Honestly, I ran into a similar thing after tightening up my '68 ranch. Felt great to finally get rid of the drafts, but then the windows started sweating like crazy every morning. Never had that issue before either. I think you’re right—old houses kinda “breathe” whether we want them to or not. I ended up cracking a window in the bathroom just to keep the mildew away... which feels a little backward after spending all that time sealing everything up. Guess there’s no perfect fix, just a bunch of trade-offs.
- Totally get this. Sealed up our 70s split-level and suddenly the bathroom mirror takes an hour to clear up.
- Ironic how fixing drafts just creates a new problem—now it’s towel duty every morning for the windows.
- Feels like old houses are stubborn... you fix one thing, they throw another curveball.
- I did try a dehumidifier, but it’s not exactly cheap to run all winter.
- Not sure there’s a “right” answer, but at least the heating bill dropped a bit? Small wins, I guess.
Feels like old houses are stubborn... you fix one thing, they throw another curveball.
Yeah, that’s exactly what I’m running into. Sealed up some drafty windows in our place and now I’m dealing with condensation on every cold morning. It’s frustrating—sure, the heating bill went down, but now I’m wiping down sills constantly. There’s always a trade-off, it seems. I guess it’s just part of figuring out what actually works for your specific house.
I hear you on the condensation—ran into the same thing after I finally replaced our old wood windows. Thought I’d solved all my problems, but suddenly every morning there’s water pooling on the glass. Turns out, making things airtight means the moisture from showers, cooking, even just breathing has nowhere to go. I ended up cracking a window in the bathroom and adding a cheap dehumidifier. Not perfect, but it’s cut down on the constant towel patrol. Funny how fixing one thing just shifts the problem somewhere else.
Honestly, airtight windows are overrated if you don’t sort out ventilation. I swapped mine last winter—condensation city. Ended up installing a bathroom vent fan and running it after showers. Works way better than just cracking a window. Dehumidifiers help, but fans are the real fix.
Had the same thing happen after I swapped out my old drafty windows. Thought I was being clever, but next thing I know, I’m wiping puddles off the sills every morning. It’s wild how you fix one problem and create another. I tried a dehumidifier too, but honestly, it just made the room feel like a laundromat. Vent fan in the bathroom made a huge difference, though. Sometimes I wonder if old houses just want to stay a little leaky...
Sometimes I wonder if old houses just want to stay a little leaky...
That made me laugh, because I swear my 1920s place is the same way—like it’s resisting all my upgrades on purpose. After I put in new windows last winter, condensation became a daily battle. The irony, right? Here’s what finally worked for me, step by step:
1. Checked the humidity in the room with a cheap meter. It was way higher than I thought.
2. Tried cracking the window just a smidge during the day (even when it’s cold). Helps balance things out without making it drafty again.
3. Sealed up the bathroom door while running the shower—keeps steam from sneaking into other rooms.
4. Added weatherstripping only where needed. Turns out, over-sealing made it worse for me.
I get what you mean about dehumidifiers feeling like a laundromat. The vent fan in the bathroom was probably my best investment, too. Sometimes I think these old houses just need to breathe a little, or they start acting up in weird ways...
You nailed it with the “old houses want to stay leaky” thing. I’ve run into this exact situation—every time I try to tighten up my 1938 place, something else gets weird. After putting in new windows, I was psyched for lower heating bills, but then the moisture started showing up on the glass, especially in the mornings. Didn’t expect that tradeoff.
Here’s what I figured out, step by step, though I’ll admit I’m still skeptical about how much of a difference some of these make:
1. Humidity monitor is a must, like you said. Mine was cheap too, and it was an eye-opener. I thought my house was “dry” because of all the drafts, but nope—once the drafts were gone, humidity shot up.
2. I tried running a small fan near the window to keep air moving. Didn’t totally fix it, but it helped a bit with the condensation.
3. Only sealed the obvious gaps instead of going full hermetic. My first instinct was to caulk everything in sight, but that just made things stuffier and actually seemed to make the condensation worse. Old houses really do seem to need some airflow.
4. The bathroom vent fan is clutch, but I also added a timer switch so it runs after showers for 20 minutes—otherwise no one remembers to leave it on.
One thing I’d add: check your basement or crawlspace if you have one. Mine was letting in damp air from below, which kept humidity high upstairs even after fixing everything else. Tossed a cheap vapor barrier down there and noticed a difference.
I’m still not sold on dehumidifiers for daily use—they’re noisy, and mine just made the room feel cold and clammy after a while. Maybe they’re better for basements than living spaces?
Anyway, old houses are stubborn. Every fix seems to create another little quirk somewhere else. But yeah—sometimes “good enough” is better than chasing that perfect seal.
I hear you on the condensation. I’ve swapped out a ton of windows in pre-war houses, and honestly, it’s almost always the same story—people expect lower bills, then suddenly they’re wiping down glass every morning. It’s wild how just tightening things up a bit can mess with the whole airflow balance. Personally, I’m not a fan of sealing every crack in these old places. You need some controlled leaks, or you end up fighting moisture nonstop. Dehumidifiers are fine for basements, but upstairs? Usually overkill unless you’ve got a real problem.
Swapping out windows in my 1920s place was a learning curve. First winter after the upgrade, I thought something was wrong—condensation everywhere, even though the new windows were supposed to be “better.” Turns out, the drafts I used to complain about actually kept things drier inside. Once I sealed it all up, moisture had nowhere to go.
I get what you mean about not sealing every crack. Old houses just seem to need a little bit of airflow or you start seeing mold in weird spots. Tried a small dehumidifier upstairs once, but honestly it just made the air feel stale and didn’t fix much.
Ever tried cracking a window just a hair in one room during the cold months? It sounds counterintuitive but for me it actually helped balance things out. Curious if anyone’s found a good middle ground—like, not living with drafts but not wiping down sills every morning either?