Bath tub leaking...condensation?

[denise0672]

Ok everyone that I have told this to is stumped to as what the problem could be. I just bought this house in April and did not have any of these problems unitl it turned off cold. My house is bulilt on a concrete slab, it is about 1200 sq feet. When I closed on the house the previous owner said he got some condensation on the windows that were not replacements so he had a dehumidifer. He said that seems to take care of the problem. So when it turned cold and I had to turn my heat on the next morning I woke up and my living room ceiling and one of the back bedrooms had water spots on the ceiling. Not much on the windows...I went and bought a dehumidifer and it has not helped. I dump almost 3 gallons of water a day. So I had someone come out and look at the roof ( which I knew would need to be replace any way) and he said it could be spots from bad places in the roof. He was stumped as to the amount of water I am dumping ever day. I have signs of
mold on the ceilings in the living room, kitchen, and both of my childrens bedrooms. He went to the attic...it is dry. No mold...and eveyrthing looks good. So last night I was cleaning the bath room...noticed that you can push the side of my tub in a little...and water came out. My daughter took a shower about an hour before that. SO my question is this...can that bath tub leaking cause moisture in the air and is that the cause of my condensation problems? Any help would be greatly appriecated.

 

[99k]

What is the material on the bathtub walls?

 

[Sponsor]

 

[denise0672]

What is the material on the bathtub walls?

It is the tile that looks like on piece. I guess for lack of a better description it is the vinyal tile. But It is all one piece. The bathroom was re done before I moved in with new floor, toliet, vanity etc.

 

[Entropy]

Right Now, Turn your dehumidifier on as high as it will go and leave it there for at least 3 to 4 days, in the mean time make sure there is not a leak in the bathtub tile and if so fix that.

Does the house have an air exchanger?
Is the house insulated?

 

[denise0672]

My dehumidifer has been running non stop (unless its full) for over a month. That is why everyone is stumped....my house is not dry either. You know staticy hair, dry skin. The roofer is going to put humistdat in and he said that may help some. As far as he can tell he said my house is very well insulated. I have all replacement windows but one in the front of the house. I am going to call my home warranty company and have them send someoen out to look at the leak in the tub.

 

[Krow]

I wonder if you may have a vapour barrier problem .

6 mil vapour barrier is the norm in most sates/provinces. There was a time in the 80's that they were using 2 mil plastic in my area by the subdivision builders until the inspectors caught on.

 

[denise0672]

How would I check a vapor barrier problem?

 

[Basement_Lurker]

I went and bought a dehumidifer and it has not helped. I dump almost 3 gallons of water a day.

3 Gallons a day is alot. You say your home is approx 1200 sq/ft...so is it correct to say that it is a 1 level home?

 

[denise0672]

Yes I know it is alot. It is a one level home. That is why I am stumped and so is everyone else about where all this water is coming from?

 

[Krow]

How would I check a vapor barrier problem?

Your vapour barrier would be between your drywall/plaster and your attic insulation.
Its all too common to not find a vapour barrier in the plastered ceilings that were biult prior to 1960.
I am currently having this issue at my home that was built in 1952 with plaster ceilings.

Another thing to look for in the attic, you also need sufficient roof vents for adequit air circulation for your size roof . I had 4 when I bought my home and when my roof was redone, I added 4 more (roughly 1300 sq ft bungalow). That seemed to help keep the condensation at bay for now, but I will eventually need to tear down the plaster to add a proper vapour barrier.

 

[denise0672]

When the roofer went in the attic and checked everything out he said it was dry as a bone up there and the insulation was dry...eveything is was dry..no sign of mold or anything....he is going to install a humidstadt. Now I was telling someone ealier about my tub situation and they told me to feel in the air vents in the floor to see if they are damp. 3 of my vents out of about 10 are somewhat damp in side of them...could this be from the water leaking into the slab and when the heat its it..causing condensation on the celings?