Ways to deal with the damp smell?

flickerty

Not sure if this has been suggested already but i find an air purifier brilliant for smells, and they're supposed to be good for asthma too. I have a fresh air globe, i think from jvc, but think i've seen them on ebay as well. I can sympathise with the damp... we lived in a really damp rented house years ago and it was hell. The agency got a damp survey which made loads of recommendations, but the owners refused to pay for anything to be done. At one stage we had a rotting wall replasted and when the plaster had still not fully dried out after a month we decided it was time to leave. I hope you have more luck with your landlord.

pyueck

Damp is a common problem in rented flats. Unfortunately small spaces to cook, shower, dry clothes in and to dry washing up in is a recipe for damp.

Too many landlords make ridiculous demands such as only cooking with pan lids on, constantly keep windows open and to never dry clothes inside (despite renting out a flat with no garden). Just how many landlords can honestly say they never cook without pan lids! The landlord is responsible for making sure their flat is not likely to have damp in the structure of the building, so long as the tenant uses the flat in a tenant like manner. You should certainly not be expected to pay for a humidifier. Say to the landlord that you are having a problem. He probably in the bathroom needs to install an extractor fan, or there could be a leak somewhere, or it could be rising damp or a problem with a drain pipe. If that fails call in environmental health, although give the landlord an opportunity to fix it first.

NEH

pyueck wrote: »

Damp is a common problem in rented flats. Unfortunately small spaces to cook, shower, dry clothes in and to dry washing up in is a recipe for damp.

Too many landlords make ridiculous demands such as only cooking with pan lids on, constantly keep windows open and to never dry clothes inside (despite renting out a flat with no garden). Just how many landlords can honestly say they never cook without pan lids! The landlord is responsible for making sure their flat is not likely to have damp in the structure of the building, so long as the tenant uses the flat in a tenant like manner. You should certainly not be expected to pay for a humidifier. Say to the landlord that you are having a problem. He probably in the bathroom needs to install an extractor fan, or there could be a leak somewhere, or it could be rising damp or a problem with a drain pipe. If that fails call in environmental health, although give the landlord an opportunity to fix it first.

Already covered

Lucy_Lastic

NEH, Isn't it annoying when people don't read previous posts? Why chip in when you can't be bothered to read it all?

Anyway, just a thought, have the windows got trickle vents at the top and are these open? I had never noticed the things until my tenants complained of damp and some mouldy clothes in a bedroom. There had never been a problem in that house (I used to live there) but the letting agent immediately pointed out that all the trickle vents were closed.

I rather think that the cause of your problem is deeper than ventilation though. Some friends of mine had a similar problem and eventually found a lot of dry rot. 3 floors had to be taken up, joists replaced and concrete floors laid. I'm sure the council survey will discover the problem. Let's hope the Landlord will then put it right.

Good Luck!

keith969

I would second the suspicion of dry rot which has a musty damp sort of smell. It can spread at an alarming rate once it takes hold.