Some houses suffer from severe moisture condensation on the windows. When the outside temperature is below 45 degrees, moisture condenses on the interior surface of the window frame and glass and can be so bad that water puddles on the windowsill.

Why does this happen? As the temperature outside drops, the temperature of the window and frame also drop. When the window and frame are cold enough, the inside air surrounding the window can cool enough that the moisture in the air condenses on the window. The key to solving this problem is reducing the amount of moisture in the air inside the house.

Here are some of the typical sources of interior moisture:

• People. A typical family of four can introduce up to two gallons of moisture per day from normal breathing and perspiration.
• Crawl spaces that do not have 100 percent of the exposed dirt covered with plastic can be a very large source of moisture.
• Kitchen stoves with recirculating exhaust hoods that blow the moisture from the stove back into the room are a frequent source of problems.
• Bathrooms without ventilation, bath fans that are not used (especially after showers) and bath fans that are poorly ducted, underpowered and not able to properly remove moisture are another possible source.
• Unvented gas appliances pump in a lot of moisture into the home, as well as carbon monoxide.
• Dryers vented to the inside of the house and dryers with a leaky exhaust duct to the outside should be checked.
• Bulk moisture coming into the house from a leaky roof, basement, or from improper outside drainage can be the source of problems.

The best way to control condensation in the winter is to determine and control the source of the moisture. If you have wintertime moisture problems, take time to look for the most obvious sources and make simple, low cost or cost-free changes first. That will offer some relief as you address to less obvious and more difficult to solve problems.

A state-of-the-art solution to uncovering heating and air conditioning problems is a Right Choice High Tech Audit, designed to help you reduce energy bills, increase comfort and improve air quality. In some cases, the source may be obscure or the remedy costly. During the high tech audit, our technician will perform a series of in-home, patented tests to provide an accurate, computerized, whole-house analysis. Remember, if you control the moisture source you can control the moisture problem.