Mould on wall and in cupboard

jdsimmons3

Hi everyone moving into our first home tomorrow!! 
The survey we received was mostly perfect considering the age! Only thing worried me was inside one of the kitchen cupboards. 

The mould is on the wall (behind the wall is the garden) and spread to the wood in the cupboard. This is the only mould we saw and was mentioned. The survey reported its due to condensation and to check the cavity wall insulation.

My question, firstly how can I fix  this quickly the day we move in? Do I just simply clean with mould on the wall with mould spray  and replace this one unit? 

Also how do i stop this happening?

 How can I insulate this part of the wall to ensure it doesn't return. Thank you.

tacpot12

You can spray the mould with Mould Cleaner. HG Mould Spray is the best I've found.

You will need to replace the cabinet, but you need to also need to investgate the cause, and eliminate the possibility of there being any fault with the wall. You probably need a specialist to look inside the cavity wall to see if there is a problem with the cavity wall insulation, but before you call them out check that the problem isn't something on the garden side that has breached the damp-proof course, e.g. vegetation or a path that has been set too high. Also check for leaks from the gutters and other drain pipes immediately above the mouldy patch. 

The issue might just have been plumbing leaks from them the kitchen waste, but I doubt it. Any fault with the wall needs to be eliminated before you can conclude that it was a leaking waste pipe. Of course, if you use the kitchen sink and connect appliances and find that the waste is leaking, this might give you more cause for hope that there isn't a fault in the wall. I would still check the wall outside very carefully and pay a specialist to inspect the cavity wall insulation if there is no other obvious cause.  

When the issue is resolved, I would consider fitting some vents to the plinths under the kitchen units to promote the flow of air behind the cabinets. 

jdsimmons3

tacpot12 said:

You can spray the mould with Mould Cleaner. HG Mould Spray is the best I've found.

You will need to replace the cabinet, but you need to also need to investgate the cause, and eliminate the possibility of there being any fault with the wall. You probably need a specialist to look inside the cavity wall to see if there is a problem with the cavity wall insulation, but before you call them out check that the problem isn't something on the garden side that has breached the damp-proof course, e.g. vegetation or a path that has been set too high. Also check for leaks from the gutters and other drain pipes immediately above the mouldy patch. 

The issue might just have been plumbing leaks from them the kitchen waste, but I doubt it. Any fault with the wall needs to be eliminated before you can conclude that it was a leaking waste pipe. Of course, if you use the kitchen sink and connect appliances and find that the waste is leaking, this might give you more cause for hope that there isn't a fault in the wall. I would still check the wall outside very carefully and pay a specialist to inspect the cavity wall insulation if there is no other obvious cause.  

When the issue is resolved, I would consider fitting some vents to the plinths under the kitchen units to promote the flow of air behind the cabinets. 

Thank you. I will definitely call someone out too take a look as soon as we can!