cistern weeping in winter

starlight09

Our bathroom is 27yrs installed. Every winter the outside of the cistern weeps water so badly onto the floor that I have to mop it a few times a day. If I put my hand under the cistern, there are huge droplets there. Its only happening with the last few years. We have doube glazing and heating, I guess it is when the cold water in the cistern meets the heat but my brother has the same style house with heating etc and his is fine. I wonder is it the age and make of the cistern. Is there any such thing as a lining that could be put on the inside!

I hate the thought of it again this winter.

Dtp1979

starlight09 wrote: »

Our bathroom is 27yrs installed. Every winter the outside of the cistern weeps water so badly onto the floor that I have to mop it a few times a day. If I put my hand under the cistern, there are huge droplets there. Its only happening with the last few years. We have doube glazing and heating, I guess it is when the cold water in the cistern meets the heat but my brother has the same style house with heating etc and his is fine. I wonder is it the age and make of the cistern. Is there any such thing as a lining that could be put on the inside!

I hate the thought of it again this winter.

Is the water filling the cistern coming directly from the mains?

whizbang

Its a symptom of something else. Did you get the double glazing and heating in the last few years?

look at every other thread about condensation, but its probably ventilation you need.

_Brian

I've seen this a few times and definitely every time caused by the cystern being fed directly from the mains.

OP, turn off mains water and see if cystern continues to fill when you flush. If it doesn't turn it's mains fed.

Mains water is much colder than water from attic tank and the cold surface causes condensation.

danjo-xx

If it is mains fed changing to a pvc cistern might help, have you any heat in the bathroom.

scudo2

High moisture in the air possibly due to poor ventilation hitting a colder surface is the most common cause.
If there was no moisture in the air you'd have no problems.
If not every fridge would be wet.

_Brian

scudo2 wrote: »

High moisture in the air possibly due to poor ventilation hitting a colder surface is the most common cause.
If there was no moisture in the air you'd have no problems.
If not every fridge would be wet.

External surface of a fridge is near room temperature all the time.
Fresh mains water ran into a cystern will be about 4c which is very cold in relation to every other surface in the bathroom and so will condense allot of water.

Bathrooms are humid, most humid room in the house, unavoidably so even with good ventilation. I see it in my sisters house. When someone takes a shower or runs a bath the cystern drips water on the floor.

Ventilation will help, but changing the water source for the cystern is the solution.

Sir Arthur Daley

The warmer water from the tank in the attic wont cause the cistern to drip as much as the cold mains, unfortunately with the cold weather on the way expect alot of dripping.

starlight09

Thanks to you all for replying.
The cistern fills from the attic tank. There is a radiator in the bathroom. The whole house is heated.

Rubberchikken

We would have similiar.
Old cistern, fed from mains through a tank in the attic. When ot's very cold the cistern is freezing:(
Rad in bathroom.
Double glazed pvc window.

Find that leaving the window open a good % of the day helps.
But i agree, it is a pain.

starlight09

Hi rubberchicken, its a bit embarrassing if someone comes to visit and I haven't checked on it. The water from it collects on the floor around the toilet bowl!