How To Stop Mould In My House

Having mould start building up in your home can be one of the most unsettling things when you are trying to prevent it! To much mould build up with nothing being done to combat it can lead to your family having health problem and also damage to your property! Here at T Edwards Home Solutions we have put some facts together to try and help you stop it.

Black Mould around a window

Here are things that cause your house to form mould.

1. Drying clothes inside the house – Pints of water can come off your clothes when drying inside on airers and the moisture has no where to go other than the walls, ceilings and windows of your house. Trickle vents in your windows will help keep a circulation of air flowing through your home. Try minimizing drying your washing inside or use a tumble dryer.
2. Tumble Dryers vented or a condenser – Vented is better as most of the moisture will be vented outside, the condenser type all tho handy for not needing to drill holes through your walls they will generally give off more moisture than vented.
3. Showers & Baths – having a powerful enough extractor fan to extract the moisture from the room is crucial, some of the cheaper ones will extract some but not enough. Making sure you have a window Trickle vents as well because once the moisture has been sucked out you need the circulation to replace the air.
4. Cooking – when we cook moisture is thrown into the atmosphere so having an extractor fan vented outside will help remove the majority of the moisture, a fan not vented will just circulate the moisture around the room.
5. Sleeping – on average healthy young male averages about 25 milliliters per hour, or 200 milliliters per eight hours of sleep, and much of that is simply exhaled. So that moisture is released into your bedroom and the only place it has to go is the mattress, walls, ceiling and windows. Trickle vents in your windows can help keep a circulation of air in your room.
6. Furniture – make sure you have a circulation of air around furniture like wardrobes, chest of draws pretty much most furniture because if it is tight up against a wall or other objects it is a place where moist air can cling, hang then turn into mould.
7. Little or No Ventilation – as much as we are now days trying to stop drafts and close our homes up so no heat escapes, we still need controlled ventilation through out the home. So air can be replace with new and damp air can be removed from the home.
8. Poor or no insulation – if your cavity walls or loft has little to no insulation, that wont help your home keep the warmth inside and the cold outside.

Things you can do to prevent mould in your home.

1. Circulation of air open windows, even if its for 20-30 mins a day something is better than nothing.
2. Install Trickle Vents into your windows if you do not have them, they are not expensive to buy you just need a qualified window fitter to install them. If you already have them installed open the vents get the air flowing through the house, Contact us.
3. If your windows have condensation on the inside, don’t a low the water to sit there wipe the windows down. If you have single glazing condensation will naturally happen as warm air is attracted to the cold air on the outside – look into having double glazed windows installed. Contact us for more details.
4. To help reduce the moisture around your windows purchase mini Dehumidifiers for £2-£3. crystal or gel balls that attract and collect moisture from the air, tend to last up to a month before you have to replace them.
5. Does your house have cavity wall insulation? If not having this installed in to your cavity will help the warm stay inside and the the cold outside.
6. Loft insulation, most homes now have it but some homes still are not up to today’s specifications so having someone come out and check will make your house more efficient and keep your home  warmer, Contact us.
7. See if your tumble dryer has been installed correctly, if unsure contact a tradesman that can help.
8. Make sure your extractor fan in the bathroom and kitchen is strong enough to extract the air and has been fitted correctly, if unsure contact a tradesman that can help.
9. Check and make sure your furniture has a gap between the wall its close to so its getting enough circulation.
10. Get a Humidity Meter from £7-£20 that will tell you how much water is in the atmosphere of your home. The percentage should be between 40-60 anything higher and you need to look at ways to reduce it as it can effect your health.
11. If you have mould already don’t leave it, wear a mask, gloves get water, bleach and a cloth and wipe it down till the mould is clean. The bleach helps to deter the mould from growing back. Mould releases spores that you can breath in and affect your health.
12. Turn your heating on, mould likes cold damp spots so turning on your heating will help warm your rooms up and dry out any damp.
13. For bathrooms you can buy mould resistant paint that will help stop it forming.These are some of the ways you can help yourselves to stop mould forming, and if after the ways you have tried for yourself you still have issues please contact us to see if we can assist in the areas you need a specialist.