One for the landlords - mould

BunnyKillBot said:
Breaking News! Tenants keeping their windows closed during winter and not everybody owns a tumble drier. Dun dun DAAAAAAA.

Now that's some rich privileged thinking.
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yes its amazing how many people think that we live in an ideal world where its never cold or raining or we all have tumble dryers.

although speaking as someone that has been on both the landlord and tenant side of the fence the responsibility should be on both parties.

our current (rented) property suffered a bit from mould and condensation. fortunately our agent/landlord reacted with some corrective work regarding gutters and investigative work around some damp patches. at the same time we only dry clothes indoors with a dehumidifier running and/or upstairs window cracked.
 
jimhaumman said:
Why?
Our landlord pop in once as far as I remember.
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I think it's a location based problem so it's not as easy for platypus to just pop round and have a look as he's in France.

As for the mould itself - it might be an issue that simply needs more regular cleaning or possibly the extractor fan (assuming there is one) has slowly become clogged over the past X number of years so it's difficult to say whether you might have found it a problem had you remained in the flat. Then again it might be a clear case of negligence on their part and if so they should be expected to contribute to the costs of sorting it out but that's something you'll only really know when it's inspected.
 
I have lived in my house for almost 8 years. I have never had mould. Until this winter. No idea why, but it has started.

Talk of charging your tenants is crazy. Get it and help them sort it out!
 
BunnyKillBot said:
Breaking News! Tenants keeping their windows closed during winter and not everybody owns a tumble drier. Dun dun DAAAAAAA.

Now that's some rich privileged thinking.
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Dun dun DAAAAAAA. People don't seem to realise that you can crack windows open upstairs for a few hours without plunging the entire house into cold. It's easy to do when out of the house or at night and SHOCK HORROR you can close them again once clothes are dry or you're too cold.

It's just called thinking.
 
I still crack the window open for a bit even in winter to get some fresh air in. Our double glazing has vents that you can open anyway which helps keep fresh air coming in thankfully. It's not such a stupid suggestion.
 
bloodiedathame said:
Dun dun DAAAAAAA. People don't seem to realise that you can crack windows open upstairs for a few hours without plunging the entire house into cold. It's easy to do when out of the house or at night and SHOCK HORROR you can close them again once clothes are dry or you're too cold.

It's just called thinking.
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more sweeping statements.

for example we live in an old house and although recently cavity wall insulated it takes forever to heat the house. and with how windy its been recently it quickly gets cold with a window cracked. they don't have any of those vents in either.

we ended up investing in a dehumidifier. it was pricey for a decent one with a good size bucket but we can take it with us when we move.
 
I had new tenants phone the managing agent and tell them all the front windows were leaking. Turned out it was all condensation from drying clothes in the front room.

You need to get the agent to visit and assess, 8 out of 10 times its the tenant and they just need educating but it could be a property issue.
You have to open windows/trickle vents a little even in the winter, its not about being rich, its about looking after your home.
 
neil_g said:
more sweeping statements.

for example we live in an old house and although recently cavity wall insulated it takes forever to heat the house. and with how windy its been recently it quickly gets cold with a window cracked. they don't have any of those vents in either.

we ended up investing in a dehumidifier. it was pricey for a decent one with a good size bucket but we can take it with us when we move.
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Ok let me just write up an entire essay to cover every single eventuality.

:rollseyes:
 
bloodiedathame said:
Ok let me just write up an entire essay to cover every single eventuality.

:rollseyes:
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exactly my point, you're being very single situation about this. saying "well just dont dry clothes indoors and open a window" isnt always a viable solution or indeed the issue ;)
 
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My flat has quite a lot of bare brick, so often plenty of warm air hitting a cold surface and we used to suffer with mould. Opened a few windows and haven't had it since. Luckily I live on the second floor, so it's always warm enough. I have my bedroom and lounge windows open 24/7 and due to their unique design it doesn't get cold.
 
platypus said:
We recently received a complaint about mould from our letters. I'm keen to try and be a good/fair landlord here but this seems a little off to me.

The agents are going in to inspect the property soon, after a power boiler flush and boiler service (it aint cheap being a landlord!) so we'll see what the extent of it is, but we lived in the house for 7 years before letting it, and whilst I know you let certain things slide when you actually own a property, we never ever had mould in there, and if there had been even a hint of it we'd have done whatever necessary to get rid of it.

Would you charge the tenants for this either to get it fixed straight away or take it out of the deposit?
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No I would never ever charge Mr Macgyver. It's no joke living with mold. I moved into a flat a couple of years back, no sign of mold anywhere, within two months it started to form as summer ended and the weather took a turn for the worse. It completely destroyed hundreds of pounds worth of clothes and other items. Started to effect my health too and in the end we had to sleep in the living room as the bedroom got so damp and cold.

Unless they have done something malicious like damage the roof or walls of the building on purpose. Or purposely leaving windows wide open during constant rain, then I cannot see why you would even think about trying to charge them.
 
ColdAsIce said:
Unless they have done something malicious like damage the roof or walls of the building on purpose. Or purposely leaving windows wide open during constant rain, then I cannot see why you would even think about trying to charge them.
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Because to my mind it can only have gotten mouldy if they are doing something off/weird/negligent. If it was a property we'd bought purely to BTL it would be one thing, but as I've said we lived in the house for 7 years without a single problem.

As above though will wait and see.
 
Having been on both sides common sense prevails.

Landlords who say you should open windows and not dry clothes indoors are idiots. Half the year having windows open is an impossibility and if the place is housing 3+ professional tenants then using a combi-dryer isn't an option because it hogs the machine for too long. One of our bathrooms only had a skylight that wouldn't open when it's raining as well.

Tenants should...
- Let their agent know when mould first appears rather than letting it build up
- Open a window where possible in the summer

Landlords should...
- Understand that sometimes mould is something that may occur regardless and need touching up every so often
- Supply a dehumidifier if it would help
- Make sure any extractor fans actually work efficiently. Most I've used are so old/are so grubby inside they hardly do anything. And hook it up to the electric show and/or main light switch and/or motion activated so it can't be forgotten to be turned on

How many people are in it platypus? Family or singles?
 
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