Dampness causing allergies? Unlikely to be mould.

[lilyflower1803]

Hello!👋

We bought and renovated a very mouldy flat and moved it in August 2023. We stripped back the walls to exposed brick and replastered using waterproofing (allegedly!). Over winter we have several damp spots which are being investigated and hardly any mould yet 🤞 (a tiny bit in the bathroom that we keep on top of). We have now two dehumidifiers, but without them we struggle to get humidity down from at about 60-75 %. Even then, as soon as we turn them off, humidity goes straight back up- it’s a real battle.

Since moving in in August- when the flat was dry (!), both my partner and I have struggled with allergy like symptoms, itchy eyes on wake up, irritated nose and eczema (for me).

I’m quite allergic and have lots of airborne allergies including dust mites so this isn’t unusual for me when living in a new place, plus it was summer when moving in and pollen was high. However over time/winter it is now affecting us even worse and has given my toddler very sore eczema and I haven't been able to shift my eczema with steroids so it is clear something is really bothering us. We have thought of mould, left over builders dust, dust mites being left on old furniture/cleaned the radiators and carpet fibres from fitting!

Surely it cannot be any mould as we got rid of it all and replastered? Any ideas/advice? Not expecting miracles but just curious to see if anyone has suffered with similar.

Ps our dehumidifier has an air purifier in it!

Most people are not as switched on as you are. Like you, I have had to be as I have horrible allergies and asthma as do my DC. I’m no expert, just a fellow sufferer.

Itchy eyes on waking up rang a bell for me. We recently had this problem and it turned out to be our washing powder, Persil Non Bio. It had been reformulated with a strong scent that we were reacting to on our pillow cases overnight. We switched to Fairy Non Bio and have been much better. Just letting you know in case this could be a factor for you.

If you think it could be a mix of causes- Some local charities will do you a thermal imaging camera visit. The heat map will show if parts of your home have insufficient insulation. It might be if there are specific cold spots that you’re getting internal condensation forming there and that’s allowing mould to grow in the colder months.

@Cherryon just out of interest, have you ever had any problems with damp exacerbating your allergies? Allergies are just the worst and it's frustrating to me that I cannot find the cause of our suffering.

That's interesting! I've been using supermarket own brand washing powder but have been chopping and changing on what is cheapest at the moment as we do so much washing! I will bear it in mind and try a different one thank you :)

Hi! That's interesting I haven't heard of that. We currently don't have any mould growing in our property apart from a tiny bit in the bathroom, not to say it won't try to start growing given the state of our walls at the moment!

To add to your allergy question, not quite the same as you though. I have always been quite allergic, hay fever, eczema etc, my husband has not. We have very severe black mould all over the house (housing association) so much so we have to warn people not to come in. My allergies have been very severe since it appeared 2 years ago and my consultant said it is solely down to the black mould. My husband is suffering with sneezing, blocked nose, itching etc. also down to the mould. My husband's allergies started just before the mould appeared and was much more noticeable than mine simply because it was so unusual. So your escalation in allergies might well be due to the damp was what I was saying albeit clumsily.

Hi! That definitely rings a bell with us. My partner hardly ever gets allergies, at worst ever so slightly bunged up when it's very high pollen but has never had a problem elsewhere which is why it has alarmed us too. Interesting about having symptoms prior to the mould developing, I hope that's not going to be the case for us but we are being vigilant.

Gosh sounds like a nightmare having to manage all that, have the housing association not been able to help rectify the issue?

I know. It was the OP who said that the water was coming in through the exposed brick, and I was querying it.

Hi @aitchteeaitch,

On one of the particular areas of dampness, the water we thought was coming through a dodgy airbrick and was making the exposed brick wall on the inside wet. We thought we fixed this problem but this area of the wall is still wet and getting worse.

@aitchteeaitch the cavity insulation on the inside is fairly dry and there isn't any rubble or concrete on wall toes bridging the gap so it is a bit of a mystery at the moment.

I know this is old thread bit wanted to let you know mould spores are in the fabric of the building, and therefore the air, long before you can see visible mould. So yes, very likely to be the cause of your husband's allergies and of yours increasing.

@starbat thank you , so that begs the question- how on earth do you get rid of it? I also think it may be dust mites- I am very allergic to them and they thrive under higher humidity (around 60-80%) where our flat often sits at