What to do with mold

Halloween Jack · 29 Nov 2012

Hi there,

Our sitting room is painted a dark brown and there is a light dusting effect that has appeared near the front window.

Under the window was treated for damp about 7 years ago.

A few years after the light powdery look appeared there. I wiped it down and it stayed away for some time. Now it's slightly back but is further into the room as well.

There are no dark spots or circles like the mold i've seen elsewhere. it looks like dust on the dark walls.

So I just wondering what's best to do.

Is it possible to know what kind of mold this is, or what kind of damp is causing it?

Should I try a mold treatment on it or worry about getting the walls checked?

Cheers

keyboardangst · 29 Nov 2012

The wall being too cold is very often why you get mould. Is the room warm enough? I just spent a couple of days getting rid of mould from a bathroom and painting with anti-mould treatment. It's in a house that has been rented out for years. I never had a problem till this current tenant. It's fairly obvious he hardly ever has the gas central heating on.

foxhole · 29 Nov 2012

You need to clean the walls and provide adequate ventilation, heating has no effect, in fact can make it worse as warm rooms support more moisture.

Hattiewall · 30 Nov 2012

a dehumidifier can really help you out. Try not to air out wet clothes on racks if thats what you are doing and keep the room temp moderate. Id suggest shifting sofas and chairs you have though. Unless you use latex mattresses / pillows , that mold will get into the furniture and ruin it

keyboardangst · 30 Nov 2012

foxhole said:
You need to clean the walls and provide adequate ventilation, heating has no effect, in fact can make it worse as warm rooms support more moisture.

It doesn't matter how moist the air is if it's not condensing much on the walls. In the summer the air is at its most moist but you can leave your window open in the bathroom all the time in that season. It doesn't matter. In the winter with cold bathroom walls in a poorly heated bathroom the walls will be wet all the time.

Mikefromlondon · 1 Dec 2012

Some people do not allow enough ventilation to get rid of moist air, prime cause of mold, opening windows to allow moisture to escape after a bath or a shower, and to stop drying clothes indoors, these are the prime causes of mold.

Empty house, no heating, no showering or bathig or cooking etc = no mold but house is cold and dry!

foxhole · 4 Dec 2012

keyboardangst said:
foxhole said:

You need to clean the walls and provide adequate ventilation, heating has no effect, in fact can make it worse as warm rooms support more moisture.

Click to expand...

It doesn't matter how moist the air is if it's not condensing much on the walls. In the summer the air is at its most moist but you can leave your window open in the bathroom all the time in that season. It doesn't matter. In the winter with cold bathroom walls in a poorly heated bathroom the walls will be wet all the time.

Nonsense.

JohnD · 4 Dec 2012

when you say "moisture" you appear to mean "proportion of water vapour in the air" which is of course not the same as "relative humidity" which is more relevant to condensation.

A cubic metre of hot dry air in the Sahara contains more water than a cubic metre of cold damp air in Manchester.

Halloween Jack · 5 Dec 2012

Hi there, sorry for the late response and thanks for your replies.

So as it stands do you think I shouldn't be overly concerned with the wall structure (like having damp etc)? Just getting rid of mold?

The room is badly ventilated but there's nothing I can do about that.

Should I just clean it off and get some mold killer stuff from the supermarket?

Any recommendations?

Cheers

JohnD · 5 Dec 2012

Halloween Jack said:
The room is badly ventilated but there's nothing I can do about that.

ventilation is the thing it needs most.

If it has no windows, I suppose you will have to make a hole in the wall.

does anyone drape wet washing around the house?

once the humidity reduces, the mould will die.

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What to do with mold

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