas?
Thanks in advance –
Scott
Replies
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I'm not sure if this is the right place for this Q, but here goes. My parents have this moisture problem in their house that they have been battling for quite some time. They live in the Beaufort,SC area and are typically confronted with 90+ degrees and 90+ % humidity in the summer. Here's the particulars - the house is 14 years old, about 1400 SF, stick built, wood siding, slab on grade, with high ceilings (~15') in the kitchen and great room and a fairly open floor plan. There are skylights in the kitchen and master bathroom - the installation in the bathroom is "interesting" - the ceiling is your typical 8' height, but the skylights are some 15' above with sheetrocked "tunnels" in the intervening 7'. It's heated and cooled with a heat pump as is typical in that area.
The problem exhibits itself in that master bathroom - during the warmest summer months there is excessive condensation around the air supply vent, it positively drips. It's especially bad when there is extra moisture in the air, such as from cooking in the kitchen, 30' + away and not in a straight line. This has at times caused mold, mildew, and separation of the "popcorn" ceiling. There is no noticeable condensation at any other supply vent in the house - the inside air temp is ~78 degrees and the humidity is ~50%.
They have a dehumidifier (not sure the exact capacity, but it's bigger than a breadbox) and a new oversized exhaust fan in the bathroom. They have replaced the skylights (now vented) and had that contractor back out to address some installation problems (leaks, condensation on the skylights).
The heat pump and air handler have been recently replaced with a high efficiency unit - not to address the problem, but it ought to have helped, no? They have had the HVAC contractor out - in the bathroom they re-insulated the duct, replaced the vent and dispensed such sage advice as "hot air comes down and seeks out cold air to make the condensation happen".
Given the apparent cause and effect relationship between cooking and condensation, my parents think that there must be some air current between the two locations. Given that it still occurs (though to a lesser extent) when an intervening door is closed, I think it's coming out of the vent itself, but I can't explain why it's not happening at any other vent.
Any ideas?
Thanks in advance -
Scott