Ventilation / Condensation

[geo99]

Hi Folks,

Hoping you can help.

About two years ago I spent a fair chunk of my money on doing up my apartment. New carpets, new kitchen, new heating system (econo 7 to gas) new flooring, new bathroom and change the old wooden windows to PVC. As you can see a fair bit was done.
About a year and a half ago my partner got pregnant and we decided to move in together and as the property market was crashing had to rent the apartment out. This is where the problems started!

In my time living there (approx 6 years) I had the odd tiny wee bit of mould form on the wall – a few blacks dots here and there, but after all the work I had done and changing the heating system and windows I thought that would get rid of any small problems I had! My new tenants had been in the place no more than a few months when they called me complaining there was mould everywhere. So I inspected the apartment only to find that they were drying soaking wet clothes over the radiators and not opening any windows or venting the rooms! I instructed them that this need down to prevent mould and mildew growing and they looked at me like I had two heads! They had just moved out of the family home where mom and dad did everything- enough said!
Long story short they moved out and I got advice from builders and ‘experts’ to say that the place was poorly ventilated and installing a vent in the bedroom (main source of problem) would get rid of it! So I had a hit and miss vent put in and new tenant and everything seemed fine. I have just been round to see the new tenant and the problems back. Nowhere near the extant that the last tenants had but back none the less. This time in the living room and again in the bedroom.

So what to do? Should I install some more vents in the living room? Unsightly but do the job!
Should I get anti mould paint and paint over the areas affected then repaint with nice new paint???

The current tenants being pretty good about everything and it is nowhere near the same amount as before but I would like to get it sorted!

Please help????

 

[JohnD]

//www.diynot.com/wiki/building:condensation_in_houses

 

[^woody^]

If this is condensation mould, then it is down to the tenants lifestyle and not a landlord responsibility. The tenant will assume responsibility for it and for cleaning it.

However, if you want to get it sorted, then its not just a case of vents or heating.

There may be particular attributes of the property - eg design, orientation etc, which make it very difficult to prevent condensation. You could follow the standard guides and get nowhere.

If you add extra heat emitters, then will they be used? If you add vents, will they be opened or covered up?

You could try an electric, humidistat controlled extract fan to the bathroom and kitchen. A vent is not enough.

Alternatively, consider a "positive pressure" fan unit. Environvent, Loftmaster, Lofty etc - discussed previously in the building section or google. These will work, but will be about £500

 

[geo99]

//www.diynot.com/wiki/building:condensation_in_houses

Thanks mate!

Read it back to front several times!

 

[geo99]

If this is condensation mould, then it is down to the tenants lifestyle and not a landlord responsibility. The tenant will assume responsibility for it and for cleaning it.

However, if you want to get it sorted, then its not just a case of vents or heating.

There may be particular attributes of the property - eg design, orientation etc, which make it very difficult to prevent condensation. You could follow the standard guides and get nowhere.

If you add extra heat emitters, then will they be used? If you add vents, will they be opened or covered up?

You could try an electric, humidistat controlled extract fan to the bathroom and kitchen. A vent is not enough.

Alternatively, consider a "positive pressure" fan unit. Environvent, Loftmaster, Lofty etc - discussed previously in the building section or google. These will work, but will be about £500

Thanks for the info woody!

I would love to sort the problem but spending £500 quid is out of the question. Like most these days, money's tight!

Like you said it could be a number of issues like the design layout etc. And rightly it is down to the lifestyle of the tennants and they're responsability to maintain it.

Do you think though that a combination of the anti mould paint with new vents may help combat the problem??

 

[JohnD]

if not already done:

start with trickle vents on the windows

fit extractor fan in bathroom that ALWAYS comes on with the light switch,

 

[foxhole]

Your windows should all have trickle vents in them, do they?.
Heating will not help condensation, heat merely increases the amount of moisture the air can support making condensation worse.Ventilation is free and the only thing that will remove condensation.Every room should ideally have a permanent vent, you exhale several pints of moisture every day in needs to be removed or you will find it on you walls and mold will take hold.

 

[Bilioustrumpstaine]

Tenants need to be educated, I do a lot of work for letting agents and the things some tenants do constantly amaze me.

You can only do so much and I would think long and hard before you commit to expensive remedies that your tenant will maybe switch off/not use. I see landlords buying dehumidifiers and installing them but the tenants won't use them because the cost of the electricity.

Ventilation, ventilation, ventilation.

Tenants very rarely look after a place the way you do yourself and are unlikely to change their habits, why not change your tenants.

I see properties that haven't had mould/condensation problems suddenly develop them when a change of tenant occurs, when they leave the problem goes away with them.