private renting - growth on bedroom wall. LL not fixing, please help

prepareathome

Fuddle I know you look after that house as well as a newborn babe just remember that.

Just get hubby to check loft, on top of the bay and roof - if as you say gutters need clearing then get onto LL - but they should not be causing the problem as water should just run down the outside walls, if water is getting in due to them being blocked it then again LL problem as walls need pointing.

All landlords ( private, HA council) - I have yet to hear of one who hasn't first time damp areas are mentioned to them - always says it your fault not airing the place, not heating it etc.....

Good luck I think this the thing that causes most problems between tenants and landlords.

fuddle

James thank you for your feedback. I have a tumble dryer that I didn't use for two loads

You picked upon that issue and chose to ignore all I said about the guttering, moss and green growth?

Did you know there's salt crystals forming on that picture, indicating that the damp is coming from an external place, not internal? Obviously not. You can be as honest about your opinion all you like but here you have jumped on the "tenant's don't look after the property as they should" wrongly. My home is nipping clean and well looked after. Just because I rent, does not make me a dirty so-and-so.

I wish you well on your quest to get deposit back the deposit holding companies for two loads of washing dried indoors, especially as there's photographic evidence of salt crystals forming.

James_N

prepareathome wrote: »

Fuddle I know you look after that house as well as a newborn babe just remember that.

Just get hubby to check loft, on top of the bay and roof - if as you say gutters need clearing then get onto LL - but they should not be causing the problem as water should just run down the outside walls, if water is getting in due to them being blocked it then again LL problem as walls need pointing.

All landlords ( private, HA council) - I have yet to hear of one who hasn't first time damp areas are mentioned to them - always says it your fault not airing the place, not heating it etc.....

Good luck I think this the thing that causes most problems between tenants and landlords.

You state that this is a contentious area - and in this you are right. However it's NEVER the tenant's fault ...sure!

Apart from that your post is flawed:
defective gutters can contribute significantly. Any defect in the fabric of the building can do this.
You may be "sure" the OP looks after the house (how?) but how are you sure she doesn't steam food without opening a window, for instance.
Landlords of all types typically blame the tenant. Why? Because it's often true. It's the throwing up of hands and the knee-jerk blaming of the "evil" Landlord I object to most.
Another truth is that landlords take their business to customers who often have no idea how to look after a property. Rents are set accordingly,as it's a business (which is why renting is nearly always more expensive than buying), but every now and again you get tenant who expects the world, and everything in it for their monthly fee.
Maybe there is structural defect here. If not, it's likely to be the tenant's fault, however much they protest.

James_N

fuddle wrote: »

James thank you for your feedback. I have a tumble dryer that I didn't use for two loads

You picked upon that issue and chose to ignore all I said about the guttering, moss and green growth?

Did you know there's salt crystals forming on that picture, indicating that the damp is coming from an external place, not internal? Obviously not. You can be as honest about your opinion all you like but here you have jumped on the "tenant's don't look after the property as they should" wrongly. My home is nipping clean and well looked after. Just because I rent, does not make me a dirty so-and-so.

I wish you well on your quest to get deposit back the deposit holding companies for two loads of washing dried indoors, especially as there's photographic evidence of salt crystals forming.

If you read my post, you'll see I mention the possibility of structural problems very clearly.

prepareathome

I never said she was not at fault ( I said I know she looks after the house as well as a newborn babe, be even people get it wrong with newborns no matter how well they look after them, usually by being to careful) just pointed out if problem is caused by gutters being blocked or any crack in the walls then it is LL fault not hers - please read what is posted not imagine what you see as attack against landlords ( which from your posts you are).

I never said all LL are evil either just that when you say 'I have damp' the first thing they always say is your fault,' its condensation not damp, you are not airing or heating the place properly'. If someone would tell me they had gone to their landlord and not received this answer first ( usually without the LL coming near the place as in OPs case) I hold my hand up and stand corrected but to date at 56 years old I have not found anyone.

The OP has problem she asked for advice not a rant about how its usually the tenants fault and landlords ( implied) are just poor hard working people who only do the best for their tenants - there are some out there, heard of a few but they are a rare breed, as you say its a business to make as much money for as little outlay ( after initial purchase of property - on inherited) as possible like any other business. Some tenants do expect the moon its true others try their best not to bother the landlord and do repairs that is not really their job.

Fuddle as you have the blocked gutters so LL job whether that is causing the problem or not. So maybe have a letter written up to give to them when they come round so you will have informed them in writing about the problem even if they are standing looking at it. Make sure you keep a copy of the letter in case you do need to contact the council.

tbs624

James_N wrote: »

I have to be honest with you: we have had tenants who suffered from mould and tenants who didn't - in the same house. It is, very often, a result of the tenant's so called "life-style". You say you've dried washing in there - which contributes to say the least. A frantic blaming of the landlord is not going to help.

Come on James_N - check back on what the OP actually says

Whose responsibility is it

Other posters have made suggestions of various things to check out. I don't see that anyone is "blaming" the LL in isolation - how could they? None of us are personally familiar with the property and its condition

prepareathome says that most LLs will initially blame the T and I think that is probably a fair comment - the thing is that it's a pretty foolish LL who fails to go and check out the potential deterioration of their property, regardless of whether they think they or the T should be footing the bill to rectify the matter.

Yes some Ts do create/exarcerbate damp/condensation issues sometimes, through their own acts or omissions, but LLs should respond appropriately to a report of a potential problem in the first instance rather than simply fobbing a T off.

James_N

I think there's a clear underlying assumption here that it can't possibly be the
OP's fault, and therefore the landlord has to be to blame.
I've commented impartially.

fuddle

James_N you're the one assuming it's my fault and not the landlord's. You're the only one assigning fault, everyone else has tried to help me with trying to get the situation rectified.

It may well be my fault but I won't stand back and be fobbed off when there's a chance it may be the building that needs rectifying. As my T&C's I must report these things. Also as per the T&C's my LL must act upon these things... that, he appears to not be doing.

Mrs_Chip

No one is saying that this is the LLs 'fault'. What OP said was that LL, when advised, told her it was her 'fault' without actually checking.

Not unreasonably she was somewhat concerned about this, and has asked the forum what could have caused the staining. Consensus is that it is being caused by water penetration and not condensation and therefore resolution of the problem lies with the LL. This may or may not be true but on the visual evidence it seems highly likely. If LL had bothered to ask more questions or spend the time to visit his property, there would have been no need for the question to be asked, and the OP would not have been worried by the fact she might have been responsible. Also there would not have been any need for anyone to be quite so defensive in responding

James_N

fuddle wrote: »

James_N you're the one assuming it's my fault and not the landlord's. You're the only one assigning fault, everyone else has tried to help me with trying to get the situation rectified.

It may well be my fault but I won't stand back and be fobbed off when there's a chance it may be the building that needs rectifying. As my T&C's I must report these things. Also as per the T&C's my LL must act upon these things... that, he appears to not be doing.

My reasonable summary of both sides of the problem seems to have provoked a defensive rebuke. Which is telling.
I've listed both structural and lifestyle causes. But tenants nearly always seek to vilify the landlord first. Your first question was "who is responsible?". You and your supporters don't seem to like one possible answer, that it's possibly you.
Landlord needs to check items listed and other possible causes. If that draws a blank ...