Mould in toddlers room

[Stealthynamechange]

hi all

I live in rented. My toddlers bedroom has 2 external walls. I keep finding mould on the external wall by his bed despite having window open daily. Ive cleaned it off (again) im wondering if i should move his bed? But then it would be in the middle of the room or next to radiator.
The house gets lots of condensation, every morning i have to wipe all the windows down. Ive got those little dehumidifer things as well but cant afford to have an electric one running all day.
Ideas needed please.

Do you dry a lot of clothes indoors? If you look outside are there any obvious potential causes for moisture such as flat roof or leaking downpipe?
Electric dehumidifier is really the way to go, or swap rooms as toddlers should really stay away from damp rooms and mould

Karcher Window vac is an amazing invention. Highly recommended x

You can paint with anti mould paint but also I would report to your landlord. Rental prices are extortionate and you shouldn't have to be cleaning mould off the walls.

mould is caused by damp, which is water.

A common cause of water vapour in a home is wet washing draped over radiators. another is a steamy bathroom without an effective extractor fan.

Less common are leaks from plumbing or roof.

Might any of these apply?

as water vapour is lighter than air, it can rise into upstairs rooms from below, especially through ceilings that have holes in them, e.g. from downlighters or pipes.

Thanks all
It's a bungalow, i dont dry washing on radiators but the shower may be contributing - theres no fan so i have to have the window open & ds bedroom gets steamed up too so i have to remember to open his window also - gets bloody cold!

Ive reported it & did report the condensation when i moved in.

I don't think the room in general is damp (i know sounds stupid)

I cant swap ive got my tumble dryer in my room (dont ask)
Anti mould paint sounds good as does window vac!!

wind direction might blow into the window, pushing the steam into the house. I don't know a cure for that, but closing the bathroom door might help. If it does happen, opening a door or window on the other side (so it can blow straight through) will get rid of it, but only for a short time as it will make the house cold. Showers are steamier than baths, and you can reduce bath steam by running cold first, then topping up with hot, and by adding bath foam so the hot water is covered by a layer of bubbles.

Condensation patches on walls are worst when the is furniture in front of the wall, blocking air movement, so it might help to move the bed. Enough to walk round it will do.

I think I saw a Window Vac in the Aldi Special Buys catalogue (you can also order online)

Probably a Scheppach which is a budget brand, but Aldi are usually very good on refunds if you keep the receipt.

or here

And Wilko have one.

Quite a difference in prices so check the guarantee length.

The Karcher has a good reputation but is expensive.

If it’s rented contact your landlord. Mould is dangerous isn’t it?

Def anti mould paint
Also a specialist mould cleaner, you can get both for reasonable in screwfix.
Does sound like you need extra heat in the house though.
Also maybe windows aren't great?
Def a landlord job

My flat was mouldy when I bought it, as the previous tenants did not ventilate it properly.

I scrubbed it off initially. All of my windows are now always open a crack, and it has never returned. My bathroom also doesn’t vent to the outside (70s building)

We also Live in rented.
We've been telling the landlord for 3 years about the mould and damp...
It's still mouldy and damp!
It's diabolical, landlords don't care as long as youre paying the rent. 😩
Luckily we have been given notice, so we will be out soon enough!

I have a similar problem in my children’s room - Victorian property with single glazing and external wall.
The karcher window vac is brilliant - every morning it hoovers up all the condensation from the windows.
We also bought a Meaco dehumidifier - unfortunately it was pricey but so worth it. I don’t have it running all day, just part of it but it’s crazy how much water it takes in (usually a full tank in a day - 8 litres!). It’s lasted around 5 years too, used daily. It also keeps the room quite warm!

Unless there is an external fault that leads to water ingress, most damp problems are due to the occupants 'life style'

I surveyed hundreds of private and social housing properties and one could be dry as a bone and 2 properties later the same design and build of property would have condensation issues.

Ventilation, including not placing furniture up against external walls is the key.

If it's external notify your landlord in writing, if it's condensation, then the occupants need to 'fix' the problem.

I lived for years in a house that was difficult to control the mould. If it's internal o don't think the LL does have to sort it but worth checking.
In the end this is what worked for us:

We bought a cheap dehumidifier and left on for a long time first then:
Scrubbed the walls down with bleach
Then cleaned with anti mould cleaning product
Re paint with anti mould paint
Dried clothes in one room only and left windows open constantly but only a small amount and wasn't that bad when heating was on (if you don't like this it's actually better to ventilate rooms constantly anyway

This worked after a few years. It is rubbish hope you get it sorted.
Re the tumble dryer in your room, I would definitely have the window open fully and purchase a dehumidifier and leave on as well.

Oh yes and remove any furniture that's directly against the wall. It creeps up behind it

Electric dehumidifiers are worth their weight in gold! And once you get the initial damp out of the walls (providing it's not structural) you'll not have to run it as much as you'd think. Also doubles up to dry washing. I got mine for 'free' after noting the person behind me at the local tip dropping one off. I nearly snapped a leg getting out the car so quick 😳. Turned out it was his DFs and they'd only had it 2mths till he'd sadly passed away. My DC were mortified to see me rolling someone else's cast off back to the car (personally I was ecstatic!).

Thanks everyone.

I think its ventilation in the property thats the issue. I wake up in the morning & ALL windows are full of condensation.
The windows are big, as its a bungalow & type of window (large, no latch to leave open) i cant leave any open a crack which i used to do in my old house. I never had this problem there.
I'll have a look at dehumdifiers & i'll move his bed.
Thanks all

The water is coming from somwhere.

You need to work out where.

Is the drier a condenser?

Have you got a water meter?

I have no idea where its coming from.
Drier is heat pump, when its on the window is open & there are no issues in the room its in.
Water isnt on a meter.
I think its rubbish ventilation, last night just me the dog & cat, no drier running, woke up all window covered in condensation in all rooms.

I think perhaps a water leak, may be under the floor.

Is the floor wood or concrete?

Do you have a pressure gauge on the boiler?

Are there water tanks in the loft?

We've been battling mould for years, also in rented. Ours is caused by condensation on cold walls, they aren't insulated. The best treatment I've found is HG mould and mildew spray, it's bleach and also has something to prevent the mould returning mixed in. Even on very black patches, which we delayed treating because we couldn't reach them, just 10 minutes was enough to clean the wall, no scrubbing.

The mould resistant paint didn't work for us, I think you just have to keep on top of it, zap it as soon as it appears.

One thought, our worst affected walls are north facing, and never warm up. Which way does your wall face?

The landlord is responsible, it is a health hazard and you can quote from council guidelines, we did re sons mouldy student room, landlord has never moved so fast

I would ask the landlord to install an extractor in bathroom and kitchen. It is the landlords best interests too. I am a landlord and I would want to do it, in fact I am always surprised tenants rarely report broken extractors.

I would also move the bed away from the wall, leaving is a small gap will help a lot.