possible damp problem

sweetie

The tenant in the room I rent out has brought to my attention some issues. Basically there seems to be some sort of damp problem in the room. The nails in the stud work (on the outer wall) are visible through the paint. She has mentioned that there seems to be a black film on her skin when she wakes in the morning! I've rented this room out for nearly five years and this is the first time anything has occured. It has always been a bit colder due to there being a garage underneath which has two metal sliding doors (so that a car can drive through to the garden) and if one looks at the roof of the garage the plasterboard doesn't seems to have been skimmed over. I've also noticed that the gutter along the offending end wall seems to be blocked and I plan to uunblock this at the weekend. Could these two issues be causing the damp?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

311

Don't mind them ,get rid of them if they persist.

If the stud nails are visible ,then it means you've got walls that are of a modern standard.
Check to see if the vent in the room is blocked.

Tell them to keep the room ventilated and that the vent may need adjusting.
I wreckon the problem is because of lack of ventilation ,tell them to leave the window open more often.

2 stroke

This is a bit of a long shot but worth considering on safety grounds. Could there be a carbon monoxide problem, what type of stove/heater is in use. I say long shot because of the time of year but I was in a property today that had a parafin room heater running. Girl was south african and was used to her heat, doubt she'll be staying for the winter.

sweetie

2 stroke wrote:

This is a bit of a long shot but worth considering on safety grounds. Could there be a carbon monoxide problem, what type of stove/heater is in use. I say long shot because of the time of year but I was in a property today that had a parafin room heater running. Girl was south african and was used to her heat, doubt she'll be staying for the winter.

It's an oil burning heating system but hasn't been on very much recently. Surely Carbon monoxide is colourless and undetectable. I will buy a tester and install it in the room and also check the vents. Thanks.

smashey

Unblock that gutter when you're at it.

sweetie

smashey wrote:

Unblock that gutter when you're at it.

I will, tonight.

311

Sweetie ,seriously ,check the room for ventilation .

I wasn't actually joking about that ,sometimes builders install windows that have built in ventilation ,or maybe it's an old style vent thats stuffed with paper.

sweetie

The vent was fairly badly blocked on the inside and outside. The gutters were fine though. The tenant has been burning a lot of candles and incense so I think with the lack of ventilation it caused the marks and not damp.

Thanks.