Panorama - damp/mould

[Mottie]

What good is a house if you can't even breathe in it?

I breathe in my house. Do you breathe in yours? Have you got mould? Me neither.

 

[Brigadier]

I breathe in my house. Do you breathe in yours? Have you got mould? Me neither.

#7

You say it is an unused bedroom (ergo, unoccupied), which you say will still get mouldy without Mrs M's interventions.............

...........which nicely demonstrates that it is not the occupancy that is causing the mould there, but the nature of the building itself.


Me?

Yes: around the window in my bedroom.
Which I have to keep bleaching clean.
It's an old DG window, which is on the list to be replaced.

Rest of the house, not that I have noticed.

In the cold weather - like now - I dry clothes indoors.

I rarely open windows when it is cold (apart from the bathroom, and only then when actually showering).

So, the above demonstrates that it is the elements of the building itself that greatly determine whether one gets mould, or not.
Otherwise, mould would either be everywhere, or nowhere.

 

[Mottie]

You say it is an unused bedroom (ergo, unoccupied), which you say will still get mouldy without Mrs M's interventions.............

...........which nicely demonstrates that it is not the occupancy that is causing the mould there, but the nature of the building itself.

Yes, an unheated room on the shady side of the house. Lack of airflow in that corner will cause mould unless the curtains and bedside cabinet are moved now and then to allow a change of air. That’s down to the occupants to do. It’s not hard. Like it says here:

The MiL's house used to leave us with a smell of damp on our clothes. She was miserly with the heating, would not open any windows and dried clothes indoors. She is now in a care home and the house is being sold but the heating has been set to a constant 16° and it is ventilated twice a week for at least an hour when Mrs Mottie or her sister call in to check on things. Result: no more damp smells.

 

[Brigadier]

The building then exacerbates the problem.
And in some buildings, it can be so close to "mould-liable" as to realistically unavoidable.

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

Yes, Insulating the walls to the correct standard would stop it. Wet clothes, cooking and breathing are normal activities.
If the building is a low end poorly insulated shìt hole, it will be vulnerable.

Rubbish! Breathing is a normal activity in a home, drying excessively wet clothes, and producing lots of moisture from cooking is neither necessary, nor desirable, especially so if the premises is older, and poorly insulated.

 

[Brigadier]

if the premises is older, and poorly insulated

Which is what some of us have been saying all along.......

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

Which is what some of us have been saying all along.......

Better insulation is worthwhile, but the way some tenants treat some places, no amount of insulation would help.

 

[Brigadier]

Better insulation is worthwhile, but the way some tenants treat some places, no amount of insulation would help.

The truth is, like it or not, the problems are a function of the occupant behaviour, and the building itself.

Landlords will want to blame the tenant, because it's cheaper for them to do so.

 

[Stivino]

Landlords will want to blame the tenant, because it's cheaper for them to do so.

I blame my tenant, not because it is cheaper to do so, but because there was never damp in the house before he got there, and now I see a picture of mould in the corner of the room with a clothes horse covered in clothes underneath it.

 

[mattylad]

I have had mold on the external walls in my front bedroom and it was bad in the back bedroom that was next to the bathroom.
The back bedroom had my adult youngest son in with his computer running most of the day, he got mold on the external wall and a shelf.
I explained that this is because of the hot air from the computer hitting the cold wall, the door never being opened and my son's refusal to clean the wall etc.

Our bedroom wall my wife was adamant that we had a leak, I pulled the paper back to show her that the wall itself was bone dry and explained that with no bathroom fan we must open the window when showering and leave it open for 30 mins afterwards, told the adult daughter too.

Since the youngest son moved out and we redecorated for the past 12 months ish we have had no mold in the back bedroom, we also do not get it in the front any more either.

I.e. It's all our own fault.
Education is the key, tell em what to do or what the consequences are.

 

[noseall]

Rubbish! Breathing is a normal activity in a home, drying excessively wet clothes, and producing lots of moisture from cooking is neither necessary, nor desirable, especially so if the premises is older, and poorly insulated.

Lol.
Tenants: DO NOT ENTER THE HOUSE WITH RAIN SOAKED CLOTHES OR COOK FOOD IN THIS HOUSE. IT IS A POORLY INSULATED SHÍT HOLE AND DOES NOT RESPOND WELL TO EVERYDAY LIFE.

 

[MNW67]

So many people just don't know to put a lid on a pan and turn the ring down.

 

[noseall]

Education is the key

Or you could just insulate the building and leave them blissfully unaware.

 

[noseall]

I blame my tenant, not because it is cheaper to do so, but because there was never damp in the house before he got there, and now I see a picture of mould in the corner of the room with a clothes horse covered in clothes underneath it.

Without tenants and their inevitable vapour, what is the point of renting?

 

[Jurassicspark]

LLs often have issues gaining entry for regular checks

And what issues are these?

and, because things are heavily slanted in favour of tenants, LLs can't enter without their permission.

I know that. A landlord can drive past the property though.

Yes there will be LLs who don't bother, that's not reflective of the majority.

Who said it reflected the majority?