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Do you spend many a winter morning
wiping condensation from the inside of your windows? Sometimes
condensation can be such a problem that it results in the formation
of mould on the inside of a building or on its
contents.
What is condensation? The
moisture that appears on the
surface of walls and windows when
they are cold, and the air is moisture laden, is of course water. If
the temperature drops then the water turns into ice but if it is
heated it turns into vapour.
It doesn't however disappear. It is still
present in the air and any drop in temperature will result in its
transformation back into water as the cooler air
cannot hold the same amount of moisture as the warmer air.
Although we mostly associate condensation with the
cooler months of the year this process goes on all the time and can
be experienced on even the hottest of days as many a
motorist will confirm when the windows mist up if
anyone gets in the car with damp clothes.
What can be done to reduce it? We can try and
reduce the amount of moisture released from the air. Washing,
drying and airing clothes inside all contribute to the amount of
moisture in the air but with our unreliable weather
sometimes we have no alternative. Cooking also
releases large amounts of moisture. The bulk of the
moisture in the air is generated in the kitchen and
bathroom but unfortunately it escapes from those rooms
to other areas of the house where it touches the cold surfaces of
windows and walls and transforms back to water (condensation).
To reduce the release of this excess moisture in the
air we need to have effective ventilation to try and move the
moisture laden air to the outside (unfortunately
double glazing, with its effective seals, can sometimes make
condensation worse).
It will also help to try and keep the temperature difference
between the air inside and the air outside to a
minimum. If the outside temperature is lower than that inside
(as it often is) then the internal face of the wall will be colder
than the air and condensation will occur. A well insulated wall
and some source of constant heat will reduce this difference and the
tendency for the warm moist air to condense on the
surfaces.
Remember. Condensation not only occurs in the winter
months and to try and reduce it keep the air temperature as constant
as possible, the house insulated and well
ventilated.
A lot is written about when you are entitled to a refund if you have purchased faulty goods, but do you realise that there are plenty of times when you are not legally entitled to one.
You are not entitled to a refund in the following circumstances:-
-
if you merely change your mind about your purchase for whatever reason
-
if someone else has bought you the same thing and you don’t need more than one
-
if you examined the item and should have spotted any fault
-
if it doesn’t fit, provided the actual measurement is correct
-
if any problems were pointed out to you before the purchase.
-
you caused the damage yourself.
In many cases retailers will offer to do something if you
return with unused items, ie. exchanges, credit notes or even refunds, but whatever they offer is a gesture of goodwill on their part and not a legal obligation.
If you think you may need to take something back check with the shop first to see what they are prepared to offer.
