Wet wall and mould in my 5 year okd DD's bedroom

jellyjem_2

I have cleaned the mould with specialist cleaner but I suppose it will be back, the wall is really cold and soaking wet and her bed felt a bit damp too tonight though it could just have been cold as it felt okay after I had finished reading her a bedtime story.

My husband thinks the wet wall is due to condensation because the room is cold and next to the bathroom but we cant afford to put the heating on. Does anyone else get this, what can I do to stop the damp and mould, it is right next to her bed and at face level, I am so worried about it. I cant move her bed as there is no where else it will fit apart from against this wall.

This is our own home, we have lived her 12 years and never had this problem before but in the past when it was cold we just wacked the heating on. My husband was made redundant 18 months ago so things are a lot different for us this year.

We have checked the roof and the guttering and cant see any problems there. Though our neighbours had a new roof a few months ago so I am wondering if the roofers could have knocked one of our tiles (we are i a terraced house). Hope someone can help.

pollys

We have this problem. My sons room has two outside walls. Quite often the wall is wet and in the morning the window is running with condensation. We have had to move the bed onto a different wall as his bedding against the wall was damp. I suggest airing the room as often as you can. Leave a window open. A dehumidifier is great for removing moisture from the air. Drying washing indoors adds moisture to the air so try to avoid this.

We have just bought some moisture traps from Lakeland, they take a couple of weeks to start working but they are now collecting water.

We have had the dehumidifier on all day and night as son was out and we can't believe how much water it has collected.

Some heat would help.

Just a thought is there any possibility that there is a leak in the bathroom from the shower, is it fixed on the wall behind your daughters bed?

Hope you manage to get it sorted. It is an ongoing battle in our house.

Pollys

jellyjem_2

Hi Polly - is the dehumidifier expensive to run? We are on a prepayment meter.

Its horrible isnt it. DD bedroom is next to the bathroom but the shower is in the other far wall. Saying that the bathroom is quite mouldy too. I think we probably do need a new extractor fan in the bathroom as it gets quite steamy but we cant afford it.

Kaz2904

You need to minimise the water in the air. That means having the bathroom window open whilst showering and leaving it open until the steam has dispersed.
Dehumidifies are great because they suck in cold wet air and blow out warm dry air.
A quick google shows that they use around the same amount of power as a TV so around 3p per hour (not sure how this translates to current price rises). It won't run all the time if you get a smart one which just turns on and off as the humidity levels rise.
Other tricks are to air the bedrooms every morning with the bed open to get rid of the condensation produced when sleeping.
All of the moisture reducing tips will help your house to keep warmer too as you won't have cold wet air hanging around.

dandy-candy

Definitely agree about having a window open in bathroom both during and after showering/bathing. Also I have lukewarm baths compared to DH who likes to have them so hot he turns red! There is much less condensation after my baths.
Would it be possible to turn only your DD radiator on so it keeps the bill to a minimum. You really don't want her getting ill. Or is her sharing your bedroom a possibility?

evie451

If the wall is wet on contact then your husband is probably right in that it is condensation. if its just this wall then its because this wall is colder than the others, the water in the air is hitting this wall and condensing. if soft furnishings are becoming mouldy as well that is the sure test. presumably it hasnt happened before because the bathroom was always heated along with the rest of the house but that is minimal at the moment?

reducing moisture in the air and more air circulating is the key. have you closed vents in the room to stop cold air? some people do this to stop drafts but it has a knock on effect of less air circulation. the problem can also be solved by battoning the wall layering a bit of insulation and putting up a sheet of plaster board as a sort of false wall, this stops the water in the air hitting the colder wall....but depending on DIY abilities that could be costly.....

savemoney

Try and let air get to the wall ie open windows when you can leave gaps so air can reach the walls. Get a dehumidifier mine when running uses less than 300w.If you have a lot of condensation it might run for a few days on most of the time as the house dries out and may not come on as often

gayleygoo

Same problem here too, in my 6yr old DDs room. It has two outside walls so the corner where they meet is always black! I mean to try to get into a routine of cleaning it weekly if necessary, and use vinegar and tea-tree oil as a "rinse" water after a good soapy clean. I've heard that I should dry it a bit with a hairdryer after washing so that I'm not adding to the problem!

That wall does not feel damp. However one of our conservatory walls is very wet and the plaster is falling off, which is due to our neighbours' broken guttering pouring its water onto that wall. Just make certain that there isn't any sort of leak that could be causing it, even a leaky pipe inside a wall could do it.

I'm hoping that once we get heat in the house it will help. We have the windows open every day (which is fine until the heating goes on!) and moved stuff away from the damp wall to increase circulation. Also those little cheap crystal dehumidifier thingies can help if you don't want to spend money on a big one. Perhaps the money saved could buy a small radiator/heater for her room instead, that would keep it warm and dry?

I know its a pain, and a particular worry when it potentially affects your children, I hope you get it sorted a bit xx

fiftyeighter_2

I do sympathise I have the same problem. I,ve lived here for 10 years and the problem only started about 3 years ago. First in my DD,s bedroom now in mine. We live in a detached bungalow so obviously the rooms all have 2 outside walls. I leave windows ajar all the time, hav heating on and leave space between the walls and furniture but still it comes. I have cleaned it with special cleaners and painted the walls with that fungi thingy but still it comes back. You feel as though you are fighting a losing battle. It has now stained all the white filler thing up the double glazed windows. I wish I knew how to stop it.
I worry so much as both of us suffer from asthma and I have COPD.
I up pose all we can do is keep washing it down.

evie451

Mould in houses can be an absolute curse....... black/green mould can also appear on walls from penetrating dampness coming in from the outside, the acid test is the furnishings getting mouldy too, that is condensation mould for definite.

Tracing damp getting into a house can be problematic but broken gutters and cracked/pitted render are notorious culprits. pointing on brickwork becoming very worn has also been known to let water in as well.....

sonastin

If the windows are covered with condensation too, it is worth wiping them down each morning and ringing the cloths out into the sink. The more moisture you can get rid of down the drain, the less there will be hanging around in the air making everything damp and mouldy.

Can you move the bed away from the wall a wee bit? Even a couple of inches of gap will help the air to circulate and help to keep the mould problem down.