Questions on defeating mold/moisture problems
November 15, 2015 4:02 PM Subscribe
Looking for advice/information on reducing humidity and mold growth in my apartment?
Since it’s started becoming cooler and the air outside dropping from ~70 degrees to 40-45 degrees at night, I’ve noticed my windows becoming very wet in the mornings and this weekend I was greeted with mold in my kitchen and a few other places close to the windows. Reading previous AskMe’s have given me a start on how to deal with this but since this is my first time I have a few questions.
Here’s what I’ve figured out so far:
- In terms of moisture sources, I did have a leak about a month back after my apartment’s maintenance person improperly installed new faucets. They seem to have fixed that, however, and I can’t find any other leaks.
- Since I live in dry Southern California, apparently the local stores don’t typically carry dehumidifiers. I bought several of those Damp-Rid moisture absorbers to hopefully reduce the inside humidity generally.
- Bought a spray bottle and made a bleach solution to squirt at the mold. We’ll see how well this works.
- I have two air purifiers with HEPA filters running full blast which say they can trap airborne mold spores. Hopefully that prevents the problem from spreading.
Basically my questions are:
1) I’ve read a lot of places that say turning my A/C on can act as a dehumidifier. I also read that you should open the windows so that humidity can escape. Are these mutually exclusive? Can I do both at the same time? (Aside from questions about the energy use, I know that this would be a total waste of energy in terms of actually cooling the apartment)
2) Same basic question for the Damp-Rid absorbers. Will opening the windows let in more moisture so they have to work harder or will the combination fix my moisture problem faster?
3) Is there an outside humidity level that changes the above? Internet says the outside humidity is 45% at the moment, but that seems to change throughout the day. I bought a hygrometer on Amazon which should be here this week, so I’ll be able to compare the difference between the two.
4) Any problem with using too much Damp-Rid? I bought six of the 10.5 oz containers for my rather small one-bedroom apartment. I don’t know if this is overkill or not but they were cheap and I want to prevent additional mold growth. But that’s not a health-hazard or anything is it (or one worse than the mold already present)?
5) Apparently we're supposed to get a strong El Niño this winter. Will this cause more problems? What can I do to prevent it?
Since it’s started becoming cooler and the air outside dropping from ~70 degrees to 40-45 degrees at night, I’ve noticed my windows becoming very wet in the mornings and this weekend I was greeted with mold in my kitchen and a few other places close to the windows. Reading previous AskMe’s have given me a start on how to deal with this but since this is my first time I have a few questions.
Here’s what I’ve figured out so far:
- In terms of moisture sources, I did have a leak about a month back after my apartment’s maintenance person improperly installed new faucets. They seem to have fixed that, however, and I can’t find any other leaks.
- Since I live in dry Southern California, apparently the local stores don’t typically carry dehumidifiers. I bought several of those Damp-Rid moisture absorbers to hopefully reduce the inside humidity generally.
- Bought a spray bottle and made a bleach solution to squirt at the mold. We’ll see how well this works.
- I have two air purifiers with HEPA filters running full blast which say they can trap airborne mold spores. Hopefully that prevents the problem from spreading.
Basically my questions are:
1) I’ve read a lot of places that say turning my A/C on can act as a dehumidifier. I also read that you should open the windows so that humidity can escape. Are these mutually exclusive? Can I do both at the same time? (Aside from questions about the energy use, I know that this would be a total waste of energy in terms of actually cooling the apartment)
2) Same basic question for the Damp-Rid absorbers. Will opening the windows let in more moisture so they have to work harder or will the combination fix my moisture problem faster?
3) Is there an outside humidity level that changes the above? Internet says the outside humidity is 45% at the moment, but that seems to change throughout the day. I bought a hygrometer on Amazon which should be here this week, so I’ll be able to compare the difference between the two.
4) Any problem with using too much Damp-Rid? I bought six of the 10.5 oz containers for my rather small one-bedroom apartment. I don’t know if this is overkill or not but they were cheap and I want to prevent additional mold growth. But that’s not a health-hazard or anything is it (or one worse than the mold already present)?
5) Apparently we're supposed to get a strong El Niño this winter. Will this cause more problems? What can I do to prevent it?
Home Depot has a "deliver to local store" option that has no shipping fee. I just bought the latest Fridgidaire dehumidifier this way and that bad boy can suck some water out of the air. I'm in Northern California, which is definitely not so dry, but they also didn't have them in stock here before I bought online.
Also you don't necessarily have any leaks; my windows get quite wet on cold mornings, particularly after I take a shower, and I'm pretty confident it's just about the warm air inside (which holds more water) getting cold when it hits the window (thus, the water condenses). It might help to get double-pane windows if you currently have those single-pane sliding California windows - the double-pane ones insulate a lot better and prevent such condensation.
posted by Joey Buttafoucault at 5:27 PM on November 15, 2015 [3 favorites]
Also you don't necessarily have any leaks; my windows get quite wet on cold mornings, particularly after I take a shower, and I'm pretty confident it's just about the warm air inside (which holds more water) getting cold when it hits the window (thus, the water condenses). It might help to get double-pane windows if you currently have those single-pane sliding California windows - the double-pane ones insulate a lot better and prevent such condensation.
posted by Joey Buttafoucault at 5:27 PM on November 15, 2015 [3 favorites]
If you are running the a/c don't leave the windows open. Most of the time in SoCal, if it is not actively raining, it's probably better to just open the windows. 45% is about as low as we can get our basement to most of the time in the winter, so that should be plenty low. A mug thing you should be thinking about is moisture management for the two biggest sources of water in your house- showers and cooking. You should always have a window open if you don't have a fan in your bathroom during and after a shower. Similarly, cooking things like pasta puts a lot of water in the air- if you have an exhaust fan in your kitchen you should use it.
Damp-rid is harmless- don't eat it, but having 5 around isn't going to hurt anything. They don't do much though except in enclosed spaces like closets and cupboards.
El Niño is going to make things more damp, so yes, it will make for more mold. Still, you are In a pretty dry place- after each storm, make sure you air things out.
posted by rockindata at 5:28 PM on November 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
Damp-rid is harmless- don't eat it, but having 5 around isn't going to hurt anything. They don't do much though except in enclosed spaces like closets and cupboards.
El Niño is going to make things more damp, so yes, it will make for more mold. Still, you are In a pretty dry place- after each storm, make sure you air things out.
posted by rockindata at 5:28 PM on November 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
Oh yeah, I should note that although I haven't noticed the Gurin's plug getting hot, we don't run it when we aren't home (we do run it all the time when we are home, though).
posted by wintersweet at 5:30 PM on November 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by wintersweet at 5:30 PM on November 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
If you choose to run your AC, there should be a fan-only option that you can run to act as a dehumidifier without raising the temp in the winter. If you have a heater, there should be a fan-only option there, as well, so you can run the fan while heating or turn the heat off but keep the fan running whenever you choose. I hope this helps!
posted by atinna at 5:38 PM on November 15, 2015
posted by atinna at 5:38 PM on November 15, 2015
Since you live in a dry climate, the issue is either too much moisture being released into the air in your apartment or too little ventilation to remove the moist air. Both really boil down to the same thing.
The big sources of moisture are showers, cooking (especially boiling pots), houseplants (if you have a lot), and laundry. For showers and cooking, you want to remove the moisture at the source, so make sure you run a fan or open a window for sufficient time during and after. Laundry is only an issue if you dry clothes inside or if you have a dryer that isn't venting properly to the outside. Pay attention to other possible sources of moisture in daily life, but those are the big ones.
Otherwise, more ventilation is better unless the absolute humidity is higher outside so open windows and run exhaust fans as needed. Damp-rid is really not effective on an apartment scale - don't waste your money. Dehumidifiers are more energy efficient than AC at removing moisture, but you shouldn't use either with open windows. Given that your daytime temperatures are near room temperature, the best solution is just to open windows during the day and get your dehumidification for free.
posted by ssg at 5:44 PM on November 15, 2015 [2 favorites]
The big sources of moisture are showers, cooking (especially boiling pots), houseplants (if you have a lot), and laundry. For showers and cooking, you want to remove the moisture at the source, so make sure you run a fan or open a window for sufficient time during and after. Laundry is only an issue if you dry clothes inside or if you have a dryer that isn't venting properly to the outside. Pay attention to other possible sources of moisture in daily life, but those are the big ones.
Otherwise, more ventilation is better unless the absolute humidity is higher outside so open windows and run exhaust fans as needed. Damp-rid is really not effective on an apartment scale - don't waste your money. Dehumidifiers are more energy efficient than AC at removing moisture, but you shouldn't use either with open windows. Given that your daytime temperatures are near room temperature, the best solution is just to open windows during the day and get your dehumidification for free.
posted by ssg at 5:44 PM on November 15, 2015 [2 favorites]
I also somewhat contest the idea that Southern California is a "dry climate," particularly this time of year during an El Niño. Unless the OP writes to clarify, please note that like 99% of the inhabited portions of California have higher precipitation (and hence humidity) in the winter, and this year in particular El Niño has been (and will probably continue to) increase that precipitation. So, assume that there IS a lot of water in the air and it IS wet both inside and out.
posted by Joey Buttafoucault at 6:42 PM on November 15, 2015
posted by Joey Buttafoucault at 6:42 PM on November 15, 2015
There may not be any other leaks, it may just be down to build quality. Here in Oregon, most apartments have cheap aluminum sliding casement windows and since they're usually old and not well insulated it's easy for condensation to form in the window wells due to heat exchange. There's just no way around it. Your temperatures may be a bit warmer where you are, so if it's possible I'd first suggest leaving the windows cracked for ventilation and temperature stabilization. That should keep condensation from forming.
If it gets too cold or too humid and you can't leave the windows open, you can definitely buy a dehumidifier online. During our first winter in our current apartment, we started having the same problems as you with condensation. When it got cold out and we turned the heat on, the condensation caused mold to grow in the window wells and sometimes the corners of rooms.
What has completely solved the problem for the last 4 years is the dehumidifier we bought online. Amazon sells dehumidifiers, though they don't always have the best price so look around if you find one you like. Ours is a 70 pint Frigidaire unit that we paid about $230 for around 4 years ago. Frigidaire also makes 30 and 50 pint units if you don't need something that big. Our dehu is on wheels for easy movement and it has a removable water collection bucket with a pop up handle that makes it easy to empty. The bucket holds about 2-3 gallons of water at one time (if you're not familiar with the terminology, the ounces/pints designation is how much it can process in a day, not how much the bucket holds). It has a removable, reusable filter as well. Since we keep it in the bathroom, it's easy to dump out in the tub when it gets full. Caveat: one of the reasons it lives in the bathroom is the noise level. It's about as loud as an AC unit when it's on, so it's not something you'll want to sit next to if you get something bigger than a desktop unit. But the good news is that in a small apartment like yours and mine, it will dehumidify the air in the whole space even if it's in a different room.
Yes, an air conditioner can dehumidify a room, it works by the exact same mechanism as a dehumidifier except that it has a cooling unit and needs to vent the heat outside for cooling to work properly. Some AC units have a dehumidifying mode, especially the in-room units. I would recommend using a dehu instead of AC when you don't need cooling, though, because the in-room units don't usually have removable tanks and are hard to empty. If you do use AC for dehumidifying, you don't need to leave the window open at the same time, and that would probably defeat the purpose because if it's more humid outside than inside you'll never done processing that huge volume of air.
Do be aware that both aircon and dehu units produce heat, it's an inescapable byproduct of the process of removing water from the air. This might be undesirable unless the temps are low, though we use it to good effect in winter since we have to run it every day. Our ~600 sq. ft. apartment is small enough that we can use the dehu as a whole-area heat source instead of turning on our electric wall heaters.
Damp-Rid isn't airborne, as far as I know, so as long as you don't eat somehow touch it directly you should be fine no matter how many you packages you have. Like I said before, you don't need to leave the windows open when using it. If El Niño causes it to rain more, you'll definitely have more humidity. What can you do? Ventilate when possible and dehumidify when it's not.
posted by i feel possessed at 6:45 PM on November 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
If it gets too cold or too humid and you can't leave the windows open, you can definitely buy a dehumidifier online. During our first winter in our current apartment, we started having the same problems as you with condensation. When it got cold out and we turned the heat on, the condensation caused mold to grow in the window wells and sometimes the corners of rooms.
What has completely solved the problem for the last 4 years is the dehumidifier we bought online. Amazon sells dehumidifiers, though they don't always have the best price so look around if you find one you like. Ours is a 70 pint Frigidaire unit that we paid about $230 for around 4 years ago. Frigidaire also makes 30 and 50 pint units if you don't need something that big. Our dehu is on wheels for easy movement and it has a removable water collection bucket with a pop up handle that makes it easy to empty. The bucket holds about 2-3 gallons of water at one time (if you're not familiar with the terminology, the ounces/pints designation is how much it can process in a day, not how much the bucket holds). It has a removable, reusable filter as well. Since we keep it in the bathroom, it's easy to dump out in the tub when it gets full. Caveat: one of the reasons it lives in the bathroom is the noise level. It's about as loud as an AC unit when it's on, so it's not something you'll want to sit next to if you get something bigger than a desktop unit. But the good news is that in a small apartment like yours and mine, it will dehumidify the air in the whole space even if it's in a different room.
Yes, an air conditioner can dehumidify a room, it works by the exact same mechanism as a dehumidifier except that it has a cooling unit and needs to vent the heat outside for cooling to work properly. Some AC units have a dehumidifying mode, especially the in-room units. I would recommend using a dehu instead of AC when you don't need cooling, though, because the in-room units don't usually have removable tanks and are hard to empty. If you do use AC for dehumidifying, you don't need to leave the window open at the same time, and that would probably defeat the purpose because if it's more humid outside than inside you'll never done processing that huge volume of air.
Do be aware that both aircon and dehu units produce heat, it's an inescapable byproduct of the process of removing water from the air. This might be undesirable unless the temps are low, though we use it to good effect in winter since we have to run it every day. Our ~600 sq. ft. apartment is small enough that we can use the dehu as a whole-area heat source instead of turning on our electric wall heaters.
Damp-Rid isn't airborne, as far as I know, so as long as you don't eat somehow touch it directly you should be fine no matter how many you packages you have. Like I said before, you don't need to leave the windows open when using it. If El Niño causes it to rain more, you'll definitely have more humidity. What can you do? Ventilate when possible and dehumidify when it's not.
posted by i feel possessed at 6:45 PM on November 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
I live in a similar climate (Bay Area) and had this happen in one apartment when I turned off the heat at night in the winter. If I left the heat on, I didn't have the condensation. I also had to leave a skylight vented in my bathroom (not because of humidity in the bathroom specifically, but just because it let the moisture escape from my studio in general). So, I had the heat on and window open simultaneously, despite energy inefficiency...necessary because of the airtight way the place was designed.
posted by three_red_balloons at 6:52 PM on November 15, 2015
posted by three_red_balloons at 6:52 PM on November 15, 2015
atinna: "If you choose to run your AC, there should be a fan-only option that you can run to act as a dehumidifier without raising the temp in the winter. "
A/Cs don't dehumidify if you aren't running the compressor; the fan only setting isn't going to affect moisture levels.
posted by Mitheral at 7:55 PM on November 15, 2015 [2 favorites]
A/Cs don't dehumidify if you aren't running the compressor; the fan only setting isn't going to affect moisture levels.
posted by Mitheral at 7:55 PM on November 15, 2015 [2 favorites]
Response by poster: Thanks, Mitheral. I was actually wondering about that too. I had read some A/Cs have a Dehumidifier setting but mine is just an old school Fan Hi/Lo or Cool Hi/Lo wall unit. I thought the fan mode might be the same as a dehumidifier mode, but good to know that's not the case.
posted by downtohisturtles at 8:02 PM on November 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by downtohisturtles at 8:02 PM on November 15, 2015 [1 favorite]
In my experience, white vinegar keeps mold away for longer than bleach does.
posted by Too-Ticky at 12:35 AM on November 16, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Too-Ticky at 12:35 AM on November 16, 2015 [1 favorite]
If you're in So Cal (I lived there for a decade), you probably aren't having a whole-house humidity problem. This is likely a local issue only (e.g. only around the windows and wherever else you see mold). Using a commercial dehumidifier might do more harm than good in this situation, since the humidity levels in So Cal during most times of year are low enough to cause discomfort to many people.
You might first try making a winter routine of wiping away the water that accumulates on your window sill each morning during the cold weather (or, alternately, considering double-pane windows or other window treatments that reduce heat conduction, which is what's causing that condensation to form). This is a very localized problem, so give it a localized response before you worry about a whole-house response (which is exactly what a dehumidifier is).
posted by late afternoon dreaming hotel at 9:55 AM on November 16, 2015
You might first try making a winter routine of wiping away the water that accumulates on your window sill each morning during the cold weather (or, alternately, considering double-pane windows or other window treatments that reduce heat conduction, which is what's causing that condensation to form). This is a very localized problem, so give it a localized response before you worry about a whole-house response (which is exactly what a dehumidifier is).
posted by late afternoon dreaming hotel at 9:55 AM on November 16, 2015
A good quality ( I bought a LG ) dehumidifier did wonders for the humidity in The Austin, Texas. I preferred it over running the AC into the 60's or 70's into my living space. Like most good stuff; if it is not your thing; you can always resell for 80% even a year later. YMMV.
- FWIW; even in dry Colorado; during a series of really damp days; it was great to dry out the living space. A really swell purchase for all of ~$100.
posted by buzzman at 11:44 AM on November 16, 2015
- FWIW; even in dry Colorado; during a series of really damp days; it was great to dry out the living space. A really swell purchase for all of ~$100.
posted by buzzman at 11:44 AM on November 16, 2015
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posted by wintersweet at 4:05 PM on November 15, 2015 [1 favorite]