Kundenforum
Häufig gestellte Fragen
Entdecken Sie hilfreiche Antworten oder reichen Sie allgemeine Fragen selbst ein.
How do I heat and ventilate properly?
How do I heat and ventilate properly? What is recommended?
Heimstaden Germany Team-
Dear tenants,
...to avoid moisture and mold damage inside your apartment.
As a user of an apartment, you must, through your behavior, contribute to preventing mold, especially in the winter months. The room air humidity can be controlled by appropriate heating and ventilation. Moisture caused by activities in the home (e.g. human moisture emission, cooking, washing, showering, etc.) must be removed to the outside by regular ventilation. In addition, care must be taken to ensure that certain temperatures in the apartment are not permanently undershot.
The following instructions for avoiding moisture and mold damage must be read carefully and implemented accordingly.
Proper ventilation
Ventilation serves to remove moisture. This means that the warm and humid indoor air is exchanged for the cooler and therefore drier outdoor air. However, since only a small amount of heat may be lost during the ventilation process and the walls and furniture in the apartment should not cool down too much, it is important to ensure that such an exchange of air takes place quickly. Depending on the size of the room and the furniture, a complete exchange of air can be achieved after about 3 minutes with the window fully open - preferably with a draft. In order to remove the amount of moisture that occurs in the apartment every day, it is essential to air it out several times a day.
This is particularly true when there are modern, tightly closing windows. Avoid constantly tilting windows and balcony doors during the cold season, as the surrounding components, such as window reveals and window lintels, cool down considerably and are therefore at increased risk of condensation. The following basic ventilation rules must be observed:- Airing once a day is not enough! Open windows wide for three to five minutes several times a day (shock ventilation).
- If your apartment has windows on all sides, use the possibility of cross ventilation (draft). In this case, the stairwell must not be ventilated.
- No permanent ventilation through constantly tilted windows during the heating period.
- Carry out a complete air exchange in the apartment in the morning. Depending on the outside temperature, open all windows wide for about 10 to 15 minutes. The colder the outside air, the shorter the ventilation time.
- Immediately discharge large amounts of water vapor (e.g. when showering, bathing, cooking, ironing) to the outside.
- Wipe up splashes immediately after bathing and showering.
- In the case of an interior bathroom without a window, ventilate using the shortest possible route (through another room). Keep doors to other rooms closed. Especially after bathing or showering, the water vapor should not be distributed evenly in the apartment.
- If laundry has to be dried in the apartment, air this room more often. Keep room doors closed.
- Air humidification devices or devices are not necessary in most cases.
- Ventilate rooms with several or larger houseplants more often.
- If you are away during the day, it is usually sufficient to air the apartment in the morning and evening.
- If the apartment has new windows that close very tightly, the number of ventilation processes should be increased.
Proper heating
If rooms are not heated sufficiently, this can lead to hypothermia and the formation of mould. Please adjust your heating behavior in the cold season as follows: In the living room, bedroom, children's room, hallway and similar rooms, the temperature should be at least 20°C between 6 a.m. and 11 p.m. during the day and at least 17°C at night. The relative humidity in the living areas should not be more than 55%.
Keep interior doors between differently heated rooms closed day and night. Never heat cold bedrooms and studies from the rest of the living room. This can result in mold. The same applies to the other rooms in the apartment.
Avoid drying laundry in the apartment. If this is unavoidable, then heat the room very well and ventilate it briefly and vigorously again and again. Also ventilate the room after ironing damp laundry or using a steam iron.
The general practice of letting the cooler bedroom “overturn” by opening the doors to more heated rooms before going to bed should be avoided. As a result, the risk of condensation forming on the wall surfaces of the bedroom is significantly increased by the inflowing warmer and thus much more humid air. Over time, this, combined with the occupants shedding moisture while they sleep, will lead to mold growth.
Correct furniture spacing
When placing furniture, it is recommended to keep a distance of 5 cm from the outer walls to ensure adequate air circulation.
Best regards,
Your Heimstaden Germany TeamHeimstaden Germany Team - Kundenservice