Mould and a rental dilemma - opinions please

Pauper1

I've just copied this from my DFW diary but I thought I might get a better response over here.

For about a month we've been locked in a battle with our landlord regarding the mould in our bathroom. It's caked on, and has clearly been there longer than the 5 months we have. It's underneath the toilet (which is not somewhere I look very often, hence not reporting it to them sooner). It's been slightly backwards and forwards, and the letting agents kept getting my hopes up that the owner would be sorting it.

We had confirmation last night that he won't be. He also isn't fixing the tv port because he doesn't have to (legally he only has to provide one working port, which we have). He has previously got a leak in the roof fixed, and replaced the gas hob when the ignition went. He deals with the things he has to, but he's clearly clued up and refuses what he can.

We've got a few options and I don't know what to do. We're due another baby in April, and I don't want to bring it in to a house with mould. So either the mould is going, or we are.

A. we could pay for someone to come and clear the mould ourselves. I have no idea what type of company would do that, or how much it would cost. It's also frustrating because I don't see why we should, as it was down to the previous tenant's problems with condensation - which we don't have. It also worries me that we could fork out for this, and then the landlord keeps on refusing to sort things which we end up paying for. The rent is also quite expensive.

B. we could contact the council to serve him notice of an inspection. This could go badly. Regardless of whether the mould is deemed as bad, we run the risk of being evicted through landlord's backlash. (this happened to my friend and they even mention it as a possibility on the Shelter website, when you go down this route)

C. we move in with my parents. Our contract is due up on the 9th December, so we could give him notice on the 10th November and move in with my parents. Financially, this probably makes the most sense as we'd be able to save quite a bit in order to buy again asap. Unfortunately my dad isn't keen on the cats being in his house, so that is a hurdle. Plus we bought a lot of new (to us) furniture when we moved in to this house that wouldn't necessarily fit in their house, so we'd need to find storage. There is also the mental health aspect - both DH and I find it a little tricky to live there, but we do get a LOT of help with DS and I have much less to do in general.

D. we move into a different house. There's not a whole lot around at the moment, and the ones we have seen are quite small. We bought a brand new superking bed as we have a huge bedroom here, and so far I haven't seen a bedroom that it would comfortably fit in, let alone with a crib as well. There's two sub-options with this one as well:

• we move in to a smaller, cheaper house in order to save up money to buy again. But this means compromising on having a separate room for the cats and all their stuff, which has been really handy here. (They scratch the furniture so it's been nice shutting them in their room at night and being able to keep our new sofa looking lovely)
• we move into a slightly bigger house as we are adding to our family. We won't be able to buy again for approximately four years anyway so we could just be comfortable in that time, and wait to save money until I go back to work. We could keep the cats separate and/or give the new baby their own room. Basically we take this opportunity to look for a better house to "wait" in, but run the risk of making things tight, at least until we have the new baby and start to receive CTC.

This is really not helping my already quite poor mental health, and I just can't see what the best choice is. I did so much planning and research when we sold our house, and I believed I was doing the best thing for my family, but now I'm not so sure. Hindsight is truly wonderful. I can't see the way forward.

What would you do?

HampshireH

You say mould under the toilet?

Do you mean behind the actual pan or on a ceiling in a room below the toilet?

Have you washed it off with a mould spray?

What size area are you referring to?

If it was there before you moved in as you say it was previous tenant why didn't you get it resolved before moving in?

juniordoc

If the place you are in really is that bad then I'd move in with the parents as a temporary measure to allow you to look at your leisure for a new tenancy, with a view to buying a bit further on down the line.
Searching for a new rented place is hard as such short notice, and parents are easier to deal with it you know it will only be short term. Give yourselves a deadline, e.g. 3 months max to find a new home.
Good luck!

Niv

What do you think the root cause of the mould is?


Do you leave a window open in the bathroom? Is there an extracter fan in the room? Have you cleaned it off and it returned? If so, how quickly did it return? Under teh toilet? Where, on the pan? Dont you clean this weekly along with the rest of the bathroom? Is it only on teh underside of the toilet?

[Deleted User]

I had problems cleaning up mould in a bedroom because of my asthma. Used a Cillet bang mould spray (bought from a cheap shop) and it seemed to dissolve most of the mould so was easier to wipe away. It was quite a heavy mould infestation so I was quite surprised the Cillet Bang was this effective.

Worth a try.

Pauper1

The mould is behind and on the bottom of the cistern. I didn't know it was there before we moved in. I can't easily see/access it. I have had cleaners round to look at it who have refused to deal with it, and have told me I need a specialist company.

The previous tenant had a damp report done, which said the cause of mould was condensation. The landlord then put in extractor fans and put plastic fascias (?) over the mouldy wooden ones. As we don't have an issue with condensation that is why I'm presuming the mould is due to previous issues. (Also, I can see that the edges of the mould have been wiped. It is also absolutely caked on, and people who have seen it have agreed it has clearly been there a while)

I knew there was mould in the bathroom - in grouting and around edges of things. I have been working my way around the bathroom dealing with this. Until I got to the toilet! As I am pregnant I don't feel comfortable scrubbing that and putting spores in the air on purpose, which is why I had cleaners round to look at it instead.

We leave the bathroom window on the catch 24/7, open it fully after a shower and have the extractor fan on while in the shower. It's what we have always done in any house we have lived in.

juniordoc I think as we are so close to Christmas now, this might be the best option if we decide to move, as there's not a lot coming on the market and I don't see that it will pick up until the new year. Thank you

tacpot12

Any cleaning company should be able to remove the mould.

I would look to stay in your current property. Yes, your landlord isn't quick to jump on problems, but iif they are dealing with the serious stuff, I would accept this. You are also required to occupy the property in a tenant-like manner which means not reporting every little fault, but dealing with minor issues yourself.

You will struggle to find a another landlord that allows pets, and your have purchased furniture that really only fits in your current property. Storage is very expensive option - I've been down that route and would only do it again for a couple of months.

Paying to get the mould cleaned and get the TV Port fixed will be much cheaper than moving and less stressful. Just accept that the landlord will only fix essentials .

And leave the extractor fan on for at least 30 minutes after showering.

Pauper1

deannatrois thank you, I might have to get my husband on this. My only concern is the bit behind the cistern will be impossible to wipe. I don't even think I could fit one of those little brushes down there, so I don't see how it can be cleaned without a special steamer (from my limited Google research!)

TBagpuss

You say the mould is "It's caked on, and has clearly been there longer than the 5 months we have." - and that it is down to a previous tenant not you. You also seem to be saying that as it is somewhere you don't look often, you didn't notice it before you moved in.

Are you saying that it has been the same since you moved in, and is not getting any worse?

If that is the case, then it doesn't sound as though it is a major problem, and also that if you were to clean it it is not likely to recur.
Is there a reason you are thinking of having someone come in to do it, rather than doing it yourselves?

I think in your position I would probably in the first instance try cleaning the mould myself - if it recurs then speak to the landlord, but in the first instance that would seem to be the easiest and cheapest option.

You say that the landlord did fix the roof, and the cooker, so it doesn't sound as though they are a bad landlord - you could easily move and find yourself with a landlord who is much less willing to do repairs even when they are needed.

It doesn't sound as though moving back in with your parents would be a good idea so if you do decide to move, then look for somewhere you can go which you can afford even with the new baby.

amfan

HG mould spray works wonders on black mould. When it starts creeping in the edges of my bathroom ceiling that spray clears it entirely and keeps it away for a good 6 months or so. I used to have a terrible job with mould in my last flat due to terrible heating and poor ventilation and nothing else I tried worked as well at keeping the mould away after it had been cleaned.

TBagpuss

OK, just saw you last post - if you don't want to do it because if your pregnancy, perhaps your husband can do so.

Bleach should kill the mould, so if you use a bleach spray you should kill the spores, at which point the problem is primarily aesthetic rather than health related. Then scrub what you can reach.