condensation on cistern

[pauls]

got a toilet that gets a lot of condensation on the cistern and it suffers quite bad from it question is what is the cause of the problem and how can i cure it.

 

[HTB]

Its caused by a warm bathroom and cold water entering the cistern.

It tends to be worse when cisterns are fed from the rising main rather than tank fed and moreso at this time of year as its colder coming in.

Its worth trying to reduce the rate at which the cistern fills, thus giving the incoming water a chance to warm up on entry, you could try closing the ball o fix slightly to reduce the flow and see if that helps.

 

[pauls]

cheers htb

i will give that ago

 

[Plumbstar Tom]

its the ventilation of the room and so yes cold water and a warm bathroom equals this. turning the ball o fix down might assist if not its too much work to rectify a minor problem

 

[buffy27]

bitumen paint-- inside of cistern????

 

[Plouasne]

bitumen paint-- inside of cistern????

What good will this do ??

The only way is to get rid of the warmer moist air from around the cistern

 

[buffy27]

What good will this do ??

The only way is to get rid of the warmer moist air from around the cistern

tell him drain it..paint it and post the result!!!!!!

that will answer the question !

 

[bobski]

how many times a day on average do you flush this toliet. usually if they dont get flushed as often the water makes it toroomtemp and the cond stops. untill the next flush

 

[radswilldo]

This is just one of the pro's & cons of indirect/direct supply

 

[REDSAW]

you know those polystyrene ceiling tiles that are dangerous in fires?....
well you can still get them for fish tanks etc.
use a hot knife to cut so they dont flake litte balls around, then stick them inside using silicon.
problem solved!
works like bitumen but better and looks more pro and tidier but takes a little longer.
the other one is to route the cold feed above a rad pipe as it will warm the cold a little before it enters the cistern. as its not drinkable its ok

 

[that bloke.]

or fill it from the hot supply.

 

[HTB]

Errrrr,,,

What "That bloke" just said above,,,,,I did it by mistake once.

Tee'ed off the right hand pipe feeding a hand basin (which should be the cold ,,see the regs,) and the basin had a single lever mixer tap.

I didn't realise the flexi's crossed over each other up beneath the basin, so ummmm, yep,,,hot feed to cistern. Fortunately, I noticed it when setting level on height adjustable Torbeck.

Am I the only one to have done this???

 

[Plouasne]

No I was at an Oxford university laboratory, helping to change all the services, hot and cold plus the gas service, cannot remember now if the compressed air and vacuum services were transposed as well, the muck up only came to light when the clerk of works said these are nice gas taps and turned it on only to find water coming out

 

[Phil]

Regarding stoping condensation on toilet cisterns its a big problem at this time of year with most houses suffering from it, I heard you could wipe neat fairy liquid on the cistern or alternativley try a product for car windscreens call 'Rain X' and also 'Fog X' the latter is really good on bathroom mirrors to stop them foging up while you're in the shower.

I have some Rain X in the garage and I might try it later.

 

[pompei]

Can anyone help with really bad condensation (rotten floor boards now) on 'hideaway' 'plastic cistern housed in white melamine vanity unit? Cistern is fixed to outer wall with mains feed. Even when melamine lid is left off and open window, condensation persists. The cistern is not big enough to enable lining also very difficult to get to. Combi boiler too. Now at wit's end as house for sale due to terminal illness. Plumber lost for answer. Many thanks in advance.

 

[Phil]

Thinking out loud here but I wonder if packing loft insulation round the outside of the hideaway cistern would work?

May be it would keep the warm air from getting to the cold cistern sides, you would need to pack it tight and then check to see it works.

If the insulation acts like a sponge then remove straight away and go back to the drawing board.

 

[pompei]

Thanks Phil, I will give it a try but it's pretty darned cold inside the housing anyway when the melamine top is in place. Very bad design.

 

[Phil]

Of course one way which would definatly work but at a lot of hassle and probably over the top would be to install a thermstatic mixing valve under the bath or boxed in somewhere and have it turned right down so the water is just 'aired'.

You could pipe it up in parrallel with lever valves so you could just use it in winter and have a normal cold fill in summer.

Toolstation > Heating > Central Heating > Thermostatic Mixing Valves

 

[pompei]

Thanks Phil, you're a genius. Would rather this way even though hassle, at least a clear conscience with new owners.

Many thanks.

 

[Phil]

Thinking about this method it probably wont work with a combi as you have to run off a certain amount of water before you get hot and it will only start filling with warm water when its almost full.

 

[pompei]

Damn. That's true. I don't understand why the manufacturers don't insulate the inside. Thanks for trying Phil.

 

[that bloke.]

Can anyone help with really bad condensation (rotten floor boards now) on 'hideaway' 'plastic cistern housed in white melamine vanity unit? Cistern is fixed to outer wall with mains feed. Even when melamine lid is left off and open window, condensation persists. The cistern is not big enough to enable lining also very difficult to get to. Combi boiler too. Now at wit's end as house for sale due to terminal illness. Plumber lost for answer. Many thanks in advance.

terminal illness? plumber lost for answer?
can you elaborate? i deal a lot with older , traditionally built houses and may be able to advise.

 

[pompei]

Sadly, all true.
It is a bungalow, 35 yrs old, brick built. The bathroom, on the left hand wall has a rad (this wall backs on to kitchen) then on outside wall is, from left hand corner, the toilet, laundry pull-out with drawers above, then basin with cupboard below. This is all built-in in white melamine. Then, dwarf wall and bath running along right hand wall (backing on to bedroom). Just wish there was a way to put some warmth into the 'hideaway' cistern. Can't understand having so much condensation as the air inside the cistern housing is very cold when the melamine lid is removed. It's not as though the warmth from the room is reaching it. The suite is only 2 yrs old and when the problem reared its head last winter the plumber said, 'faulty cistern, needs renewing'. This was done and now the same problem, so it wasn't a faulty cistern after all. Wit's end. Thanks for any answer you can think of.

 

[Phil]

Faulty cistern? How did your 'plumber' come to that conclusion?

There are two kinds of plumbers these days, theres the kind that know what they're talking about and the kind that don't.

 

[pompei]

Faulty cistern? Oh, that was the reason given by not one, but two separate plumbers because of the amount of water. When I agreed to a replacement cistern with the second guy, I asked him, having trawled the internet, and he was dismantling the loo, 'could this be condensation?' What? 'Never heard of that'. And these two people are in their mid forties, not apprentices. So there we are and where are we! Agreed, plumbers and plumbers. Seems like it's a lottery.

 

[Phil]

It never ceases to amaze me the incompetance of some tradesmen, I've only got a couple of years experience but even I know at this time of year mains fed cisterns develop condensation and this needs to be ruled out before cisterns are swapped.

We have a tiled bathroom floor (black tiles) and the cistern is streaming, so much so that there's is a puddle on the floor!

Maybe I should take the toilet back.

 

[pompei]

Great Phil! And maybe my plumber should try gurning with my loo seat.

 

[REDSAW]

where are you pompei?.
i for one would pop round if near to me.

 

[pompei]

I wish. And thank you anyway, but I'm afraid I'm located in the middle of the Irish Sea.

 

[HTB]

Pompeii is it feasible to drill (with hole saw) a couple of holes in the foot panel/plinth of the built in section in order to get a bit of domestic warmed air through the unit??

You could cover them with little breather grills (buy the grills first so you get the right size hole saw). If it can be done do as many as you can, even if it doesn't prevent condensation, it will help to dry out the boards.

Good luck.

H

 

[pompei]

HTB. Thanks for your idea. At the moment I don't think that I can do anything to the plinth as it's splitting and bubbling. I'm beginning to think that the problem is a bit more than condensation. Although condensation still exists even with the lid left off, window open and heat in the room. I've stopped it hitting the floorboards by wrapping old towels around all pipes inside the housing but the plinth and floorboards inside the housing are still very wet after two weeks. So I'm thinking, is the loo leaking now from when it was stripped for the new cistern. Just one problem after another. At least the 'new' bungalow is a tiny terraced. But I still have to work on an answer for this before being sold. Thank you anyway

 

[REDSAW]

up pompey...

are you sure its not high tide?.

 

[pompei]

Good one. Except - 'my ship's not coming in'

 

[bobpape]

HTB
You have come closest to solving the problem.

Condensation in a building occurs in "areas of least air movement" therefore to cure it
all you have to do is encourage air circulation in effected areas,

This could be with a fan or a radiator or in the case of a hideaway, providing dedicated ventilation holes might help. Just remember air circulation will cure it.