What can I do? Everything in my home going mouldy

[AngeloMysterioso]

I live in a 2 bed flat on the ground floor of an Edwardian house. We’ve had problems with condensation for a while- we only have single glazed windows (double glazing going in this week after a 6 month wait) and we don’t have a tumble drier so until now, unless the weather has been nice enough to hang laundry outside we’ve had to dry it indoors.

We first noticed a problem when I realised that some of my shoes and boots which are kept on shoe shelves in the bottom of my wardrobe were going mouldy. Then it was the clothes which I keep in the drawers under my bed. I’m 6 months pregnant and DH and I have just checked the pram bassinet which was in its travel case under the changing table in DS’s room- mouldy. A cooler bag in the cupboard under the stairs- mouldy. Clothes of mine in a drawer in another wardrobe- mouldy. Stuff I’ve already washed once when it got mouldy has gone mouldy again.

I’m at my wits end. My shoes all stink because I’ve had to spray them with white vinegar. There’s piles of shoes and clean laundry everywhere because I’ve got the mould out of them but I’m too scared to put them away in case they go mouldy again (which they will, it’s already happened once). We’ve bought a bunch of those little disposable dehumidifiers that you put in drawers and on shelves which appear to have made no difference at all. I’ve bought a heated airer with a cover and plan to use that to dry clothes (with a small electric dehumidifier turned on underneath) but with things like the bassinet, I can’t put that in the washing machine so will have to find some other way of cleaning it.

What else can I do? We hoped that the new windows would help solve the problem but we spoke to our neighbour in the other downstairs flat the other day and it’s a big problem for her too, and she already has double glazing. I’m terrified that when I get out our next 2 me cot from under DS’s cir or the old baby clothes from his wardrobe that they’ll all be mouldy as well. Clothes can be washed, but how do I deal with the things that can’t? We can’t afford to replace everything.

Help!!

How old is the damp course? It probably needs replacing. If things are going mouldy it's a bit more than just needing to open windows. Dehumidifiers definitely help in the short term.

Everyone is giving you great solutions.

One thing I would say is that when you have the windows replaced, see if the new ones have a ventilation lock and then, if so, set them all so they're on that. Even in the winter. It allows airflow through the house and will help remove some of the damp.

There are lots of quick and relatively cheap fixes you've been given - open windows for 5 minutes twice a day, make sure air bricks aren't covered, replace ventilation fan, Karcher your windows in the morning and if you want to bring out the big guns, buy a dehumidifier. But please don't allow a damp 'specialist' to come in and sell you a DPC the building has never needed.

Ok this is a little weird but this is the floor plan of my flat- I’ve drawn in red where furniture is.

The sitting room and the main bedroom have been swapped round so both bedrooms are next to each other- made more sense that way as what is now the sitting room has an external door.

So in our bedroom (bottom right) we have going clockwise from the top - the main wardrobe (there is a radiator between the wardrobe and the wall on the right), the bed (it’s the kind with shelves in the headboard and a gap at the bottom so there is space between the main portion of the bed and the wall, but stuff in the under-bed drawers is still going mouldy), DH’s desk, a chest of drawers on one side of the fireplace and another small wardrobe between the fireplace and the door on the other. So I was wrong about my wardrobes being against an internal wall but there’s nowhere else they can really go as the only internal wall has the fireplace in the middle of it (the bit shaded in green is the front door and stairs for the flat above us).

DS’s room has built in wardrobes in one corner, then the changing table by the fireplace, DS’s cot bed in the opposite corner by the window, then a tallboy chest of drawers and the glider chair. Another very small set of drawers tucked in between the door and the wardrobes.

Kitchen- fridge by the door. Bin next to the sink- there’s a weird sort of ridge about a foot high which sticks out about 4 or 5 inches which I’ve drawn in as well.

Sitting room- bureau against the left wall, dining table in the top left corner, then the chimney breast which is where the radiator is now. Other side of that is a sideboard type unit with the tv on. Sofa against the opposite wall by the back door and a small side table next to it.

As you can see our kitchen is teeny tiny, so the only way of getting a drier in there would be to lose a cupboard- and we don’t have many to begin with- or buy a washer drier which we can’t really afford. There is the cupboard under the stairs but it is full of the stuff that we’ve no space for anywhere else.

We do need the double glazing, we were just burning through money attempting to keep the place warm last winter.

We've had mould problems and have got rid of it. My two pennyworth:
Never, ever dry clothes by hanging them in rooms. Absolutely get a tumble dryer, no way around it.
Get a powerful dehumidifier. It really, really works & after a while you won't need it.
Open up windows every day and get air in.
Mop up condensation on windows as soon as you see it.
No indoor plants.
Wash off any sign of mould with detergent and dry surfaces afterwards.
Have window open in bathroom always. Never leave door into rest of the flat open.
Look for a source of damp. We had a leak under the floorboards.

My last dehumidifyer cost about £120 from Amazon and lasted 3 years. I'm about to invest in a new one after the old one packed in.

OP do you have access to open space? You could put the bassinet outside on a dry day. Also, your airer can also be put outside. My neighbours and I share the common land outside and put our airers out.

Slugs: pick a spot where they are coming in. Cordon it off to make it safe, then blitz the buggers with salt.

Don't bother with the damp company. Plenty of good advice here.

Once we have modern windows- not wooden rope-sash jobbies with half the cast of A Bug’s Life living in the frames- we will be opening them more frequently.

With the heated airer, I put the cover over it which covers the whole thing and run the dehumidifier underneath. Keep it in the living room with the door closed and the top window (it’s not a sash one in the sitting room) open a crack.

@AngeloMysterioso

I’ve found a local company specialising in damp issues that I’ll call tomorrow, see if we can get someone round to give the place a once over.

I just don’t know how I can properly clean the stuff that can’t be washed- most antifungal sprays have some sort of bleach which will just wreck things like the pram bassinet.

You are very focused on cleaning stuff and not on prevention of the mould issue.

Don’t get a damp firm in. They’re basically all crooks. Save your money, buy a dehumidifier, buy a tumble dryer (lose the kitchen cupboard) and sort the extractor fan.

I’ve also lived in a leasehold where you can’t alter the external facade but there’s usually a dispensation for things like extractor vents etc, so do check.

You honestly can’t live as a family in a flat without decent extraction and air flow. The fitted wardrobes won’t help. Keep whatever you can off the floor so allow air to circulate under beds etc.

Bathroom door is always kept closed as a rule, mainly so DS can’t go in there and drink water from the loo. Ironically nothing in there seems to have gone mouldy! It’s just the bedrooms where it’s an issue so far…

You are very focused on cleaning stuff and not on prevention of the mould issue.

I’m really not, but I would quite like to know how I can clean the bassinet that my newborn is supposed to be sleeping in in 10 weeks time… I can’t just leave it mouldy can I?!

If you have wardrobes against an external wall, and the flat is damp so stuff inside goes mouldy:

Take the wardrobe doors off to allow air circulation

Pull the wardrobes a couple of inches away from the wall.

@PigletJohn

You have to ventilate to get the water vapour out. Start with a powerful and quiet modern extractor in the bathroom. Usually they are connected to come on with the light, and have an overrun timer, but in your case you may as well run it constantly until the damp is cured. You can get a quiet one.

That means you can dry your washing in there, perhaps on a line over the bath, and the extractor will vent the water vapour outside. An extractor fan uses 300 times less electricity than a tumble drier.

Also, a house that old probably has leaking plumbing under the floor, and broken drains. You might identify it if you close all the doors overnight and look to see which room has windows running with water in the morning. It will probably be the kitchen

In the meantime, open windows on at least two sides of the house so you get an air current to blow the water vapour out. If you don't know how to secure sash windows or how to trace a leak, put a post in "Property/DIY" and I will tell you.

If you have a garden, put up a washing line.

Listen to PigletJohn, OP!

I'm sorry to say it but i think that buying a heated airer was a bad idea. The water from the laundry will just go into the air in the room making it damp. You have to get the damp out of the house! By ventilating and extracting the damp air.

If the bassinet is mouldy throw it away. Without immersing it in bleach there you won’t get the mould spores out.

@AngeloMysterioso

You are very focused on cleaning stuff and not on prevention of the mould issue.

I’m really not, but I would quite like to know how I can clean the bassinet that my newborn is supposed to be sleeping in in 10 weeks time… I can’t just leave it mouldy can I?!

You'll have to buy a new one

What material is the bassinet made from?

There is every chance it IS sprayable with anti mould spray.

If all else fails take it to a car jet wash and hose it down at close range. Shifts most mould stains.

It's really not the landlord's business how the tenant lives their life! If anything the landlord will just be billing the tenant for any damage which the condensation is causing.

If it's caused by penetrative or rising damp, it's structural, so would be the landlord's responsibility, @MurielSpriggs. If it is caused by condensation, it might still be a structural issue (if there is inadequate ventilation) and the landlord's responsibility eg bathrooms with inadequate extraction and no windows, no air bricks etc, no trickle vents for windows, ground floor windows that can't be locked so the property cannot be ventilated without security issues eg a ground floor flat with unlockable sash or french windows.

You need to move!! Mould wrecks your lungs your poor DS and baby

If you are getting new windows, ask for trickle vents. They might not be included as standard (to appease people who have an aversion to ventilation).

@PigletJohn

If you have wardrobes against an external wall, and the flat is damp so stuff inside goes mouldy:

Take the wardrobe doors off to allow air circulation

Pull the wardrobes a couple of inches away from the wall.

We had to fix the top of the wardrobes to the wall for stability as they’re very tall, but DH is going to make some holes in the backs and side which will hopefully help.

I’m hoping that running the dehumidifier under the airer with the cover on and the window open is enough to mitigate that issue? I’m doing smaller loads now so that everything fits on there.

@AngeloMysterioso

I live in a 2 bed flat on the ground floor of an Edwardian house. We’ve had problems with condensation for a while- we only have single glazed windows (double glazing going in this week after a 6 month wait) and we don’t have a tumble drier so until now, unless the weather has been nice enough to hang laundry outside we’ve had to dry it indoors.

We first noticed a problem when I realised that some of my shoes and boots which are kept on shoe shelves in the bottom of my wardrobe were going mouldy. Then it was the clothes which I keep in the drawers under my bed. I’m 6 months pregnant and DH and I have just checked the pram bassinet which was in its travel case under the changing table in DS’s room- mouldy. A cooler bag in the cupboard under the stairs- mouldy. Clothes of mine in a drawer in another wardrobe- mouldy. Stuff I’ve already washed once when it got mouldy has gone mouldy again.

I’m at my wits end. My shoes all stink because I’ve had to spray them with white vinegar. There’s piles of shoes and clean laundry everywhere because I’ve got the mould out of them but I’m too scared to put them away in case they go mouldy again (which they will, it’s already happened once). We’ve bought a bunch of those little disposable dehumidifiers that you put in drawers and on shelves which appear to have made no difference at all. I’ve bought a heated airer with a cover and plan to use that to dry clothes (with a small electric dehumidifier turned on underneath) but with things like the bassinet, I can’t put that in the washing machine so will have to find some other way of cleaning it.

What else can I do? We hoped that the new windows would help solve the problem but we spoke to our neighbour in the other downstairs flat the other day and it’s a big problem for her too, and she already has double glazing. I’m terrified that when I get out our next 2 me cot from under DS’s cir or the old baby clothes from his wardrobe that they’ll all be mouldy as well. Clothes can be washed, but how do I deal with the things that can’t? We can’t afford to replace everything.

Help!!

We had a massive problem too. I got the dehumidifiers that can be hung in wardrobes, and the standing ones in every cupboard. Also got an electric de humidifier and put that on with the wardrobe doors open. All that really did help. You will have to keep an eye on the dehumidifiers as they fill up quite quickly. We only had the problem in one wardrobe and we'll be tearing it out soon and putting another one in in an interior wall. The electric dehumidifiers really do the trick and aren't too expensive on Amazon. The hanging ones I got in Poundland 6 in a pack. You do need a lot of them to help draw the damp out of the air. Good luck

What everyone else has said on the dehumidifier etc. I’m afraid you need to buy a new bassinet or at least new covers and mattress. Mold is very bad news for newborns and there is no way baby can sleep in that bassinet. Hopefully it’s not too much to replace as it’s the pram base that’s the expensive part usually

@AngeloMysterioso

We have a karcher vacuum which we use if there’s window condensation.

Dehumidifier is a Homemaxs 700ml dehumidifier.

Hi @AngeloMysterioso

I've just looked up the model of dehumidifier you have.

www.carousell.sg/p/homemaxs-dehumidifier-700ml-portable-mini-dehumidifier-remove-humidity-300ml-per-day-super-quiet-dehumidifier-for-bedroom-home-bathroom-closet-wardrobe-auto-off-led-indicator-1007958442/photos/

It's quite hard to find anyone selling it. There's no point beating around the bush, it's a waste of space! It's only saving grace is that it doesn't take up much space It's 10 inches high.

That thing would barely dehumidify a doll's house. You need to buy a proper one.

Don't get in a panic about lungs. The mould can be dealt with. My kids have only ever lived in mould prone houses and they are all in secondary school, no lung problems. Neither have I. And my bed frame ended up mouldy (not now). Just keep on top of it. I see photos of condensation you'd and people complaining and I'm like....why did you allow it to get that bad and not clean it off?

Actual damp is a serious consideration though, for all those poo pooing the idea. If you do have actual damp, like we did, you can usually see a water line on the wall and it will be spoiling then decoration, looking like greasy spots. But usually the problem is condensation, not damp, or can be rectified by removing the cause of the damp eg soil against the wall. We ended up having to get walls tanked, but we had exhausted all other possibilities/solutions first.

Can only repeat what others have said, invest in a good dehumidifier like the one someone linked to. Run it most of the time when Windows are closed.

We've had windows open a lot recently and forgetting to put it on at night, within a few days internal doors stick in the frames, run it for a couple of days and all good again.

I don't think its overly expensive to run. Never worked it out but pay under £100 month electricity for large 3 bed house, 1 child, electric oven/cooker, lots of tech and wfh.

Wow your dehumidifier is a wee bit lacking. I have this one. It’s good www.meacodehumidifiers.co.uk/products/meaco-12l-low-energy-platinum-dehumidifier-meaco12le?variant=14284009898051&currency=GBP&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=google+shopping&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI6K7YnoD98gIVwp13Ch1CJQx0EAQYAyABEgKg1vD_BwE

There are no signs of any damage to anything apart from stuff like clothes- walls, carpet, furniture etc is all fine. However my neighbour in the other downstairs flat said she had it on her walls and had to redecorate with mould resistant paint.

I’m going to leave it there for this evening as this is actually starting to make me feel quite panicked. We simply don’t have a shitload of money to throw at the problem and now I’m terrified I’m making my DS and my baby ill as well.