damp problem beginning to happen...

varney

Hello all,

I'm new to this site so I hope this is the right area to post my query.....

We have noticed some damp starting to happen in both ours and the childrens' bedrooms of late.

Obviously the appalling wet weather has meant drying things indoors and windows being kept closed, so presumably this is a factor. We were drying towels on the rads in our bedroom and recently I noticed light mould happening on the curtains. We stopped this practice, washed curtains and sprayed a dettol mould and mildew remover round the place. We have also aired the room every day (despite weather ). Still find that clothes left in the room for a day or two are damp to the touch, and there's a lingering odour of damp noticeable, especially when you leave the door and window closed and come back.

Do mould spores linger in the air?

The kids room is only slightly damp-smelling in comparison, though they do have a lot of condensation on their window in the morning.
We've also noticed the clothes drawers and wardrobes in both rooms have a musty smell. We washed all clothes and wiped insides of drawers and wardrobes with same mould&mildew remover. However, after ten days or so they are starting to smell again....

Bedrooms are in a relatively new extension ( 7 years ), cavity wall insulation, damp proof course in floor, double glazed windows, oil fired rads, no air vents in either rooms though....but we do air them now.

Any ideas on why this damp odour is lingering? Is there anything we can put in the drawers / wardrobes to remove the smell without stinking up our clothes?? Sorry for long post, and thanks in advance....

Michael.

Kashkai

We've a similar problem to you. Last Monday, my wife was in our walk in wardrobe and was moving some of her clothes when she noticed mildew on them. I checked my own and to cut a long story short, I ended up throwing out half my clothes (stuff I haven't worn in a while mind) as they were absolutely covered in mildew - no exaggeration. We air the bedroom every day and there are vents in the rooms so I can't understand how this happened. There are no leaks in the roof or wall (I checked). We washed down the wardrobe and kept the windows opened all day long but I can see this problem re-occuring.

I guess its down to the appalling weather we've had which is conducive to mould/mildew growth. I'm buying a dehumidifier tomorrow to help the situation. Apart from that I'm stumped as to what I can do.

builditwell

HI michael

Thre problem as i see it is that there is no ventilation in any of the rooms when there clearly should have been from the start. This dampness is being trapped and is almost certainly not going anywhere except any surface inside the rooms ie clothes curtains linen matress easily impregnable surfaces, round the tops of walls and edges of ceilings with a black mouldy sobstance. The fact that the extention is 7 years old would indicate to me that either the vents were covered or were just not put in. How builders can do this is beyond me but nothing has ever supprised me in Ireland where a corner can be cut. You have good windows and sounds like a good build on walls etc etc but stale and heated air (from clothes on rad) have nowhere to go. It is clear that the insulation is working as the air is being trapped in rooms but you must install vents in each room as a matter of urgency and also look into your windows. I have seen lately a lot of PVC window companies offering to install window vents as an after service, so if they are not on your windows they could possibly be altered. It is a very quick procedure and costs very little.If you need any tips on vent installation let me know.

Regards
Builditwell

AckwelFoley

Builditwell is correct.

Im pretty certain that there is poor air circulation in the house, remember the dampness is comming from within the house and not from outside, if it were comming from the outside the issue would be more localised.

I bet if you put a dehumidifier in that house for a week it would tell a tale or two

blindman

Warmt humidity and darkness are mildews friends. Are you drying clothes inside at night and ventilating during the day? Are you opening curtains and letting adequare light in during the day?

varney

Thanks to all of you who replied....

I think the solution seems to be getting the rooms vented by one means or another. I think the suggestion 'Builditwell' made about having vents fitted to existing pvc windows sounds the least disruptive option. Never heard of those so am wondering how they work. Do they allow cold air to seep in all the time?

In the meantime if I can find a cheapish dehumidifier I'll try that. I'm sure it will help.

Oddly enough the walls or ceilings don't show any signs of mildew or marking; it only seems to affect clothes left in the room, either in wardrobe, drawers or on chairs/ bed. Can't quite figure how the clothes in drawers are being affected...

We have a tumble dryer ( the kind with an internal water collection containter ) so the only things dried in the house occassionally are towels. These we don't dry in the bedrooms anymore but on hallway rads. Our washing machine spins them at 1200 rpm so they are just about damp when we do dry them.

Best wishes,
Michael.

builditwell

Hi Varney

Re The window vents. yes they are open permanently but some have internal slider covers that close over vent opening, although the flow of air is minimal and should cause you no discomfort at all. As regards vents in rooms you should look into this as soon as you can as the problem will fix very quickly. The idea of a dehumidifier is good but will only temporarily fix the problem. Heres to a fresh smelling room:D.Good luck with the fix.


Regards
Builditwell

suitseir

Excellent advice from Buildwell.

Also, I would discourage the practice of drying clothes on any radiators. In my business we rent properties and it is a big problem when I inspect the houses. Perfectly good apartments, well built, and weeks on into the rental and the tenants call to me saying they have mildew on the clothes, wardrobes and walls! A lot of my clients are eastern europeans - excellent, clean and tidy clients, might I add - but as well as drying clothes on rads, they also boil a lot of their food and they take baths in preference to showers! So you can see where this is going!

So I would say to the OP, stop drying your clothes on rads. Get a clothes airer - in Argos or any hardware store, and put it beside, the rad, then everything is allowed to breathe! I also don't encourage the use of these tumble dryers as they do create condensation. We must remember, we are living in a very damp country.

Good luck, but it will get sorted on taking the advice of the vents and other small nuggets of advice!

gsxr1

you don't have to go for window vents.

Any hire center will rent you a 4" core drill bit and drill to match. pop a hole in the wall . I have done this many times to solve the problems that you are having. Its hard work and messy , but may be cheaper than window vents.

the hole needs to be just above the window height and away from the lintel over the window.

You can also fit louvred vent covers to stop the wind howling in on bad nights.

I bet the room is not south faceing

varney

Hi GSXR1-
Are you saying we could just drill a single hole through the wall and cover
it each end with a louvered panel? It would certainly be quick but
would it be effective? Where can you buy the louvered vent panels?

I have a drill and really long masonry bit. I could put through three or four one inch holes - would that work?

Do the panels stop the wind whistling through on a bad night though? Perhaps there are ones with lats that open and close?

Our bedroom does face south by the way , the kids is behind ours with
a window facing west.
Thanks,
Michael
PS a 4in drill bit - is that the diameter of the hole?

SuperStarHoney

Don't mean to hijack someone else's post but I had a query in relation to damp and didn't want to start a whole new thread.

We are currently doing up our bedroom and there is some damp on the wall around the window and higher up on the same wall. I'm totally dumb when it comes to DIY and I'm just wondering what course of action should we take to rectify this? Do you just paint over it now and then work on ensuring it doesn't return?

The damp was there when we moved in and I wouldn't say it has got much worse in the three years since. There is a vent over the bedroom door but no external one and I also leave the window opened quite regularly.

builditwell

Hi Varney,

I need to clarify re window vents,these will take approx 5 mins inside and out to fit and are very quickly installed,this will get you started towards the fix of the problem. As GSXR1 said a 4" core drill bit and drill to match will take you quite a long time to drill as anyone who has used them knows you cannot blast thru the wall on full hammer setting. This will of course get the job done but 4" is too small and vents are never installed above the window. Above the window you have a 4" head and then soffitwithin the next course it just does not add up, the min req hole is 8"x6" the vent on the external is a metal one or polypropelene plastic to match brickwork(if thats the case) otherwise metal and rendered flush on surface. The internal one has a louvre for those windy nights if you need to close it. As to whether the house is N,S,E,W facing if the vents are there they will do their job.

Regards
Builditwell

varney

Thanks builditwell..............I think the window vents sound like the best option then. Who would you recommend to obtain them from? Our windows were supplied and fitted by company in Munster ( we're sligo based, ) so maybe we need to find someone local?

Thanks for all the advice,
Michael.

gsxr1

4 inches is fine.

nearly every new house is built with 4" holes in each room. Unless you have a massive room.

You will need a small length of 4" sewer pipe cut to the width of the wall.( to put into hole and seal up the cavity.


a round 4" vent cover for the outside and a louvered vent cover for the inside .( any hardware store has them.)

And a little filler to tidy up wall later.

Make it in the corner of the room high up over the height of the window.

It should take around 30mins to cut through a 9" solid and outer leaf.

Tressel's are needed for a good footing as the drill is heavy.



You should pilot drill it first to keep in a straight line.


Go for the window vent if you like. Munster joinery would be your best bet for prices.

Im just stating a cheaper DIY alternative. We have built 100s of houses and this is how we solve the problem of excess damp. Sometimes rooms with window vents get a hole .

Heavy curtains will stop airflow to the window. And mould will form. There are also industrial strength mold killers that should be used as the house hold stuff can just spread the spores around. We had this out with homebond.

99% of the time it works unless there is moisture getting in somewhere else.

I also did state on my first post that the head or lintel should be avoided.