New flat making me a bundle of nerves

foodfoodfood

I really need some advice about the flat I have recently moved into please.

It is the proverbial home from hell. There is a laundry list of things wrong with it - I have seriously never been in a flat that is in worse repair. Most of the issues are frustrating but after resolving the seriously dangerous ones in the first 48 hours I can live with the rest of them if I have to apart from two things which are making the place intolerable.

There is damp in the walls and all the woodwork and plumbing etc has cracks and gaps, what does this mean? SILVERFISH! I had a plumber round 4 days ago who fixed two leaks in the ensuite which were contributing to the damp problem, but not the only cause of it. Both bathrooms are overrun and the silverfish have started getting into all the rooms. There is nowhere safe and I can't unpack any of my stuff or even have a good night's sleep for fear of them crawling on me.

The second issue is that I can't cook anything in the oven - all the markings have rubbed off the front of the machine, so no temperature settings, no function settings and no name or serial number for me too look it up online. There isn't even a metal tag inside the door like most ovens.

All this is driving me mad. I just want a flat without bugs where everything works. Not too much to ask for when I am paying well over the odds in an area where most places go for a lot less. I know it could be worse, but I am at my wits end.

Should I buy a dehumidifier to get rid of the silverfish? I have seen one for about £180 that looks good but I can't really afford it and I am worried that it won't work.

Please help me, I don't know what to do any more.

anselld

Report all defects in writing to the address for serving notices on the rental agreement.

Meantime, a decent dehumidifier should certainly help and is a good investment. But it isn't a long term substitute for fixing any defects.

Ask for oven instructions to be provided or failing that, perhaps buy an oven thermometer and find whichever function setting makes the oven hot.

If there are better places going cheaper then seek to move after the minimum term.

Mrs_Imp

Bought or rented?

If it's rented, then you need to contact the LL with your concerns.

poppysarah

Look up the model cooker and look for photos of the knob.

bluebird

I don't get it, why would you move INTO a flat if its so bad?

pinkteapot

Good idea above re oven thermometer. I use one and cook by that rather than the controls anyway as they aren't that accurate. Cheap solution to that particular problem. I have this one:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0001IWVD0/ref=asc_df_B0001IWVD07764607?smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&!!!!!googlecouk06-21&linkCode=asn&creative=22206&creativeASIN=B0001IWVD0

Kynthia

Silverfish love damp, sugar, starch, paper, clothes fabric, so get rid of clutter and piles of stuff in the affected areas. Clean as much as you can, maybe with bleach, and try to reduce damp. Maybe try a woodlice powder or some kind of crawling insect insecticide.

eidad11

:money::money::money::money::money:up:money:

Mr_Thrifty

Re: the oven, talk about fussy!!!

I mean, how difficult can it be to work out? Turn this knob, the oven heats up. Turn that knob, the left-right hob comes on. Turn that one, the back-left hob comes on, etc. And presumably the more you turn the knob, the hotter it gets. For the oven, assume top end of the scale is say 230 deg C and the bottom end is say 150 deg C. Is it really that much of a problem?

As for the silverfish, stick some bug powder down and they'll be gone soon. Not really a big problem at all. After all, it's not like you're in a scene from "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" where they're crawling in your ears or anything...

Denene

Re: silverfish

I hate them too. Although I know they don't do much harm, going into the kitchen at night for a glass of water and finding them around the taps was driving me crazy!

You could try leaving whole cloves around where they appear, which apparently deters them, and worked for me. Obviously not a long term solution, but might make it more manageable for a while.

sandsni

I'm absolutely no expert, but I would have thought there's an issue of safety if the cooker doesn't have readable controls. I'm assuming the flat is a rental since I doubt you'd have bought a cooker in that state for your own flat. Ask the LL or LA for a copy of the user guide or details on where you can get one (if you can't find the details on the cooker to look online yourself then it's a reasonable request I would have thought).

As far as the bugs go, I'd have to agree with the other posters, just do what you can to make the flat as uninviting for them as possible. I occasionally get silverfish in my bathroom, but so far I'm still here to tell the tale :-)