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Property/DIY

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Original poster

Black mould on an inside wall.

12 replies

colditz · 04/11/2012 16:52

Normally this is something I'd google, but for some reason google isn't working for me today.

How do I get rid of it?

OP posts:

PigletJohn · 04/11/2012 16:57

Is the mould patch behind furniture, such as a wardrobe or kitchen cabinet?

Is it in a bedroom, bathroom, kitchen?

Does anyone drape wet washing around yoyr home or over radiators?

bureni · 04/11/2012 16:58

You need to find the cause of the mould before you can do anything
Do you have a rising damp problem?
Do you have solid floors that are allowing damp into the room?
Do you dry clothing in the room?
Is the room well ventilated?
Are there any signs of water leaking from guttering etc on outside walls?

Original poster

colditz · 04/11/2012 17:33

Ok.

Mould patch is behind a bed, in both corners of room.

Imnpretty sure it's down to condensation, although I don't every have wet washing around as I tumble dry it.

OP posts:

bureni · 04/11/2012 17:41

you need to move the bed out from the wall to allow for better ventilation and try to open a window a little bit, the moisture could simply be down to people breathing.

YoullScreamAboutItOneDay · 04/11/2012 17:46

We get this. We even had a surveyor in. The verdict was condensation. Pretty common in older houses that now have better windows and/or have been treated for damp.

Especially if the wall you are talking about is an outside one on a cold side of the house ,condensation is pretty likely.

If it is condensation, you try and move the furniture away from the wall, open windows to air (even in cold weather), remove any condensation from windows in the morning (one of those scraper things, or a cloth). Also, if you can, sleep with the bedroom door a bit open to allow moist air to circulate.

Then periodically wipe with weak bleach on a cloth.

Rikalaily · 04/11/2012 17:58

HG mould removing spray from Amazon - It's a miracle, just spray, wait 20 mins and wipe the spray off, the mould just vanishes into thin air. It even got the mildew blackness off bath sealant after an hour and it's not come back. All the bits I cleaned off with a different product are returning so I'm going to respray with the HG stuff this time. It has a very strong bleachy smell so you need to open the windows until it's wiped off.

Original poster

colditz · 04/11/2012 18:25

Yes, the wall is actually the corner of our house. I'm having issues with condensation this year anyway, I've whacked the heating up and opened all the windows but it doesn't seem to be working

OP posts:

PigletJohn · 04/11/2012 18:33

if it is behind a bed, it is probably condensation. Tape a piece of clear plastic tightly to the wall and see if water droplets form on the wall side or the room side.

people who breathe during the night create water vapour in the bedroom. If the window has a trickle vent or the door is slightly open it will help dissipate it.

StickEmWithThePointyEnd · 04/11/2012 18:35

Are there people who don't breathe during the night then

In all seriousnes I'm finding this thread very helpful, we've recently discovered a ginourmous damp patch in a corner of our bedroom. Looks like from now on we will be sleeping with the bedroom door open.

MrsMiniversCharlady · 04/11/2012 18:51

LOL, I was just going to say "those pesky people who breathe during the night"

Do you have cavity wall insulation? This made a big difference to us.

Original poster

colditz · 04/11/2012 20:52

It's a rented house so I don't know

OP posts:

Turningupsidedown · 05/11/2012 02:15

We had this, also on a corner of our bedroom the most exposed corner of the house, it was due to condensation, our neighbors house (same design as ours) had it too in the exact same spot they got someone in to look at it and they said it was condensation. We have moved furniture away from that wall. We cleaned it using dettol mould cleaner. We also got a dehumidifier for upstairs which has really helped to stop it coming back. dehumidifiers Shop around you can get them between £50 and £70 if you have an average sized house - there are guides to check the size of area they will do. I think ours was about £70.
It can be really bad for your health so is definately a good idea to clean it off and use gloves and windows open while you do it - the mould cleaning stuff can be a bit nasty too. You can get hepa-filter masks from DIY shops that block mould spores if there is a lot to clean off. It was setting off my asthma when I was cleaning ours but was much better when I got a mask.
I work in heritage and we had an outbreak in a store this time last year. We weren't even allowed in, they called in a firm to deal with it due to the health risks. Mould will thrive in temperatures between 15 and 32 degrees and when relative humidity is over 65%. If condensation is forming in a space between furniture and the wall (due to warm centrally heated air hitting a cold outer wall) the relative humidity will be very high in that space as the moisture does not disperse and mould will love it. As it is getting colder and heating is coming on this is the time of year when it will appear/get worse.
We have just got cavity wall insulation which we are hoping will also make a difference, this will be the first winter with it, so we will see. May be worth finding out from your landlord if it has been done/could be done? There are a lot of energy companies and others offering this for free at the moment due to government grants - we got ours for free from a local firm.

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