Dealing with mould
Help us keep your home mould-safe
BLACK SPOT MOULD
If you have spotted black mould around windows or patches on the walls and ceilings in your home your first priority should be to get rid of it. One of the reasons that it has appeared may be due to condensation. The following guidance helps you identify the possible causes and ways in which you can manage it.
Black mould has been shown to be harmful to health and the NHS state that if you have black mould in your home you are more likely to have respiratory problems, respiratory infections, allergies or asthma.
If your home does not have a continuous supply of fresh air into it the relative humidity rises, and the internal atmosphere quickly becomes full of airborne moisture. Eventually this build-up of water in the air leads to condensation forming on the colder surfaces of your home including windows, corners of rooms and cold walls. This condensation moisture is pure water which mould just loves to grow on!
REMOVING MOULD
When removing mould, it is important to understand that safety comes first, you don’t want to breath it in or spread the mould spores around your home.
- Before you begin, put on a dust mask. You want to make sure you do not breathe in the spores that the mould can release into the air. The mask may also help protect you from inhaling cleaning chemicals.
- Cover the floor under the area you are cleaning to catch any of the falling mould which can be disposed of later.
- Make sure there is adequate ventilation in the room. Open a window or an external door so the mould spores can escape.
- It is best to use a proprietary mould killer from any good supermarket / DIY store
- Apply the cleaner and scrub the mould off the affected area using a non-abrasive brush. Use a clean rag to then wipe away the mould you loosened. It can be hard to get right into the cracks, but try a stiff brush for the hard to reach areas.
- Allow the area to dry completely before you close the window. Wipe off any remaining residue.
WAYS TO REDUCE BLACK MOULD
Dry clothes outside
Drying clothes inside is one of the main causes of creating excess moisture in your home. Whenever possible dry your clothes outside or use a tumble dryer (ventilated to the outside or a condensing type). Using tumble dryers can be expensive & may not be possible for some. A simple option may be to dry your clothes in 1 room, keep the door shut and the window open to provide good ventilation when drying the clothes. It might be worth drying your clothes in the bathroom with the door closed and the extractor fan on.
A tidy home
Air needs to be able to flow freely around your home. If air flow is restricted by having lots of things piled up in rooms it could make that part of the room colder which may mean the vapour will condense on the colder surface. It may also be a good idea to leave storeroom cupboard doors slightly ajar to allow air flow into the space.
Keep the bathroom door shut while bathing / showering
Steam from the bathroom will float around the house until it finds a cold surface on which to condense. Use the extractor fan / open a window while showering to get rid of the excess moisture.
Cooking with the saucepan lids on
Use saucepan lids when you are cooking to help reduce the amount of steam being produced. Also ventilate the room by using your extractor fan or by opening a window.
Increase the air flow in your home
Air flow helps dilute the amount of moisture in the air, open a window or the trickle vent in the window if you have them.
Heating
In cold weather the best way to keep rooms warm enough to prevent condensation is to keep low background heating on. Warm air can hold more moisture.
Sleep with the bedroom window slightly open
Overnight an adult will breathe out around 1 litre of water into the air. If there are 2 adults in the room that is 2 litres of water that has to go somewhere. Opening the window slightly will allow that moist air to escape. If you have them, make sure the trickle ventilators in the window are open.
Use your extractor fans when cooking or bathing
Always use your extractor fan while cooking or bathing. If your extractor fan isn’t working, then contact Pobl so an engineer can fix it for you.
Some homes have continuous ventilation systems installed. You can check whether the system is working correctly by holding a piece of tissue / toilet paper up to the grill. In the kitchen and bathroom the grills should be extracting air (pulling the tissue paper towards it) and in other rooms (eg living rooms & bedrooms) the grill should be putting air into the room (pushing the tissue paper away from the grill).
One of the more recent developments for treating mould around windows is to invest in a window vac which effectively sucks away the water droplets on the window. Using the window vac every morning will help eradicate any mould around windows.
Sometimes the damp and mould can be caused due to an issue with your home. If you have tried our tips and it isn’t making a difference, please let us know, we are here to help.
If you have any concerns regarding damp or mould issues in your home then contact the Pobl Solutions team on 0330 175 9726.
Useful links
How to save money on energy bills – www.energysavingtrust.org.uk
Cost of living help, expert testing, reviews and advice from Which? – www.which.co.uk
Free debt advice – www.nationaldebtline.org
Get your finances back on track – www.stepchange.org
Use the simple benefits calculator to check what benefits you can claim – www.turn2us.org.uk
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