Mildew in built in wardrobe

knockknock · 27 Jul 2007

Hi all, I hope someone can help with my problem.
I have a bungalow that was built in 1969. The problem is mildew in a built
in wardrobe, should it be ventilated in some way. The room is double glazed and central heating. The wardrobe is built onto an external wall.
mildew seems to be mainly at ground level, shoe become affected. I have
had the floor boards up and all is dry, there is no rubble and it is a concrete base. I have also checked the roof and drainpipes/gutters etc.
the ventilation bricks below ground level are clear. Hope someone has a
cure, thanks in advance. Ben

foxhole · 30 Jul 2007

Should be ventilated, put in small vents top and bottom to encourage air movement.

Diyisfun · 30 Jul 2007

Its the condensation running down to the bottom, is why you get it at the bottom.
Many, Many years ago I had this problem, I linned the walls with thin polystyren sheet. (you could buy it on rolls back in the 60'S)

Stoday · 30 Jul 2007

Small vents will probably make the problem worse.

The wardrobe is probably the coldest place in the room; warm air from the rest of the room moves there and drops some of it's moisture. You need to get some heat in there and/or reduce the heat loss from the wardrobe. Samll vents will only increase the amount of damp air circulating but not enough to warm it up, thus exacrebating the problem.

Get some insulation on the outer wall and also add vents top & bottom to get enough air circulating to keep the inside from getting too cold.

ModernMaterials · 7 Aug 2007

as someone already has said, the wardrobe is a cold space.

you need to ventilate the wardrobe space into the room to warm it up enough to stop the condensation.

billyo · 22 Aug 2007

leave the door open when the heating is on that will vent it

foxhole · 3 Sep 2007

Ventilation is the only cure for damp due to condensation, comment which contradict this are mistaken.

diyandknowitsdone · 10 Oct 2007

The cavity between the outer and inner wall may not be insulated, causing the mildew.
I would enquire with your local authority to see if there are any grants available to have the cavity wall insulated and as well as curing the condensation would make the house a lot warmer.

JohnD · 10 Oct 2007

oddly enough the warm air from inside the room holds more moisture than the cold air outside. So you could solve the condensation by ventilating through the wall to the outside, rather than from the room.

An alternative method is a small tube heater to keep the inside of the cabinet above condensation point

You can make a cheap improvement by reducing the level of moisture inside the room, e.g. by opening windows more often, avoiding any sources of damp (except breathing)

for other ideas please see the Wiki in Building
//www.diynot.com/wiki/building:condensation_in_houses

Edited: Curses, the question arose last July.

pcspike · 23 Nov 2008

Condensation is a big subject, and most of it seems to be explained here http://www.thediyworld.co.uk/condensation.html

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Mildew in built in wardrobe

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