To ask how you keep mould away?

[Rudolphrum]

For those of you mumsnetters who live in older houses how the hell do you keep mould in the windows at bay?

We recently moved into a rental where all of the upstairs rooms are not double glazed. Every morning we wake up to a pool of water on each window which we try to wipe off. We now have mould on all the upstairs windows which I've been bleaching tonight.

This can't go on - surely there's a trick I am missing? A friend told me to sleep with Windows open but it's fucking freezing!!!!!

DS is in a converted Victorian flat and has this issue. He has no garden so all washing has to be dried inside. A lot of his stuff couldn't go in a tumble drier anyway.

Any tips for him? I have told him to leave windows ajar but he is very forgetful so if he opens the window he is likely to just go out and leave it wide open which isn't a good idea in his neighbourhood!

open all windows as far as they go for 10 min morning and night.
bathroom window open & door closed after shower/bath. same kitchen after cooking.

Yup, ventilation, and keeping moisture in the air down if you can. Open windows every day. Run a dehumidifier if drying laundry indoors. Use extractor fan in kitchen plus open a window or the back door if boiling pasta or whatever. Window vac on the single glazed windows. Regularly clean window frames to remove any beginnings of black mould. You have to stay on top of it.

Even putting lids on pans when cooking can help reduce the level of moisture in the air.

I had this problem for years. A condenser tumble dryer solved it overnight, plus the heat it gives out adds warmth to the house which helps prevent the condensation.

Do you have space to put one upstairs? Even on the landing if there is room?

Emptying the water drawer made me realise quite how much dampness had been going into the house before when I was drying washing, it is literally at least a pint of water per load. I was horrified.

I hate this black mould! It’s stained my window sealant, any ideas how I sort that out?!

We have a house that is always so full of condensation and mould i feel like setting fire to it most of the time.

Seriously.

We’ve had air vents put in the roof, air bricks opened up in the walls, opened windows, had the heating on and windows open (might as well just set fire to a wad of cash), used enough dettol mould spray to benefit from shares in it and so on.

We’ve had our bathroom completely redone and already the plaster on the ceiling is bubbling and peeling due to condensation- 6 months after it was done and with a new fan as well.

I just give up with it all. I don’t know what the answer is. I would never, ever buy another 1950s house again because of it. Everyone along our road has the same issues.

Sorry that was a huge rant.

Dehumidifier will be worth every penny, but I would also speak to the landlord about the situation. They may have no idea how bad it is and may want to try to improve the situation. It's very detrimental to the house after all!

Bleach will remove mould on the surface but even if not visible it is still there so if you move onto a house that has mould in the walls it is tricky as interventions will need to go deeper. Yes to opening your windows at least in the morning while you are having breakfast and possibly a cm at night

My flat was mouldy when I bought it,having previously been rented out. Got rid of the initial mould with scrubbing and since then the windows have been left a tiny bit open all the time and I dry washing outside. No mould any more

@cuppycakey a dehumidifier and wiping away any condensation as soon as its noticed will help in that case. A window doesn't need to be open all day, just opening them all for 10 minutes will help.

URG - pet hate is tenants complaining about mould. If you can wipe the mould off, it's condensation caused by inhabitants. If you can't wipe it off, then you have a structural problem - leaking guttering is a usual suspect.

It's amazing how much moisture we produce!

@Fairylea is your house non-standard construction by any chance?

We have double glazing but no vents so bad mould for a while when we moved in ... we did the following:-

New back and front doors
Window vacuum
Get trickle vents on window frames
Better loft insulation but with vents in the soffits (or is it facias?' ... bottom parts )
Condenser tumble dryer and we dry everything possible in utility room which is separate to house
Anti mould paint
Clean mould with mould spray when bad and freshen areas with mix of water, tea tree oil and zoflora

It's worked really well and rarely vacuum windows now or get mould

@Amorea it’s just a standard 1950s ex council 3 bed semi. We had surveys etc done before we purchased it and no issues were shown. It’s just purely bad condensation. It’s the worst house I’ve ever lived in. It drives me crazy.

Thanks - I think he will have to get a dehumidifier as he's too air headed to be trusted with the windows.

I should add we have also had all guttering replaced, fascias replaces, flat roof replaced and whole main roof retiled and re felted. Back and front doors replaced. All in the last 6 years since we moved here.

I live in a new build, only a year old, I have a major problem with mould too. I’ve started opening the windows a crack, for a few hours every day. It was on the radio the other day, with a new house it’s because it’s too watertight.

I've not had mold but my downstairs (house built into the hill) was like a damp cave when I moved in (80% humidity at least). Those little thermoelectric dehumidifiers do absolutely nothing, I bought a proper Ebac compressor based dehumidifier for £170 and it's transformed the downstairs (it's now an even 50%). Cracking a window (and heating the house) is far more expensive than running one. A decent dehumidifier will have a floor space rating so you can use that to figure out how many you need and they have build in hygrometers so they'll only turn on when the humidity rises.

Our old house was like this. We spent around £200 on a dehumidifier and it made a huge difference. Also dries the washing much quicker and stops it having that slightly damp type smell. It is a constant battle though!

We had a proper ventilation system installed. All the damp air gets sucked up the chimney.

@Fairylea - I only ask as I have a 50s semi ex-council house and although it's non-standard, it's not a 'black listed' construction - it wouldn't be a concern for a mortgage company for example.

BUT it's extremely, extremely unforgiving in terms of mould. Doesn't seem to want to breathe! So I sympathise!

Have you ever had chance to see the construction of the walls?

Like PPs, a window vacuum and a suitably powerful dehumidifier.

If you have no alternative to drying laundry but indoors then a powerful dehumidifier with a laundry drying setting is essential.

No matter how cold the house, ventilation, and cross draughts have to be tolerated.

I just wash down the windows every couple of weeks and wipe condensation when I can. Use vinegar for cleaning the windows as DD is asthmatic and spray makes her cough. We dry washing inside as there is nowhere else. Also can not afford to run a tumble dryer not buy one nor more to the point have space for one. Also trying to cut down electricity consumption.

@Bound what ratio of each would you use?

@Amoera that’s interesting. I haven’t ever got to see the construction, I just know the walls are brick and have had cavity wall insulation done - which I don’t think should have been done but there we are, we’ve had it checked and it was done properly at least, but I can’t see how that helps as the house can’t breathe (it was done before we moved here). I do think older houses and some newer ones are just made to be unbreatheable.

I lived in London for 25 years in a terraced house and never, ever had issues with black mould. So it was a huge shock to move where I am now and have this endless battle!