Homeowners Warned Not to Dry Towels in the Bathroom This Winter

Homeowners are being warned to avoid drying towels and bath mats in the bathroom this winter to prevent dampness.

The bathroom experts at Vidalux.co.uk are encouraging households to properly ventilate their bathrooms and dry towels in a separate room.

15 million people in the UK are believed to be living in homes with issues like damp and mould.* 

Drying towels and bath mats in an already damp bathroom after a shower can increase humidity levels further by releasing more moisture into the air, making damp and mould problems worse.

The experts are urging homeowners to properly ventilate their bathrooms after having a shower by opening windows and making use of extractor fans. 

They also advise placing damp and wet items on an airing rack in another room to prevent adding moisture into an already humid bathroom and allow them to air out properly without creating a damp or musty smell.

Andy Ellis from Vidalux.co.uk said: “A lot of people have a shower and hang their towels and bathmats onto the radiator to dry. It seems like the most obvious thing to do but the truth is these items are releasing moisture into an already damp environment. 

“This then takes the bathroom and the towels longer to dry and air out and you run the risk of creating or worsening a mould or damp problem.

“If you live with other people and there are two or three towels drying at the same time, the problem becomes even worse. Not only will this take even longer but if your towels are overlapping they can dry with this horrible musty smell.”

Andy also says that placing towels onto a hot radiator or heated airer isn’t as effective as people may think as both of these can also release more moisture into the air as well.

Instead, he advises drying items in a separate room on a normal airer or the back of the chair. 

He said: “If you have an extractor fan, put this on before you shower and leave it on after until your bathroom is completely dry. Always open a window as well, even if it’s just a small one as this will create airflow.

“And when it comes to drying things like towels or bathmats, set these up on an airer in another room if you can. If you don’t have the space for this then you can always hang towels on the back of a sturdy chair.”

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