Creating vent between cupboards

[DIY67]

I have an old Victorian house with built in cupboards which are back to back. There is a damp problem due to lack of air movement in both. We have damp crystals in bags to extract, but it isn't enough. Would drilling a hole through the mortar line (not brick as too messy) in the adjoining wall between them solve the problem ?

I have included an image of the space they both occupy from the hallway.

 

[jj4091]

If they are on an outside wall you will always struggle to stop condensation making the wardrobe and cupboards appear damp as the warm air from the room will create condensation on cold back walls. In a similar situation I do the same as you but use the boxes of crystals that can be emptied of water and refilled. I also use Neutradol balls to stop any damp smells. Both at floor level. Air needs to flow in and out so drilling through the adjacent wall is in fact just creating a larger cupbpard you would also need vents or gaps under the doors. Or just leave the doors slightly ajar.

 

[Deluks]

If they are back to back, it can't be an outside wall.
Perhaps one room is not in use and left unheated? increasing the heat and adding background ventilation would help.

(One might be reluctant to heat an unused room, just as one might be reluctant to heat a shed, but you wouldn't keep your clothes in a shed)

 

[DIY67]

Yes, they are back to back so the wall that separates them is not an outside wall. But the side wall is an outside wall. I have put insulated lining paper on the outside facing surfaces which has helped a bit but still getting faint black mould here and there. I have a couple of those lakeland coat hangers that have crystals filled in a bag inside that you microwave when moisture is to be taken out, but again it's limited as you have to keep remembering to release the moisture as it's a faff. We don't really have the central heating on as we now rely on a log burner for heat.

 

[StephenStephen]

It might be helpful to introduce ventilation at the top and bottom of the front of the wardrobes...

I'm not sure that a mortar line slot or hole between them would be big enough to make any difference, and I'm thinking that they need ventilation to the outside of the wardrobes, rather than just moving air around inside.

 

[endecotp]

Fit louvered doors.

Reduce humidity in the rooms.