Mould on carpet underneath sofa

faithlehane

Hi there,

Short story: got the sofa bed out yesterday, discovered the carpet had gone mouldy underneath the sofa.

I understand condensation and walls getting mouldy, but carpet where there’s no obvious source of moisture? Does this indicate there could be a deeper problem in the floor, e.g. a leak from the radiator or rising damp? Appreciate air flow under the sofa is less. I just need to work out how to talk to my letting agent about this and who is more responsible.

Can I clean and thoroughly dry the carpet, try and somehow vent under the sofa further or is there something bigger at play here?

The front room is north facing but the house is heated all day as I work from home. Single glazing. Two bed semi, built early 1900s. I am renting.

Thank you!

[Deleted User]

Applying water containing vinegar (or you could buy a vinegar cleaning spray - Wilkinsons do one) will deal with the mould.

I would also steam it if you have a steamer.

Obviously the carpet needs to be thoroughly aired and dried after cleaning (even if you have to towel dry it).

However mould can stain fabrics, you might not be able to do anything about this.

It might be that the sofa needs to be moved occasionally. Moths tend to like living under sofas because a lot of people don't move them and hoover under them. I always do this at least once a month as there's always a lot of dust etc under there.

Personally I'd wonder if there is damp coming up through a concrete floor and not having chance to evaporate because the sofa is over it. But this is a guess. You will have to look at where the sofa is (i.e. near a radiator or a possible leak source). But the only way to really know is to pull up the carpet and inspect the floor underneath it to see if there is excess water and where it is coming from. You could try feeling the carpet and see if there is damp just where the sofa is or if it is elsewhere.

anselld

Heating is not sufficient on its own to prevent condensation and a cold floor is just as good as a cold wall to collect it.

As well as heating you need to minimise the generation of moisture by not drying washing indoors or leaving lids off pans whilst cooking etc, and to ventilate daily by opening windows - yes even in winter!

Alternatively get a decent dehumidifier.

Norman_Castle

Make sure the plastic underneath the sofa isn't sagging to the floor. If it is either tighten it with staples or put something, plastic bottles or similar, underneath to raise the plastic allowing ventilation.
Wiping fabric with white vinegar can help stop mold growth. Remember to do the underside of the sofa.

G_M

Keep the dog off the sofa.....

csgohan4

Norman_Castle wrote: »

Make sure the plastic underneath the sofa isn't sagging to the floor. If it is either tighten it with staples or put something, plastic bottles or similar, underneath to raise the plastic allowing ventilation.
Wiping fabric with white vinegar can help stop mold growth. Remember to do the underside of the sofa.

Will vinegar even diluted , degrade a sofa over time due to it's acidity?

faithlehane

Thanks for all your replies! I don't have any pets but the previous tenant did and I am 100% sure they didn't clean that carpet properly on the way out based on some smells...

Anyway, I have cleaned the carpet, dried it thoroughly. Cleaned the bottom of the sofa which was also mouldy, it's still over on its front as don't want to put it back yet. Dehumidifier coming today. The house is already well ventilated and heated as I work from home and I'm really careful about it. The sofa is quite chunky and I can see how the airflow underneath plus the sofa bed with a cold floor and warmth from the radiator might cause an issue, but still not clear on where the moisture is coming from in the floor. I've had the sofa ten years and friends have the same one with no issues (I've only been in this property since August). Maybe when the radiator pipes are cold they attract the moisture and it seeps up? Don't know. I've reported it and an upstairs mould issue to the landlord as I think they need to check the floor for a leak etc as others have mentioned. The carpet is really wedged in so I'd rather they took a look.

[Deleted User]

csgohan4 wrote: »

Will vinegar even diluted , degrade a sofa over time due to it's acidity?

I was suggesting vinegar and water solution on the carpet where I assume the mould is. Not on the sofa. Its not neat vinegar.

I am sick of people suggesting we should all live with windows open. I like fresh air, but even with cardigans, thick clothes, I freeze with an open window right now, my son comes down and starts muttering 'hypothermia' under his breath as he closes the window lol. Surely houses should be bullt so they so they can cope with the amounts of day to day moisture us horrible humans produce doing awful things like breathing and cooking and oh dear, drying clothes (I know we should either not wash them or wear them wet) so we can live in them without getting hypothermia? There's a reason we started building houses instead of carrying on living in 'open to the air' caves. Given all the 'we need to live with windows open' comments on threads about damp, I wonder why builders even put windows in houses. Obviously they are the problem. We close them. Terrible idea. Lets all protect houses and just leave the window cavities in case we are stupid enough to want to not live with freezing gales blowing in our houses.

bjt2019

Try vinegar water or you can use black mould spray. They do some fab stuff with cilit bang? Think it's the purple one.
If you keep finding its a repeat problem then best to check the venting in the property.

DoaM

deannatrois wrote: »

Surely houses should be bullt so they so they can cope with the amounts of day to day moisture us horrible humans produce so we can live in them without getting hypothermia?

They usually are ... however maybe they weren't in the early 1900s when OP's property was built.

RelievedSheff

deannatrois wrote: »

I was suggesting vinegar and water solution on the carpet where I assume the mould is. Not on the sofa. Its not neat vinegar.

I am sick of people suggesting we should all live with windows open. I like fresh air, but even with cardigans, thick clothes, I freeze with an open window right now, my son comes down and starts muttering 'hypothermia' under his breath as he closes the window lol. Surely houses should be bullt so they so they can cope with the amounts of day to day moisture us horrible humans produce doing awful things like breathing and cooking and oh dear, drying clothes (I know we should either not wash them or wear them wet) so we can live in them without getting hypothermia? There's a reason we started building houses instead of carrying on living in 'open to the air' caves. Given all the 'we need to live with windows open' comments on threads about damp, I wonder why builders even put windows in houses. Obviously they are the problem. We close them. Terrible idea. Lets all protect houses and just leave the window cavities in case we are stupid enough to want to not live with freezing gales blowing in our houses.

Modern houses are designed to cope the amounts of moisture produced from day to day living. However when the OP's house was built people didn't quite have the same grasp of what was required to keep a house warm and dry.

Adequate ventilation is required to keep condensation and moisture at bay. Modern double glazing units will have trickle vents that allow a certain amount of air changes per day to help combat condensation and houses will have extractor fans in kitchens and bathrooms to extract the moisture laden air and vent it outside.