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nickjaxe

Condensation in a loft space.

My Daughter rang me in a panic this evening....dad the house roof is leaking...

Turns out her husband was in the loft getting the Xmas decoration down and was horrified to see water over the boxes he put up there a few weeks ago when they moved in....not long married and there first house,

I spoke to him on the phone....there seems to be water everywhere...we must need a new roof...what are we going to do...

I ask...are you sure its not Condensation...no he replies...can you come quickly and have a look...what should we do,

Anyway we drive over I climb up the loft access ladder...and see black felt type stuff under the roof tiles with lots of water droplets on it,

Looks like condensation to me I say...then I spot 2 big plastic water tanks one with a lid on the other without,

Where is the lid off that one I ask....oh there it is he says the plumber we had out the other week may have left it off...he was up here doing something,

Anyway as best we can we refit the lid...they don't fit that well on either,

So is Condensation in the loft space a problem in modern houses with tiled roofs....the loft decking has around 6" of insulation down so I expect it get quite cold up there....

I wonder what significance the water tank with its missing lid had on the problem and is there a way to stop the Condensation....I suggested they leave the trap down open for a few days to get some heat up there and look again to see if the water on the underside of the felt has gone,

The main body of the 2 big plastic water tanks have fibreglass insulation around them...the sort that immersion tanks used to have....but the lids are unlagged.....should the lids be lagged if so what with....the water tanks are circular about 30" dia.


Nick.
 
Re: Condensation in the loof space (water tank) Condensation in a loft space. My Da

over time if the timber is always wet it will rot!
monitor the situation and see if it improves with the lid back on, it could be the tank is getting hot due to water pumping over, hot water creates steam. so that could need checking.
 
Re: Condensation in the loof space (water tank) Condensation in a loft space. My Da

its just condensation of the tank having no lid, fit the lid and it should have a jacket around the whole thing and on top, plumbing merchants do them cheap as chips aswell
 
Re: Condensation in the loof space (water tank) Condensation in a loft space. My Da

Yes the storage cisterns should have lids and insulation to meet water regs. I do not believe this is the cause of condensation though. It sounds like there are inadequate ventiltation. Have you got sofit vents or any other ventilation openings within the roof space? This is an enclosed space so ventilation is extremely important to prevent long term issues.
 
Re: Condensation in the loof space (water tank) Condensation in a loft space. My Da

If I were you I would close the loft hatch, the warm air from the house will go into the roof space and condensate on the cold felt. Especially now the weather is heading to the minus figures. See how you get on with the lid on, if not you could try adding some soffit vents around the house.
 
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Re: Condensation in the loof space (water tank) Condensation in a loft space. My Da

Check to see if the loft insulation has been laid in a way that is blocking air flow.
 
Re: Condensation in the loof space (water tank) Condensation in a loft space. My Da

chech the f & E tank isnt pumping over, that causes massive condensation issues, plus storage tanks need insulation as per regs and finally roof space needs vents to circulate cool air through as its a cold roof set up. probably at least 2 of the previous issues apply here
 
Re: Condensation in the loof space (water tank) Condensation in a loft space. My Da

Condensation is caused by poor ventilation. There should be roof tile vents on your roof allowing air to freely circulate throughout the roof and attic space. There should also be smaller circular vents at the eaves and sometimes these small vents get blocked by the attic insulation. In the meantime, get a dehumidifier up there until the ventilation is sorted out.

Both water tanks should be jacketed and have what is known as a bye law 30 kit. This kit contains a small breather vent for your tank lids which are fixed and sealed to the tank. Bye law kits are available from Screwfix and only cost about ÂŁ5.

Cold Water Storage Tank Byelaw 30 Kit | Screwfix.com
 
Re: Condensation in the loof space (water tank) Condensation in a loft space. My Da

On the pumping over suggestion - I had this problem some years ago, and discovered that some muppet had fitted the central heating pump the wrong way round, i.e. pumping in the wrong direction, which was producing pumping over, and steam in the loft had soaked everything.

Another possibility is that if the loft insulation has been taken right up under the eaves, and there are soffit vents fitted, the air flow may have been blocked.

If there are no vents fitted, it could be that breathable roof felt has been used, which has been known to cause problems sometimes. If that is the case, the remedy will be to fit soffit vents, and maybe an air-brick or similar vent.
 
Re: Condensation in the loof space (water tank) Condensation in a loft space. My Da

forget a dehumidifier in a roof space, thats like trying get rid of fog in your garden with one, a waste of time, just vent and go
 
Re: Condensation in the loof space (water tank) Condensation in a loft space. My Da

forget a dehumidifier in a roof space, thats like trying get rid of fog in your garden with one, a waste of time, just vent and go

Yes venting is the answer including tile vents . We use a local roofer to install lots of these and it usually solves the problem. Lifestyle too makes demands as this is the time of year when dry towels on rads and have the windows closed. Windows that due to modern glazing and sealing are very good at keeping heat and moisture in. A hard balance to strike I am afraid. In our very drafty older property we have none of these problems but need smelling salts when the heating bill comes in.
 
Re: Condensation in the loof space (water tank) Condensation in a loft space. My Da

good old edf have just put my dd up fmÂŁ100 to ÂŁ140 a month, checked their figures and they are within a pound or two totally correct. Tried turning off the Aga but the wife and dogs went for me!!!!!!!!!!
 
Re: Condensation in the loof space (water tank) Condensation in a loft space. My Da

good old edf have just put my dd up fmÂŁ100 to ÂŁ140 a month, checked their figures and they are within a pound or two totally correct. Tried turning off the Aga but the wife and dogs went for me!!!!!!!!!!
time to get rid of said wife an dog then, DD will only be about ÂŁ50
 
Re: Condensation in the loof space (water tank) Condensation in a loft space. My Da

The old leccy prices are getting shocking. Next time I'm in the Highlands, I'm taking a grinder and getting me one of those big white windmilly thingies for the back garden.
 
Re: Condensation in the loof space (water tank) Condensation in a loft space. My Da

well you are the messiah what o you expect ? :)
 
Re: Condensation in the loof space (water tank) Condensation in a loft space. My Da

well you are the messiah what o you expect ? :)

Just cos my initials are: JC doesnt mean you can pop up behind me all night, I dare not bend over now!!:19:
 
Re: Condensation in the loof space (water tank) Condensation in a loft space. My Da

Hi guys, seen a lot of these recently and agree with similar replys on ventilation.
It seems a lot of people recently getting new insulation fitted / laid in loft space by a few different companies giving grants. Over laying particularly at the far edges blocking air flow to facia / soffit air vents.

Turn off lights in loft space when daylight and make sure you can see daylight coming from facias above insulation, and make sure covers are correctly fitted to tanks.
Lofts need good ventilation. :)
 
Re: Condensation in the loof space (water tank) Condensation in a loft space. My Da

My mate has a roofing company and has had 2 guys constantly following an insulation company fitting extra ventilation for the past 2 or 3 years.
Not a bad number to land.
 
Re: Condensation in the loof space (water tank) Condensation in a loft space. My Da

Sounds almost certain it's a pumping up issue. Seen this where it forms large droplets on felt on roof & "rains" down on everything. Roof rafters above f & v tank go black.
One I saw was a gravity circuit that the idiot plumber had changed over to pumped & it was pumping continuously into the exp tank that had no lid.
 
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Re: Condensation in the loof space (water tank) Condensation in a loft space. My Da

Sounds almost certain it's a pumping up issue. Seen this where it forms large droplets on felt on roof & "rains" down on everything. Roof rafters above f & v tank go black.
One I saw was a gravity circuit that the idiot plumber had changed over to pumped & it was pumping continuously into the exp tank that had no lid.

If the loft space was dry when they put the boxes up there a few weeks ago, and is dripping wet now, i.e. after having the heating running full bore over this cold period - that points to pumping-over too. Definitely the first thing to check.
 
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