Damp & mouldy

greyseagull · Jan 8, 2015

No, I'm not talking about the contents of Ernest's pants, but sadly some of our walls.

We have a real condensation problem each and every morning and evening; we have to use a window vacuum emptying it about four times as we go around the house.

However, we can now see patches of mould appear, and only on one side of the house. All mainly upstairs too on the walls and ceilings. We've only been in the house a little over a year and the newly decorated daughter's room already has mould coming through the wallpaper. We have a dehumidifier upstairs on each evening but alas, the problem continues. We are popping the windows open as well as we are short on ventilation in the house.

With three little ones I'm keen to get this sorted quickly. Are there any experts out there with any advice or someone who works in the Worthing area who could take a look and let us know what we need to get done (and if they can do it?)

Goldstone1976 · Jan 8, 2015

I had this problem in a stone cottage in the Cotswolds. It cost a lot to fix (sorry). I'm no expert, but the problem boils down to only two things: too much water being generated in the property &/or too little ventilation to get rid of it. The solution to my problem was to tackle both. In my case that amounted to a new damp course, dehumidifiers in most rooms, turning the heating up higher than I wanted, keeping a draught going through the house at all times.

Perhaps a specialist will be able to offer better advice, as you suggest. You're right to be worried about the kids - two of mine developed allergies which I put mostly down to the mould (and partly down to my ex).

Good luck.

surlyseagull · Jan 8, 2015

Yes agree with Goldstone ,mould can be serious so you need proffesional advice especially as you seem to be doing all the right things to no avail, and with little ones in the house sooner rather than later.Your local council could point you in the right direction .

JCL666 · Jan 8, 2015

Get a decent builder in to have a look.

Although if you have time you could do some checking yourself;

http://www.homebuilding.co.uk/advice/existing-homes/renovating/damp

http://www.davidkinsey.co.uk/pages/damp.php

Mr Bridger · Jan 8, 2015

Ventilation, ventilation, ventilation.

Rather difficult in the winter I know as it's cold and you do what everyone does is shut out any drafts.

Do you have double glazing? If so do they have trickle vents in? ( they are a little vent above the window on the frame if you don't know)

Is it all over or in just one particular spot? Could be gutter/ sofit & facia leaking or roof tile causing a particular wall to get wet.

How's the room heated?

Dumseagull · Jan 8, 2015

if its only high up you know its not rising damp, have you checked all the roof tiles are ok? as if there is a minor leak letting water into the inner course of brickwork this can cause damp, or it could be something bridging the gap between the inner and outter walls. how old is the house? and how high up he wall is the damp? do the walls feel wet to the touch when it rains?

But from what you've said about the window water, it could also be things like drying clothes on radiators, and using tumble dryers that dont have condensers in the house. or cooking without proper extraction. having a few days with the heating on constant and all your windows vented can help dry things out once you have found the source of the problem

Midfield Minton · Jan 8, 2015

Same in our house,windows open doors open,heating,passie vents,vandex,and still green mould growing on wardrobe back and under draws,left a length of mdf against a wall that had been treated and after two weeks it was green on one side,left it at 90 degrees so not to trap moisture and still when green,

Prince Monolulu · Jan 8, 2015

Damp could do a job on the wing, not sure about Mouldy....we need a bit more height

Greg Bobkin · Jan 8, 2015

We had that problem and got it sorted with an Envirovent unit. It's not cheap, but it completely sorted the damp.

Mutts Nuts · Jan 8, 2015

greyseagull said:
No, I'm not talking about the contents of Ernest's pants, but sadly some of our walls.

We have a real condensation problem each and every morning and evening; we have to use a window vacuum emptying it about four times as we go around the house.

However, we can now see patches of mould appear, and only on one side of the house. All mainly upstairs too on the walls and ceilings. We've only been in the house a little over a year and the newly decorated daughter's room already has mould coming through the wallpaper. We have a dehumidifier upstairs on each evening but alas, the problem continues. We are popping the windows open as well as we are short on ventilation in the house.

With three little ones I'm keen to get this sorted quickly. Are there any experts out there with any advice or someone who works in the Worthing area who could take a look and let us know what we need to get done (and if they can do it?)

Decorate the house and then sell it quickly

Guerrero · Jan 8, 2015

Scrub off every bit of mould with bleach.Paint with a mould resistant undercoat twice.
Wait till dry then paint.

jackanada · Jan 8, 2015

Guerrero said:
Scrub off every bit of mould with bleach.Paint with a mould resistant undercoat twice.
Wait till dry then paint.

Then sell it quickly.

carlzeiss · Jan 8, 2015

Purchased a de-humidifier last month and have been amazed at the amount of water it absorbs each day .

IMO every house should have at least one of these machines .

Mutts Nuts · Jan 8, 2015

jackanada said:
Then sell it quickly.

Is the right answer

spongy · Jan 8, 2015

I'm suffering a very similar issue, our flat is getting really damp in our bedroom, which is the corner of the building that never really sees any direct sunlight any time of the year, and is the one that gets battered by the rain in winter.

We borrowed a de humidifier and you'd be astonished at just how much moisture they remove from a room. We ran ours every evening for a few hours and most of the day on weekends when we were home and I was having to empty it every 2 days! I've got a little thermometer wotsit that sits on the side and the dehumidifier can reduce the humidity by 10% in a couple of hours.

I opened a drawer I rarely use and all my clothes were covered in mould, but it was an internal wall it was against which confused me a bit, but then realised our bathroom backs onto that wall and the bath specifically, so I removed the bath panel and found a leak under the bath from the waste pipe, that had obviously been leaking for a long time and saturated the wall. We only moved in in the summer and what with windows open we never noticed, we've fixed the leak and are still waiting for the wall to dry properly, it takes ages!

The room gets really cold really quick too when the heating is off overnight.

and we have a 5 month old baby as well.

My advice is to check EVERYTHING related to water pipes, a tiny leak or drip from something can massively affect your humidity levels and take forever to dry out once it's really wet.

bravohotelalpha · Jan 8, 2015

try Dettol 'Mould + Mildew' spray for short term assistance

seagully · Jan 8, 2015

Having a similar problem in my place. Can anyone recommend a decent dehumidifier which won't cost the earth?

carlzeiss · Jan 8, 2015

seagully said:
Having a similar problem in my place. Can anyone recommend a decent dehumidifier which won't cost the earth?

I have one of these , great for smaller rooms , will probably purchase a 2nd this weekend .

http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/0523075.htm

DumLum · Jan 9, 2015

I had this problem in my previous flat. No windows in the bathroom and I believe the extracter-fan was actually just a noise making fan.

Actually discovered a two inch toadstall growing out the side of my bath panel one evening!

Was for ever wiping the mould off ceilings and walls. I painted it with Dulux anti-mould paint and the difference was incredible. Maybe a cheap/short-term solution. I'm sure the real answer is more expensive as others have suggested.

solly · Jan 9, 2015

Mr Bridger said:
Ventilation, ventilation, ventilation.

Rather difficult in the winter I know as it's cold and you do what everyone does is shut out any drafts.

Do you have double glazing? If so do they have trickle vents in? ( they are a little vent above the window on the frame if you don't know)

Is it all over or in just one particular spot? Could be gutter/ sofit & facia leaking or roof tile causing a particular wall to get wet.

How's the room heated?

This with bells on its all about ventilation as stated you may have water ingress. I am in construction and had issues in my 16 year old son's room in the house with no previous mould. The mould started when we installed his 42" TV a surprising amount of heat being generated from that,as a result he spent much more tine in there with mates (the breathi from a human creates moisture) the playstation, the PC, sleeping etc the winter comes so windows and doors get shut. A simple talk to him around whether on not the TV stays in the room or the windows remain open a crack, or the inside door open when he sleeps. As soon as he wakes he opens the windows they remain open during the day,The mould seems to have been cured.
By the way condensation will always settle on the coldes part of the room, if the window is open the coldest part of the room overnight should be outside via the open window, hence all the water will leave the room.
hope that helps

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