[jamerica]

Hey there forum,

I am hoping I can get some guidance regarding an issue I am having with condensation on my floor.

I live in an uninsulated 1923 home and had a pretty significant air gap where my wall meets the floor in my child's room. I ended up calking it and it worked great in minimizing air flow and kept the room a bit warmer. I did not get to putting on shoe moulding yet.

Unfortunately, now I am getting condensation on the floor in the area where most of the air flow was coming in from. While I am new to owning this home, it is evident that the issue is not new because I can see the wood has decayed a bit in the corner area where the air gap was at its worse. Note that the integrity of the wood is still hard and not coming apart.

I added a photo and highlighted in blue where the condensation is located and circled in red the decayed wood area.

I also added a photo of the outside so viewers can see the outside structure of the room. I highlighted the outside area in purple and attached a close up as well.

I live in the Northeast of the US so it is pretty cold and probably not I am not able to go outside and start climbing ladders looking around the outside of my home unless I get a mellow day to do so.

Any ideas on what I can do to fix/minimize the issue?

Thanks in advance. Wasn't sure where to turn to ask for advice.

Jam

 

[Old Thomas]

Run a fan or install a ceiling fan. If warmer air passes over it the dew point won’t be reached.

 

[Nealtw]

Do you know the difference between balloon framing and platform framing, then do you know which the house is?

Do you think that little jut out was original to the house or added on years later?

Is the siding vinyl? Do you know what is behind it, the original siding?

You have stopped the draft but the cold air is still getting inside the wall , maybe this is spot for small holes in floor and wall and add some foam and hide the holes with the base molding.
And you could use more heat in that spot maybe for now just a fan to move the air around better to keep that corner warmer. Have you checked the humidity in the room?

 

[carpdad]

For lot of condensation to form on wood or drywall, you need lot of outside air (hot or cold), lot of inside air (hot or cold) and lot of moisture. If it's your kid's room, are you using a humidifier, example? Condensation is lot easier on metals or glass. Not sure what you can do about it except live with it, or remove some of the floor and air seal and insulate the area. Vinyl siding lets in a lot of air and that void in the corner trim isn't the answer. Pin point air seal may not work. Is it the air leaking from under the floor (in the joist bays), is it from sides or above or all of the above? This is not easy to answer. You may want to consider removing all of the drywall from the outside walls and air seal/insulate properly. Then remove all floor and do the same. You can do this room by room and add to your house value.

 

[jamerica]

Do you know the difference between balloon framing and platform framing, then do you know which the house is?

Do you think that little jut out was original to the house or added on years later?

Is the siding vinyl? Do you know what is behind it, the original siding?

You have stopped the draft but the cold air is still getting inside the wall , maybe this is spot for small holes in floor and wall and add some foam and hide the holes with the base molding.
And you could use more heat in that spot maybe for now just a fan to move the air around better to keep that corner warmer. Have you checked the humidity in the room?

Sorry my my delayed response.

I have ben trying to figure out which framing I have. I am going to guess that there is a good possibility it is balloon framing. The home is from 1923, has plaster and lathe walls and ceilings, and because it is the least desirable frame out of the two (at least from what I researched) it would be just my luck . I tried seeking confirmation through the attic but there is a subfloor in the unfinished attic with not very effective insulation (low R value) iso I can't see down the sides.

The siding is vinyl and behind it is the original siding. Most are like this in my area. No idea why people wouldn't take off the old shingles.

I have not checked the room for humidity. I can do this. The condensation is really in that one corner because the room is warm but that one section is cold.

Are you suggesting I put small holes in floor near baseboard and put in expanding foam? Would shoe molding work?

Thanks so much for your time.

 

[jamerica]

You may want to consider removing all of the drywall from the outside walls and air seal/insulate properly. Then remove all floor and do the same. You can do this room by room and add to your house value.

Thank you. Your whole post had a lot of good information. Because of this I had and energy audit done this past week. It left me with some questions based on their suggestions though because my home is plaster and lathe walls and ceilings. I would like to ask here since it pertains to your suggestion but I need to read the forum rules as I am wondering if it belongs as a separate post.

 

[Nealtw]

Sorry my my delayed response.

I have ben trying to figure out which framing I have. I am going to guess that there is a good possibility it is balloon framing. The home is from 1923, has plaster and lathe walls and ceilings, and because it is the least desirable frame out of the two (at least from what I researched) it would be just my luck . I tried seeking confirmation through the attic but there is a subfloor in the unfinished attic with not very effective insulation (low R value) iso I can't see down the sides.

The siding is vinyl and behind it is the original siding. Most are like this in my area. No idea why people wouldn't take off the old shingles.

I have not checked the room for humidity. I can do this. The condensation is really in that one corner because the room is warm but that one section is cold.

Are you suggesting I put small holes in floor near baseboard and put in expanding foam? Would shoe molding work?

Thanks so much for your time.

The shingles may be asbestos and that is often left in place.

The foam was a thought but I don't have enough experience with it to say what would work best. I would thinking holes that would be hidden with the molding.
What is the ceiling in the porch below, Perhaps you could get in from down there and cover the patch with something that looks like it belongs like a vent or something.

 

[jamerica]

The shingles may be asbestos and that is often left in place.

The foam was a thought but I don't have enough experience with it to say what would work best. I would thinking holes that would be hidden with the molding.
What is the ceiling in the porch below, Perhaps you could get in from down there and cover the patch with something that looks like it belongs like a vent or something.

Thanks! I will give your suggestion a shot in terms of what is in the ceiling of the porch. As for the siding, it's definitely not asbestos. I can see it from underneath.

 

[Nealtw]

Thanks! I will give your suggestion a shot in terms of what is in the ceiling of the porch. As for the siding, it's definitely not asbestos. I can see it from underneath.

If the problem was more the front the siding could be worked on but the side would get into a major deal

 

[Bud9051]

Greetings, I've been following along intermittently and saw you mention an energy audit, I'm a retired one of those and can help you interpret your report. Did they do a blower door test and use an infrared camera?

If I recall this spot is above that overhang and if so that may be where you need to address this issue. Common for cold air to enter those areas if they weren't well air sealed and insulated.

If needed i can review the entire thread and add more.

Bud

PS I see no problem discussing your audit report here.

 

[jamerica]

Greetings, I've been following along intermittently and saw you mention an energy audit, I'm a retired one of those and can help you interpret your report. Did they do a blower door test and use an infrared camera?

If I recall this spot is above that overhang and if so that may be where you need to address this issue. Common for cold air to enter those areas if they weren't well air sealed and insulated.

If needed i can review the entire thread and add more.

Bud

PS I see no problem discussing your audit report here.

Thanks! I need to run but will post later!

 

[jamerica]

Thanks! I need to run but will post later!

Hi Bud,

Attached is the audit report. As I mentioned, they told me that I need to replace tongue and groove ceiling (I attached a picture of this as well) in my small 4 season sunroom room in order to do the attic or it won't hold the insulation the way they are intending on doing it.

When the audit person came they never did any infrared or air test. They said that happens once the contractor comes and I fix the ceiling.

Thanks! Any insight helps.