help! my house is mouldy

[LittleMiss77]

Every morning at this time of year, we wake up to condensation on our windows. Our windows are starting to go mouldy as is one of the bedroom walls - there is water dripping down the wall

Im waiting delivery of a dehumidifier, the air vent in said bedroom has been opened up (when we moved in, it had been blocked up) and ive been attacking the mould with bleach.

Aside from the above is there anything else i can do to stop this in its tracks?

[wowfudge]

Open the windows every morning to ventilate.

[TheSpottedZebra]

PigletJohn will be along soon no doubt to tell you off about drying washing indoors, and talking you of he wonders of extraction fans

Do you open your windows much? Have you checked outside to make sure you've no loose guttering or hopes in downpipes anywhere?

[CMOTDibbler]

Make sure you put minimal moisture into the air - always shower/bath with the door shut, extractor fan on and leave the fan running with door shut afterward. Lids on saucepans, extractor fan on, kitchen door shut. No drying washing on radiators or clothes horse.

If you have to dry stuff indoors, then do it in a small room, dehumidifier on, door shut. Our dehumidifier has a laundry setting which is great.

[LittleMiss77]

zebra im sure he will!

There is no leak - no staining, roof tiles and gutterig all ok.

Washing is occassionally dried indoors but only the bits that cant go in the dryer

Bathroom window is open all the time as is the one in our bedroom. The wet bedroom is DS' and we paid a small fortune for it to be plastered and decorated in the summer before he was born so im not only pissed off, but also worried that its going to make him ill (at the moment hes only in there for a few day time naps)

I did read that opening your windows when its damp outside is just letting damp air into your house and wont help - dont know how true this is though

[NicoleWatterson]

I vacuum my windows every morning (and night when it's really cold) open all the windows for an hour a day, don't dry washing inside. Cook with the lids on, open windows (and vacuum) the shower & bath. I also have little windows open all the time until it really gets too cold
It keeps the humidity down to 65-75%. It just keeps the mould at bay. I also keep furniture away from the walls. It is worth checking the things as other posters say, as there's normally a cause.
Do watch the cost of running your dehumidifier

[NicoleWatterson]

The only time I don't open windows is when it's raining, just damp outside and it still makes a difference on the humidity meter.

[Gatekeeper]

ventilation
don't dry your clothes in the house
extractor fan if you have a shower
open your windows
dehumidifier (we call it de -hum- defiyer)
dettol mould and mildew spray

[specialsubject]

condensation on windows is laws of physics, 10 mins wiping it up and a few mins with the windows open deals with that. A small amount of mould will probably happen but the Dettol spray sorts that.

BUT water dripping down a wall is either a very old house with a north facing wall, or something else wrong that has not been spotted.

[LittleMiss77]

We have an extractor in the bathroom which is hooked up to the light - it only stops when the light is turned off

The room with the wet wall - the room is at the front of the house (north east facing) and the problem is where 2 external walls meet, about a 3rd of the way up the wall - the skirting has mould on it and its beginning to appear on the wall. You can see the condensation on the wall. The wall is very cold to the touch.

The house itself is 1930s. From the outside it looks to be in order - no damaged brick work or mortar.

We moved in 2 years ago and the surveys we had picked up no problems.

[unlucky83]

If you have done all the right things - not drying indoors, opening bathroom window/decent extractor and lids on pans (and I insisted our hob fan vented outside rather than having a recirculating one that just takes the grease out) - get a dehumidifier and a window vacuum.
I use a window vac for the condensation on windows and also for one of my recommendations. Use it on the shower cubicle (or walls and screen if you have a shower over the bath) after every one has finished having a shower. Takes a minute or so and I'm amazed how much water I collect - and if you think about it when it dries it can only go into the atmosphere- to form condensation...it reduced by 90% after I started doing that and
keeping the bathroom door closed - I used to put DDs (older) in the bath and leave the door open whilst I went into the bedroom to sort out washing etc - or let them shower with the door open. I didn't really realise how much 'steam' was being generated until the excess humidity set the smoke alarm off ...and actually wrecked it...(according to the manufacturers -it was one of the questions they asked me). The door now is kept closed for a good hour after a shower/bath too with the window open.
Also central heating tends to be drying so keep the heating on more (even at a lower temp).
Finally has your house got cavity wall insulation? If it has and it wasn't really suitable for it (it happens) - that wall is exposed to driving rain etc that can cause mould problems with water coming through the wall from outside.

[Tarzanlovesgaby]

as long as it's colder outside than in, opening windows will help reduce humidity inside. even if it's raining.

(simple physics: warm air can hold more moisture than cold air, so you replace warm humid air with colder dry air)

open all windows as far as they go a couple of times a day for 10-20 mins. keep heating.

if you need to dry clothes jndoors do it somewhere with good ventilation where you can shut the door on it.

use kitchen and bathroom ventilators.