At my wits end with mould !!

[inthedarkx]

I live in a council house which I have done for 10 years!! Every winter since I move in is the same the walls all upstairs get covered in mould!! I opens windows use my heating use dehumidifiers but it comes back fast every week after spraying with mould spray
Council know it needs major work but they skirt around it doing still little things that they know can get them through another winter without paying too much snd they manage to fob me off through summer till next winter!! It's so bad this winter !
I'll post a video of just my bathroom but all rooms are like This even downstairs along shirting boards in the kitchen it's mouldy! I think it needs a major damp proof course but council don't want to spend money.
I have a disrepair solicitor coming out tomorrow and hoping they can take my case on im so so depressed and low over this I'm ashamed of my house and I'm in no financial position to move and council won't move me ! I've got to get rid of loads more of my toddlers clothes and two more wardrobes this week. I can't afford this !!!

@BammBamm yes I've done this and all they do is check the roof and lift which they've done several times to make it look like they are doing something then they do a mould treatment and then they close complaint and on back to square one the next winter. I feel trapped here
I'm thinking about seeing if there are any charities to help me with a deposit for a private rent because I can't live here anymore

*loft

This is not your fault, it must be driving you mad! Don't give up, make yourself as painful as possible to all possible people who might be able to help. Badger your local MP, don't take no for an answer, if you can be fobbed off you will be. Keep going.

ACORN are a tennants union and might be able to help.

If you have exhausted the formal complaint route through all stages then report to the ombudsman. Your Housing provider should have told you how to do this in their complaints correspondence.

What could be the reason the solicitor had refused to take on the case? They've not given me a reason and just said I don't meet their criteria even though I signed the paper work. It's driving me insane

I've just heard back from the solicitor and they have said that my case can be challenged by the housing saying that it's condensation and it's the tenants fault 🤦🏻‍♀️ back to square one

It'll be because they don't feel confident of winning. These solicitors are not there to help you, they're there to make the firm money. Presumably it's a no-win, no-fee type set-up. They don't work for free. So if they don't think they're pretty much guaranteed to win, they won't take the case.

As previously asked, have you contacted Environmental Health at the council? This is separate to your housing association complaint process. If you haven't, it's worth a try, they might force a repair that's better than just anti-mould paint.

@Snowflake2 yes it was no win no fee. I will contact the ombudsman and environmental health tomorrow
Thanks for all your advice
I'll update the thread of any updates

Good luck. I hope you get a good result even if it takes ages, because this is your home for life so it's worth it.

You shouldn't have to be forced into private rented to have a decent property and a lot of those aren't decent either, you just have less ability to get them to fix anything and it costs you more in rent.

It wouldn't be much of a solution for you, especially if you'd need help to get a deposit together. You're going to need a deposit every time you move in private rental which could in theory be every 6 months if a place was unbearable or the rent went up beyond what you could afford. Even if you get the deposit back in full after leaving, that doesn't happen until well after you've moved into the new place.

I don't know if you're reliant on benefits but if you try to find a private rental within the housing benefit amount, you'll find there are very few and those that are available often have a massive "compromise" about them somewhere and often that compromise is a damp problem that essentially renders them unfit to live in. It's really a joke that there's any properties available within the housing benefit allowance, in practice if you want a damp-free place you'll nearly always need to top up your rent with some other funds because housing benefit won't cover it all.

Try Shelter instead

Practical question: what mould spray are you using? I.e. what is the chemical composition of it?

From the point of view of efficacy something like benzalkonium chloride (vile stuff but highly effective), regular application til it dies off, then use a fungicidal paint on the walls should stop it if there isn't a problem with the roof etc.

@JesusMaryAndJosephAndTheWeeDon I was planning to try them but I thought they only dealt with actual homelessness, do
You Think they could help me?

@Augend23

Hiya

I am
Using astonish as it's only £1.25 in Asda because I was using dettol and that's £3.50 a bottle and I'm going through a couple of bottles every two weeks it's getting expensive. I'll check the ingredients thanks

I'm also stressing because it's on the ceiling and I have to move the entire room so the mould and spray doesn't go on the beds whilst spraying ( I know I can get some plastic sheets to cover the beds but still makes me paranoid!)

I don't think either of those are made with what you need. I think both the dettol and astonish ones are bleach which may not be killing the mould at that concentration but it may instead just be bleaching it so it can then reappear so to speak.

You might find you're better off finding the appropriate dilution level and buying it concentrated and then diluting. It's not very nice but it doesn't damage fabrics particularly (e.g. I sprayed it onto my curtains and they are fine). My dad is our go to for stuff like this and he gave me a spray bottle he had diluted so I don't know what dilution ratio he uses.

I think covering the bed up should be fine rather than moving the whole room around.

Obviously I agree with everyone else that the housing association should sort it out but practically if they won't looking at a way to get it resolved yourself may be better for everyone's health.

This is shocking. I work for Citizens Advice, and some branches have specialist housing officers - it's worth trying your local branch.

Definitely Shelter.

Definitely tweet your local council and councillors. The local rags will pick this up and shame the council into action.

No mould treatment will solve the problem if the cause doesn't go away. The only way to get rid is to make sure the house can be properly dry. So no water ingress, insulated to prevent condensation and good ventilation.
Agree with getting help from CAB and shelter

Jesus, that it awful. As PPs have said, local press but also your local MP. MPs have to respond. Make it clear about health, young children and that you have repeatedly raised it - like the family who's little boy died because of council inaction.

Mould sprays aren't going to help, they remove visible surface mould but that is in the plaster and the brickwork.

Absolutely, this is right up their street, they are keen to prevent homelessness too and protect tenants.

I don't do housing work but know someonr who does and they see disrepair cases from shelter and citizens advice on a regular basis.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-64273057

this news article suggests it may be a more serious matter going forward. I really hope things change OP, you should not have to live in these appalling conditions

No one should have to live like this . Years ago when we rented an old flat it would get mould around 1 window . Their are paints you can buy . it wont fix the cause but they do slow it down very well .

Have you tried cleaning with borax solution? Also using a dehumidifier? Not a permanent solution and expensive but may help in the meantime to reduce health issues. Sorry to hear about it, mould is stressful.

Could you put these on Twitter or contact a journalist about it? You shouldn’t be living like this.
The Guardian I’m sure would be interested.

reading a few articles now, Michael Gove and Steve Barclay, who are the Ministers for health and housing, are apparently releasing new guidance in the summer in light of the little boy who died from his mouldy home.
you could try contacting/tagging them on Twitter? (I have very little faith in the tories generally though…)

maybe find who is the candidate for the other political party in your area and tell them? IE if you’ve tried your local conservative MP, try the local labour candidate.

Op this is appalling and that amount of mould is not a result of just condensation. There is something very wrong with that building and I would approach a damp specialist company to get them round, say you want a quote and get their expert advice on what is causing the damp. The will then writ w report which you can forward to the council and your mp. It could be lack of ventilation or even coming through the walls but the council clearly haven't addressed it. Good luck.

Can you take photos to your GP and see if they would sign a letter saying it is a risk to health or something.
I use HG spray for the little bit of mould in our shower that appears every month roughly. But it's a strong bleach I think and would be dangerous to inhale in large quantities.

Feel so sorry for you OP! I’d say take it to media!