Rental House - extractor fan

northwest1965

Tenant has advised that there is mould behind the kitchen units on the wall. 
The house is 1910 terrace. It is the exterior wall of kitchen that wall units are on. The kitchen is approx 6x6 with large window and extractor in cooker hood.
Agent has had someone take a look and have quoted us for a humidity fan £312 and then to make good and paint with stain blocker and mould remover for another £240.
As it's a large expenditure we want to make sure the fan is really needed! Would an air brick be better? Trickle vents? 

Teapot55

Does the cooker hood actually extract through to outside? If not, I’d recommend an extractor fan - Xpelair-type.

Dehumidifiers are excellent at extracting the excess moisture from the air, which at present is condensing on the nearest cold object, ie the wall. However, a dehumidifier should be switched on only when the window is closed, otherwise you’d be trying to dehumidify the sky. 

The price you’ve been quoted for a dehumidifier seems a little steep. I bought this one & would recommend: https://www.johnlewis.com/meacodry-abc-dehumidifier-white/p3885098 

grumbler

It makes no sense to me to have an extra fan in addition to the extracting hood.

northwest1965

grumbler said:

It makes no sense to me to have an extra fan in addition to the extracting hood.

It is an extractor but not to the outside

shaun_from_Africa

northwest1965 said:

grumbler said:

It makes no sense to me to have an extra fan in addition to the extracting hood.

It is an extractor but not to the outside

If it doesn't have a vent to the outside then it's not an extractor, simply a recirculating hood. These are designed to remove grease and cooking smells but won't have any effect on the moisture produced by cooking or by any other household activities.

Emmia

Is the agent talking about a wall mounted extractor fan with humidstat, which means it will come on automatically if the humidity goes over a certain level? We've got windowless bath / shower rooms and these have been game changing in dealing with the moisture build up, vs the (cheap) normal extractor fans they replaced. 

We've got this model
https://www.screwfix.com/p/vent-axia-479089-7-5w-bathroom-extractor-fan-with-humidistat-timer-white-240v/870gy

We've also got a meaco dehumidifier (a similar model to the one linked to) - and it's great, but also a faff because its freestanding and needs moving from room to room.

greatcrested

Duplicate post

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6174816/rental-house-extractor-fan-kitchen#latest

Mardle

I'd suggest fitting a trickle extractor with a humidistat boost. We have a wet room near the kitchen and have a Vent Axia trickle extractor in there which does most of the work in reducing the humidity in the house. The kitchen has a Manrose Humidistat extractor which kicks in when necessary.