Hi All

I have been having a problem with dampness in my main bedroom with en suite for a while now. There are around 5 or 6 damp spots on the ceiling, two of which are around 30cm square, there is also severe condensation on the window.

The en-suite is small, approximately 2m x 1m, no windows and the only ventilation is a low voltage extractor fan positioned directly above the shower. The fan comes on with the light and switches off around 5 minutes after the light gets switched off.

What are my best options in sorting this problem out?

I've been thinking about fitting a new fan with a dehumidistat or possibly place a vent in the bedroom to enable better air flow.

As a temporary remedy, has anyone used the small dehumidifiers that dont need to be plugged in when in use, eg http://www.amazon.co.uk/Rechargeable-Mi ... B000XQ8V0M

EDIT - Just to add, the house is a self build, less than 10 years old. En-suite is tiled floor to ceiling.

One issue is cutting down the amount of water that will evaporate in the air and then condense on a cold surface. Get in the habit of using a squeegee to wipe the water of the shower tiles and glass and run a towel over. This will stop mould cultures getting a hold. Next look at the insulation as obviously the ceiling is a cold spot and you might need to top up the loft area.

But the key is good ventilation and it might be worth cutting a hole and fit a manual controlled vent.

DWD

You could also adjust the timer on the fan so that it lasts a good 10-15 mins after the light has been switched off as I don't think 5 mins is long enough.

We had an ensuite shower at our old house and this was never an issue with us and we only had an extractor fan over the shower, but it over run for at least 10 minutes. But we did used to have the bedroom door open all of the time.

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DIY | Donnas dream house

Thanks both.

I'll have a look in the attic in a bit, the house has a hip roof and the bedroom is in a corner, so it wouldnt surprise me that I didnt get adequate insulation into the corners.

Would I be able to get away with putting a new vent in the bedroom? The en-suite has just one wall facing an outside wall which is not even a metre wide. I've also considered planing away a bit of the bottom of the door to allow more air circulation when the door is closed.

The problem that we've had by leaving the door open is that it has simply moved the problem into the bedroom, hence the mould patches on the ceiling. Just to make it clear, the mould is on the bedroom ceiling, not the en-suite. Though the en-suite has a wooden ceiling, so I presume that this would hide a lot of the problem as the wood would soak in the moisture??

Is there any way that I can test the effectiveness of the existing fan?

I'm not sure of the best way to check the fan for effectiveness, but you could check that the vents are clear etc.

I think you can get smoke test matches, which when struck give off a fair amount of smoke. You could hold one of those up to the fan and get someone to check the vent outside to ensure it is working.

If the fan is not moving the air quick enough it should eb posible to swap it for a higher air flow version.

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DIY | Donnas dream house

Yes you could fit a cone over the fan and check the flow with a meter, or you could strike up a smoke match, but that would be a bad idea if the fan didn't work too well. And it the neighbour see all this smoke pouring out the vent, they may call the fire brigade.

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OK, I started investigating this more thoroughlly tonight, I pulled the fan cover out and it didnt seem to be sucking anything out. So I squeezed into the attic, (hip roofs are'nt a good idea when you want to access the edge of the roof!) and the flexible pipe has torn. Problem solved when I get a replacement tomorrow I hope.