Landlord mould advice...

mmunro2013

youth_leader said:

I bought this bungalow in the March and in the autumn had a big problem with condensation and mould on the inside of the windows/window sills, and on the rafters in the loft.   

Most unfortunately I also found out the weyroc floors were all sopping wet and mouldy due to the condensation.  The chest of drawers the seller had 'gifted' me stunk of mould, and my clothes on the bottom of the wardrobe were also covered in mould.

I did some research on here and realised I needed ventilation inside the property.  The front bay windows have cavity wall insulation, I checked all the airbricks were clear.  Two chimney breasts have been capped off - only one has a ventilation grid.  Two tiny windows in two of the five rooms have trickle vents.

I now open the windows a little in every room every day.

I found an electrician to install a positive input ventilation unit in my loft - I got one without a heater.

It has worked.  I've not had any condensation or mould forming anywhere since.  I always use a dehumidifier on 'laundry' mode to dry my washing, and use the extractor fan in the kitchen when cooking.  The fan in the bathroom comes on with the light switch.

The mould is only on the walls/ceiling... floors upstairs are carpeted (no mould / damp reported). Floors downstairs are laminate wood (again, no mould / damp reported). It sounds like your property is older than ours (bay windows and chimney references). I will look into the 'positive input ventilation unit in my loft' solution... thanks

WIAWSNB

mmunro2013 said:

Thanks! some great advise here, I will read/digest and potentially share with the tenant... I have been chatting to my builder/tradesman and thinking about blocking of the stairwell and putting a door at bottom of the stairs for access. This should help stop letting the hot air gravitating to the upstairs. The tenant sent me a video, however I can't upload this here, so I have taken a snap of the video here...

Hmm, how many rooms are affected like this? 

Especially if only one, I would suggest you actually have water ingress there, so should have the loft area and roof checked.

That damp patch looks to be too defined and localised to be condensation. It also appears to have rivulets of water coming down the wall? That's serious for condie, so I would also expect a much wider area to be affected if so, and windows to be streaming with condensation.

I suspect - but only suspect - you have a leak from outside. That would be good news in many ways, as it would be a tangible and fixable cause. Fix = sorted.

mlz1413

If lots of clothes are being dried this is likely to be the problem.

Could you buy one of the driers with the dehumidifier built in? Example is :
 Minky SureDRI Heat Pod Clothes Drying System  
But lots of others available. 

I know you said there is a dehumidifier running,  but do you know if it is on with the windows closed?
And left on for hours at a time?

This style of drier limits the moisture escaping into the house.

mmunro2013

WIAWSNB said:

mmunro2013 said:

Thanks! some great advise here, I will read/digest and potentially share with the tenant... I have been chatting to my builder/tradesman and thinking about blocking of the stairwell and putting a door at bottom of the stairs for access. This should help stop letting the hot air gravitating to the upstairs. The tenant sent me a video, however I can't upload this here, so I have taken a snap of the video here...

Hmm, how many rooms are affected like this? 

Especially if only one, I would suggest you actually have water ingress there, so should have the loft area and roof checked.

That damp patch looks to be too defined and localised to be condensation. It also appears to have rivulets of water coming down the wall? That's serious for condie, so I would also expect a much wider area to be affected if so, and windows to be streaming with condensation.

I suspect - but only suspect - you have a leak from outside. That would be good news in many ways, as it would be a tangible and fixable cause. Fix = sorted.

My tradesman is going to repair the paintwork. I will get him to check the lift space for water ingress etc. I have asked him to check the loft insulation and put more in if needed. I don't think the windows are streaming with condensation, however will check this out.

mmunro2013

mlz1413 said:

If lots of clothes are being dried this is likely to be the problem.

Could you buy one of the driers with the dehumidifier built in? Example is :
 Minky SureDRI Heat Pod Clothes Drying System  
But lots of others available. 

I know you said there is a dehumidifier running,  but do you know if it is on with the windows closed?
And left on for hours at a time?

This style of drier limits the moisture escaping into the house.

Good shout... we have something similar at home. Seems to be a good alternative to a dryer. Not sure about how the tenant uses her de-humidifier, I will check.

mmunro2013

mmunro2013 said:

WIAWSNB said:

mmunro2013 said:

Thanks! some great advise here, I will read/digest and potentially share with the tenant... I have been chatting to my builder/tradesman and thinking about blocking of the stairwell and putting a door at bottom of the stairs for access. This should help stop letting the hot air gravitating to the upstairs. The tenant sent me a video, however I can't upload this here, so I have taken a snap of the video here...

Hmm, how many rooms are affected like this? 

Especially if only one, I would suggest you actually have water ingress there, so should have the loft area and roof checked.

That damp patch looks to be too defined and localised to be condensation. It also appears to have rivulets of water coming down the wall? That's serious for condie, so I would also expect a much wider area to be affected if so, and windows to be streaming with condensation.

I suspect - but only suspect - you have a leak from outside. That would be good news in many ways, as it would be a tangible and fixable cause. Fix = sorted.

My tradesman is going to repair the paintwork. I will get him to check the lift space for water ingress etc. I have asked him to check the loft insulation and put more in if needed. I don't think the windows are streaming with condensation, however will check this out.

Only one room affected I believe

WIAWSNB

mmunro2013 said:

mmunro2013 said:

WIAWSNB said:

mmunro2013 said:

Thanks! some great advise here, I will read/digest and potentially share with the tenant... I have been chatting to my builder/tradesman and thinking about blocking of the stairwell and putting a door at bottom of the stairs for access. This should help stop letting the hot air gravitating to the upstairs. The tenant sent me a video, however I can't upload this here, so I have taken a snap of the video here...

Hmm, how many rooms are affected like this? 

Especially if only one, I would suggest you actually have water ingress there, so should have the loft area and roof checked.

That damp patch looks to be too defined and localised to be condensation. It also appears to have rivulets of water coming down the wall? That's serious for condie, so I would also expect a much wider area to be affected if so, and windows to be streaming with condensation.

I suspect - but only suspect - you have a leak from outside. That would be good news in many ways, as it would be a tangible and fixable cause. Fix = sorted.

My tradesman is going to repair the paintwork. I will get him to check the lift space for water ingress etc. I have asked him to check the loft insulation and put more in if needed. I don't think the windows are streaming with condensation, however will check this out.

Only one room affected I believe

If this was due to condensation, ie a high level of moisture in the inside air searching for the coldest surfaces to condense out on, then I would expect more than one similar room to be affected, most likely more than one room corner involved, and the window panes to have water beads formed on them too. In fact I'd expect the windows to show condie before the walls.
Also, condensation generally appears on wall corners as a formation of mould, with not such a sharply-defined damp edge. 
And to have condensation seemingly 'streaming' down the wall is pretty exceptional, and that level of condensation would be expected to also be very present in other areas and windows (unless there was a specific and isolated cause, such as that corner being blasted with cold air from above - unlikely.)
In short, if that is the only affected corner, and to that significant extent, and with such a defined wet edge, then it suggests a leak above. 

WIAWSNB

It is also possible, tho' would again be exceptional, that it's caused by condensation in the loft above. 
Eg, warm moist air from the house percolates up through the ceiling, and isn't being ventilated away up in the loft. Lofts should be draughty and cold! 
If, for example, someone insulated the loft and pushed the material tight into the eaves, especially in that corner, then that could cut the ventilation down to allow condensation to form on surfaces such as the rafters. This could then trickle down until it drips on to the ceiling above, and then come through.
But, unlikely. And it should be obvious with a viewing. I still suspect actual rain ingress. 

youth_leader

You've reminded me - as well as the positive input ventilation unit installed in the loft,  I also had two ventilation 'tiles' inserted into the concrete roof. 

I had asked the roofer to insulate the loft more when he had time, it was only 150 mm when I purchased.  He turned up this January during snowy weather and said he had time as he couldn't work outside - 28 rolls of insulation later (26?) it was done in five hours or so.  Has definitely made a difference.  

mmunro2013

WIAWSNB said:

It is also possible, tho' would again be exceptional, that it's caused by condensation in the loft above. 
Eg, warm moist air from the house percolates up through the ceiling, and isn't being ventilated away up in the loft. Lofts should be draughty and cold! 
If, for example, someone insulated the loft and pushed the material tight into the eaves, especially in that corner, then that could cut the ventilation down to allow condensation to form on surfaces such as the rafters. This could then trickle down until it drips on to the ceiling above, and then come through.
But, unlikely. And it should be obvious with a viewing. I still suspect actual rain ingress. 

Thanks for this... I will make sure my tradesman/builder checks in the loft space for the insulation depth and coverage, e.g. if tight into the eaves. I will also get him to look at rafters/joists for wetness/damp. FYI the affected room/corner is particularly open to the elements (wind/rain).