What to cover inside of concrete window surround with?

[kamoshika]

Our house has got uPVC windows fitted inside concrete window surrounds. The inside of the concrete surround was covered with PVC trim, which I removed when we were decorating as they'd got very discoloured and cracked. I'm now wondering what to re-cover them with. The problem is that the inside surface of the concrete gets very cold, and we get a lot of condensation / black mould etc. It doesn't help that the windows don't have any trickle vents, but also the PVC trim did very little to keep the cold out. I'm wondering if I used something a bit more insulating, the inside surface may not get so cold, and we might not so much condensation. Any suggestions?

I've (hopefully) added a picture below in case it's not clear what I'm on about! it shows the window and surround, with the PVC trim removed.

 

[foxhole]

Pvc trim.

 

[kamoshika]

But is there anything else I could use that wouldn't get so cold, and therefore wouldn't get so much condensation forming on it?

 

[foxhole]

No, condensation is due to poor ventilation.

 

[kamoshika]

I realise that, but it will form on a cold surface. As we're not in a position, at the moment, to do anything about changing the windows for ones with trickle vents to improve the ventilation I'm trying to do something about the cold surface where the condensation is forming.

 

[foxhole]

I realise that, but it will form on a cold surface. As we're not in a position, at the moment, to do anything about changing the windows for ones with trickle vents to improve the ventilation I'm trying to do something about the cold surface where the condensation is forming.

In a word, impossible.

Add wall vents.

 

[Pinnacle69]

try some adhesive foam it doesnt need to be very thick just enough to bridge the cold concrete then cover that with pvc trim should cut out a lot of the cold transfer and make sure all sealant outside and in is intact

 

[alykanas]

the best way of getting rid of this problem is to remove the concrete surrounds and fit new windows in the gap or remove windows and fit a wooden frame and refit existing ones if they are ok

 

[kamoshika]

Thanks for the reply. Don't know if you noticed the thread was pretty old. Since then we've actually had the windows replaced, so now have trickle vents providing ventilation, which has obviously helped. When the new windows were put in the trim they used to cover the concrete surround includes an air gap and the inside surface of that stays much warmer than the old trim used to, so problem solved

We did think about getting the concrete surrounds taken out, which would have also meant the windows would be bigger and therefore let more light in, but as I understand it they're structural and take the place of a lintel above the window opening, so it would have been very costly and disruptive to get them removed.