AIBU to think loft storage should keep things clean and dry?

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I have a new build house with the loft boarded.

I recently put some things up there without covers on them (my baby’s old car seat and pushchair).

My friend told me they will get dirty up there without being covered up, the same as if they were in a garage. She said they may go mouldy and need to be in a sealed bag.

Is this true? I thought that the loft would keep things clean and dry.

Yes, they need to be covered. Your loft is not the same condition as the rest of your house.

Nothing in our loft gets wet but it can get dusty/dirty. There are all sorts of things up there that can produce dust/dirt;
beams tanks and pipes insulation etc.

IDK about the loft but the garage in my newbuild definitely makes everything mouldy. Luckily a MAN came to check and said it was built correctly and told us to keep things at least 4 inches from the walls. Which we were already doing as per their advice. And which doesn’t explain why stuff in the middle of the garage gets so mouldy. I still think it’s not built properly. They also advised us not to store anything in the loft. People in the 70s built garages and lofts competently, why can’t they do it today?

Well you could find out the hard way and bung your stuff up there uncovered.

Yes things in my garage get mouldy too. Hence why we had the loft boarded! I didn’t think we’d also have this issue in the loft, especially in a new build.

The difference is whether the loft insulation is below the boards or above them in the roof.

Things will go mouldy in a loft if the temperature difference is massive, think hot days, cold nights - condensation etc. The loft also needs ventilation because of this so generally have special roof tiles that let air flow (via holes in them).

If the loft is boarded and the insulation is at roof level, that means the loft is in effect habitable, it could be plastwred, have a bedroom up there, heating etc. then less likely you will have that massive temperature swing, condensationand ventilation.

The insulation is under the floor boards up there. Then there is a black roof lining behind the wooden trusses.

I've never had anything go moldy in the loft, btu it does get very dusty. Garage is more of a problem, but that may just be our particular garage. Saying that I was told garages don't have a damp-proof layer in the same way houses do.

Lofts can be humid. They can also get very hot and very cold.

Materials in the loft can outgas in the heat (adhesives etc), in my loft something is doing this - I don't know whether it is glue, sealant or something that was used in construction. That smell can make it into your things. Certainly when I leave my loft hatch open a certain smell comes out, it normally goes within a few days or so.

The heat can perish rubber and make plastics brittle.

Lofts can also get very dusty and dirty as for some reason they don't bother to vaccuum them after they are built. The insulation may shed small fibres that can cover stuff and especially work their way into clothes.

And of course if they are old they may leak water.

Lofts can leave a bit of a musty smell too. We use boxed with lids and vacuum bags for loft items

My loft is absolutely fine for this but it is double insulated (floor of loft and under eves). Things might get a titch dusty but no mould etc.

You said you only have the floor insulated which means much less protection. Basically at that point try it and see. My mum's house has this and it's fine, completely dry. My MIL's house I wouldn't. Just check regularly to start with, maybe put a few tissues flat in different places to see what happens.

We’re in a new build. Things stay relatively dust free and dry in the loft but it’s not like a room in the house, it can get very hot or very cold and that means variations in humidity. We don’t cover much but we do bag things like pillows and duvets and we find they still need a good airing before use.

Things will get dirty, but it should be dry unless you have a roof leak

Because in the 1970’s there were national standards in legislation.
In 1984 Mrs Thatcher decided to shred these standards. That had served the nation well. Builders were allowed to nominate their own private ‘sign off’ for building standards rather than go through the local authority.
The size of rooms was removed. So houses became smaller. And plenty more in this vein.
Progress it was not.

They’re not specifically built for storage purposes so no I wouldn’t expect it. I don’t ever store anything in the loft

Most new builds specify that nothing should be kept in the loft as blocking the air flow can lead to mould in the rest of the property.

There isn't much difference between a loft and a garage if insulation is below your boards.

I store stuff in massive lidded plastic boxes and tape one of those disposable dehumidifiers into the corner, they do gradually fill with fluid so definitely some damp there to collect.

So yeah it'll need covering up.

I thought the same as you, then found a load of stuff was wet in my loft, thorough investigations revealed no leaks, it was the condensation forming on the underside of the rooftiles above and dripping onto stuff leaving them wet, then mould formed. We had to have ventilation added into the roof (fancy tiles with holes).

Orientation of house makes a difference, we have a South facing garden & Roof, so also a North facing roof side... which is where worse problems arise apparently

Never heard of anything going mouldy in lofts but always very dusty. Everything in my loft is in proper storage bags/boxes to stop the dust.

We renovated 3yrs ago. It was a complete gutting of a derelict house, so new roof, loft, windows etc and essentially similar to a new build. Our loft is boarded out too. I was amazed at how quickly spiders moved in and built webs and the amount of dust and dirt seems to come from nowhere.

I have Christmas things in crates up there, and each year, they come back down with a layer of mystery dust! I've never noticed any mould or damp though. I'd be putting your things in thick plastic crates, not cardboard boxes which rats can chew through, or at the very least, cover the baby things with plastic sheeting or old bedding sheets.

Lofts have spiders, which get webs all over everything. And they're not centrally heated or ventilated, so they get too hot / too cold / damp / too humid etc. I wouldn't put anything really precious in a loft.

We were told not to as it would compromise the insulation (ours is very deep). In the end we had a suspended floor fitted with the site manager’s approval. It works extremely well, nothing gets dirty but as I said upthread, changes in humidity mean some items can get musty.

Warm damp air comes up from the house into a cold loft and makes things go mouldy. Pisses me off every time. I now keep most things susceptible to mould in those big plastic bags that you suck the air out of with a vacuum cleaner.

It completely depends on your loft, there isn't a blanket rule. We have had things go mouldy in a room that we were sleeping in, because it was too humid (drying washing plus cold bridging from outside).

If there is good airflow and ventilation then things should not mould, but then again lofts aren't always built with airflow in mind. It is probably safest to cover them and chuck in a few of the damp reducing packs, or vacuum sealing might work as said.