Yesterday I noticed that paint was peeling in my kitchen downstairs. I took a good section of it off and noticed that the drywall was moist and dark in color due to humidity. I decided to replace the drywall but when I took it off ants were swarming underneath. There must have been 1000's inside the wall because they loved the humidity. I removed them and the insulation inside the wall. There are also three copper pipes which run vertically behind the drywall I removed. I noticed that the two hot water pipes which were insulated with foam were wet and that's where the water was coming from. I removed the foam insulation and one was completely wet on the inside while the other was only partially wet. I checked the pipes for leaks but did not notice any while it was uncovered. I bought new insulaiton for the pipes and covered them both. Within a timespan of 2 minutes the one of the hot water pipes once again contained condensaiton after it was covered. Is it normal for copper pipes to sweat, however did this not occur while the pipe was not covered with the foam insualtion. Can I patch up a new piece of drywall without insulating the pipes or what is going on. As far as I know, the insulation is only to keep the pipes insualted for the hot water. I live in CA so I'm wondering if I should not insulate them if years from now it will be humidity inside the wall again. Thank you in advance for your help and advice.
- posted
18 years ago