Damp Everywhere!

watermelon88

We live in a ground floor flat and we are having some major damp problems.

The main problem we have at the minute is we have an airing cupboard and a walk in cupboard that we use for storage, and the damp has got to pretty much everything in them and we are having to throw things out.

We're going to clean and air out both cupboards, but is there anything we can do to stop the damp from coming back??

Also how can we stop things from getting that musty "storage" smell?

Someone said once about putting something in a bowl in a room that gets damp to draw the moisture out of the air??

I have already lost all my handbags and shoes, I don't want to lose anything that we manage to salvage!

inspace

We got a dehumidifier and ran it for 12 months night and day at first we got loads of water (6 pints a day) and it got less and less. move it around your house but dont sleep with it on in same room lol it dries ur mouth and throat badly.

watermelon88

We can't afford the electric costs of running a dehumidifier

phill99

watermelon88 wrote: »

We can't afford the electric costs of running a dehumidifier

How do you know? Do you know how much a dehumidifier costs to run?

It will cost no more than a fridge to run. And that will be a lot less annually than a pair if shoes and a handbag.

Debt_Free_Chick

watermelon88 wrote: »

is there anything we can do to stop the damp from coming back??

I know this sounds obvious, but once you've cleared out the cupboard, you need to try and identify the cause of the damp and then see if/how it can be remedied.

Odd to have damp in an airing cupboard - but it could be condensation ... or something else .... small leak from the water tank ...? I'm assuming there's a hot water tank in there ..?

Jonesya

First step is to find out where the damp is coming from - is it external through the walls or foundations or condensation?

How old is the house - does it have cavity walls or solid brick walls?

watermelon88

We can't afford any more electric than we use now put it that way.

There's no tank in the airing cupboard. It's just a cupboard.

The wall in both cupboards isn't an external one.

We're going to see if we can figure it out. Council are dealing with the damp problem in the bedroom as that's terrible.

tony6403

Could simply be ventilation that's required. Does the door to the cupboard have a grille fitted - something like this?

watermelon88

Nope neither of them do

tony6403

watermelon88 wrote: »

Nope neither of them do

Suggest that you ask the council to fit them - or just one as a trial to see if it makes any improvement.
If this is not council policy, the grilles cost about £4 from the likes of B&Q. You would need to have the tools to do this.
No guarantee that this will get rid of the problem but it is the least expensive starting point.

watermelon88

We've got builders coming out to deal with the damp in the bedroom so will ask them when they're here.