Why is my house mouldy?

Afitos · 24 November 2008 at 9:40AM

Hi,

I hope someone can help as I am so fed up with it!

My house has mould growing everywhere. It is growing on the wallpaper, under the stairs, on the window frames which are plastic! and today I have noticed that a chair we don't use (it is an antique) has mould growing up the back of it.

We haven't had the central heating on alot as we have been trying to keep the bills down. Could this be the reason?

I have read that i need to use a bleach solution to get rid of it, that's my job for today.

Would be grateful for any advice at all

Thanks
Sally

BB1984 · 24 November 2008 at 9:47AM

It's probably a combination of cold and lack of ventilation. Have you been keeping all the windows shut to keep the warmth in? Houses need to breathe, so if there's no fresh air circulating, mould does often happen due to condensation. Try removing all the mould as best you can, then keep a few windows open on a trickle vent if you can. Or open some windows for half an hour or so every day. Unfortunately it probably means you'll have to put the heating on more, but that will help the mould situation too.

You could also try getting a dehumidifier, or moisture traps. Look on other "mould" threads for more ideas.

BB

Afitos · 24 November 2008 at 9:55AM

Thank You,

Will have a look now

savemoney · 24 November 2008 at 9:56AM

AS said above you need to increase the temperature and either increase ventilation or get a dehumidifier, I think its false economy being tight with heating

neas · 24 November 2008 at 11:25AM

Scrub with Bleech solution mixed with water.

Then Scrube with Vinegar.... then scrub with bleech then vinegar... do this and most of it will come off.

Keep ontop opf it as the mold can go deeper into paint meaning you have to redecorate.. also mould isnt good for your health so keep ventilated.

As to keeping the place warm...

Mould needs:

1. Humidity
2. warmth
3. Food

Lack of ventilation and warming house all time will make alot of mould (i.e if its like a sauna in there with steam on windows).

A cold house doesnt mean mould, otherwise vacant properties would be swamped with the stuff.

So open windows after bath showers... close doors when cooking so you dont spread moisture around house... Use extractor fan etc, and open windows more often... treat current mould as above and keep an eye out forit.

Afitos · 24 November 2008 at 11:05PM

Thank You,
I have scrubbed it all with bleach today and thankfully most of it has come off and not left any stains.

Am looking at a dehumidifier to get rid of some of the water.

Thank You for taking the time to help

Sally

brownbake · 24 November 2008 at 11:17PM

We had a similar problem and used neat bleach to get rid on the advice of a damp specialist. Don't put water anywhere near it!!! This feeds it

TomsMom · 24 November 2008 at 11:20PM

Getting rid of mould permanently is not easy and apparently bleach is not a permanent solution. See this thread which recommends a couple of propriety brand mould removers, and post #7 gives an economical home remedy. This thread also has some advice.

If you search the forum for mould quite a lot comes up.

jonifen · 24 November 2008 at 11:52PM

We had a problem with mould upstairs in our house - we live in an end terrace house, so the end wall gets quite cold sometimes.
We ended up getting a delonghi dehumidifier from Comet for about £100 and it is on most days; turning it off at about 7pm-ish.

I haven't noticed a massive increase in my electricity bills as a result, but saying that, I have personally started using my desktop computer less (instead, waiting until later when I'm likely to use it for something else too) so I suppose it has almost counter-acted any potential increase.

Anyway, to cut a post short which is otherwise in danger of getting into ramble... it seems to have done a good job of cutting out the mould - we just keep our eyes open for it and wipe the walls with baby wipes when we first see any marks appear.

savemoney · 25 November 2008 at 2:54AM

The Polycell mould remover is quite good, bleach does do it but you obviously have to be careful how you use it ie spills etc Not sure if ist good on clothes or furniture though but neither would bleach.

You have to be careful with mould it can be harmful to your health

Sard · 11 June 2010 at 12:37PM

Bleach is not the best. I've been advised by a mycologist that a mix of 80% vinegar (white cheap stuff) and 20% water should be put in a bucket. Then fill another bucket with plain water. Use a microfibre cloth. Dip it in the first bucket and then wring out - wipe over the affected area. Then rinse in water bucket, wring out, then start with first bucket again. Don't wipe the vinegar/water solution off the surface. The second bucket (of plain water) is for cleaning your cloth only. Apparently mould will eat the vinegar - it literally stuffs itself to the point of explosion. While vinegar may not get rid of the appearance of mould, it's one of the only things that will kill it - all along the hyphae which might be inside your walls or whatever. But the main thing is to find the cause and try to fix that first, then do mould remediation. There are also fogging products on the market that can kill 99.9% of mould, apparently. I've set up my own information website on mould, as we lived in a mouldy house for 5 years (caused by dodgy plumbing by a previous owner - sewage fumes were belching up under our floorboards) and ended up with shocking health problems. We even lost a couple of pets as a result. I'm taking a year off to try to get better and to try to get my kids' health and learning up to scratch again. My site, though, is mainly targetted at Australia, although it does have some american links and a few NZ ones too. Anyhow, if you have any health concerns it might be worth a look - mouldyhouse.com

All the best.

Why is my house mouldy?

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