Problems with mould

MortgageMamma

slowpoke_rodriguez wrote: »

Get a good duvet and open the windows at night. It may be your breath causing the condensation, especially if, as you say, the rooms are small.

Are you kidding we would FREEZE??! That's quite an unreasonable thing to ask anyone to do in my opinion :eek:

johannalf88

We sleep with the windows open at night, always have. I know several people who do. It's not the Arctic!

DRP

MortgageMamma wrote: »

Are you kidding we would FREEZE??! That's quite an unreasonable thing to ask anyone to do in my opinion :eek:

You wouldn't freeze under a duvet. It only needs to be open a crack to get some air in/out.

Do you have the heating on overnight?

MortgageMamma

we live at the top of a big hill and the bottom of another one - its very windy here even on days when its not that windy on flat land - we are about 650 feet above sea level its freezing here! No way could I sleep with windows open unless it was June-Aug

camptownraces

Unbelievable. So when are the windows opened - 1st June?

A good feather and down 13.5 tog duvet will keep you warm when temperatures outside are -10C.

No wonder there's mould.

MortgageMamma

The windows are opened every day - we also open the front door about 10-15 times a day. The back door is left open quite a while when the dog goes outside, I think its a bit unreasonable that one is expected to sit around with the windows open day and night to prevent mould! I would rent a stable block if that was the norm.

I expect if our central heating was decent and the radiators were actually big enough to heat a room properly I may be more inclined to keep them open a little longer. Windows open or not, a wardrobe should not be green at the back at 5 months old!

frugalsmurf

You shouldn't have to sleep with Windows open...I wouldn't unless it's summer.

haf1

No, of course you don't have to sleep with open windows. Airing out the rooms for about 10 minutes (all windows open but heating turned down, of course) should get rid of humid air. You don't even need 30 minutes as you are doing now, the point is more to keep the rooms (walls) warm but get humidity out quickly, airing several times a day. It might also help to get a humidity meter for a few pounds to check if there is any progress.

Is there any trace on the outside of the property, e.g., overflowing gutters? If the windows are as bad as they appear to be and if the roof is in similar shape, it may not be just a condensation problem.

Ask the landlord offered to pay for dehumidifiers, you could try to get back to him on that issue - it's his property that is deteriorating, after all.

slowpoke_rodriguez

haf1 wrote: »

No, of course you don't have to sleep with open windows. Airing out the rooms for about 10 minutes (all windows open but heating turned down, of course) should get rid of humid air.

Ho hum...
opening the windows for a few minutes during the day will get rid of some humid air, but it's at night you're creating the moist air. Much of this will gather on cold surfaces such as your walls and soak in. Opening the window for ten minutes during the day will not clear this; you need a breeze as the moist air is created.
If you have the windows closed and the heating on all night, some of that moisture will be sweat. It sounds delightful.
Stop being so precious.
Feeling a breeze on your tootsies poked out from under a warm duvet is one of life's unsung pleasures!

Sagz_2

We had a mould problem in the downstairs loo, upstairs spare room, conservatory roof and around the double glazing seals. I sprayed it with poundshop mould killer and bought a dehumidifier, which solved the problem beautifully.
I was really impressed with the dehumidifier, it pulls an amazing amount of water from the air and deals with the whole house (2 bed semi) even though it's downstairs in the conservatory. It turns itself on if we start running the bath upstairs! Best £100 I've ever spent.