Hello I have replaced my old aluminum windows with new vinyl ones last summer. Last night when the outside temperature dropped to -5F, I noticed that in addition to regular condensation, the moisture froze on the inside of the window. The ice remains there even if I heat up the living space to about 65F. The outside temperature continues to be around 3F. Would any of you have any idea why it is happening and how to prevent it? Thank you. Please see the pictures for reference.
New windows doesn't mean great windows, warm moist air in the house is showing you where it is coming into contact with a cold surface.
Condensation indicates your humidity is fairly high. Are you: - running bath fans while showering? - running exhaust fans while cooking - especially boiling water - is your basement/crawlspace floor bare earth? If so, cover it with plastic. If it isn't you may want to run a dehumidifier down there. - are you running a humidifier in the house? The windows are freezing where the two sash meet, are you latching the window? Is there weather stripping where the two sash meet? Vinyl windows come in all types of quality. If the components aren't insulated inside the extrusion and are just hollow vinyl I suspect during bitter cold weather you'll have this freezing issue around the perimeter of the windows.
Try to get a dehumidifier and allow to have air circulation in the room. You can have a look at this article (http://www.landmarkquality.com/blog/windows/how-to-control-condensation-and-moisture-on-your-windows) to know how to eliminate the window condensation.