anthony gilardi, home improvement advice

This week, Anthony helps a CafeMom troubleshoot why the interior walls of her mudroom sweat moisture and condensation as the weather gets cooler.

Ask HGTV's Anthony Gilardi your home improvement or home repair question TODAY in the comments below!

Question:

Hi Anthony - with the change of seasons and closing up windows and pulling doors tight, the walls in my mudroom are sweating. It is a very old house and I doubt insulated well, if at all. Three sides of the room are exterior walls. There are drips, like condensation, on at least two of the exterior walls. I imagine it may get worse as temperatures outside drop. The room is only heated with a space heater around 60 degrees, but can I do anything without starting a major wall tear-out this winter?

— DogsMom 

Answer:

Hello, DogsMom,

Nice to hear from you again.

This problem, believe it or not, is very common. Good news! There are many different, possibly inexpensive and simple solutions.

I understand that times are tough and you wish to “Master Your Domain” and save some money. So the logical, yet pricey, solution of ripping down the walls and adding brand new insulation is put on hold until we figure out all of our options.

To completely solve the problem, we need to play my favorite game…"Home Detective." To play this game correctly and get to the bottom of our problem, we need some more information.

As my “Anthony Apprentice,” I need you to gather some answers to some questions. Once we have all of our information, we can go over the most practical, money-saving, options.

Fact:
We have a “mudroom” with three (3) outside walls in an old house that is currently heated by a space heater at around 60 degrees.  

Questions:

  1. Are there appliances, such as a washer and dryer in the room?
  2. If so, how is the dryer vented, and is it electric or gas?
  3. What is above the ceiling? Attic? Crawl space? Is there access to the area?
  4. What is the square footage of the room? (Anthony Note: To find square footage measure the room LENGTH x WIDTH.)
  5. What kind of siding is around the exterior of the room?
  6. Number and location of windows in the room?
  7. What kind of flooring?
  8. What is directly beneath the room? Basement? Crawl space? Is there access to the area?
  9. What is the connecting room? Kitchen or other?
  10. Are you using an “electric” space heater? Does it run all day? Does it run when other appliances are running?

Okay, DogsMom, you have your homework.

These questions should be easy to answer. However, I never leave my “Anthony Apprentices” hung out to dry. If you’re having problems getting these answers, please contact me, and I’ll walk you through the process.

You can do this! I have faith in you.

Good luck. And don’t forget — together, we can “Master Your Domain.”

Thank you,

—Anthony Gilardi 

Need advice on a do-it-yourself home repair or improvement? Leave your question for Anthony in the comments below, and he'll respond in a future post.

 

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SEASONAL (WINTER): Winter Heating 101

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