Mold in bathroom

colleen85

Hi all.

Please someone can help me out by answering few questions? I am living in a private rented accommodation. If there's any issue with the property we can only contact the letting agency. 3 tenants are sharing 1 bathroom which has no window. There is a ventilator that circulates the air. That went broke 5 weeks ago. I let the agency know about it. It took them 3 weeks to get it fixed by an electrician that arranged time with me 3 times and only showed up for the 3rd time. As I said after 3-4 weeks the vents were fixed but in the meantime the walls got seriously moldy. Now it is even hard to breath in there. I let the agency know about the mold as soon as it formed on the walls. I even told them I had mild asthma back when I was a kid. They still not bothered. They said to me to clean it which I would if I caused it, but I didn't. I wrote them numerous e-mails few of them were ignored, in another reply they said to clean it and in the last they said they'll talk to the landlord. But I guess I dont have another 3 weeks to wait. Any advice on what can we do legally? Can I get someone to fix it send the receipt to the agency and pay less rent in case they fail to do something about it.

ted1

colleen85 wrote: »

Hi all.

Please someone can help me out by answering few questions? I am living in a private rented accommodation. If there's any issue with the property we can only contact the letting agency. 3 tenants are sharing 1 bathroom which has no window. There is a ventilator that circulates the air. That went broke 5 weeks ago. I let the agency know about it. It took them 3 weeks to get it fixed by an electrician that arranged time with me 3 times and only showed up for the 3rd time. As I said after 3-4 weeks the vents were fixed but in the meantime the walls got seriously moldy. Now it is even hard to breath in there. I let the agency know about the mold as soon as it formed on the walls. I even told them I had mild asthma back when I was a kid. They still not bothered. They said to me to clean it which I would if I caused it, but I didn't. I wrote them numerous e-mails few of them were ignored, in another reply they said to clean it and in the last they said they'll talk to the landlord. But I guess I dont have another 3 weeks to wait. Any advice on what can we do legally? Can I get someone to fix it send the receipt to the agency and pay less rent in case they fail to do something about it.

Get a bucket , put some bleach in it add water, wipe the mould off with a sponge or cloth that is dipped in the bucket.
Problem fixed , the bleach will kill the mould.

It'll take 5 minutes.

FishOnABike

As poster above said it's easliy dealt with with a bit of bleach and warm water. Sorted in a few minutes.

I'd advise against witholding rent because this could result in being issued with notice of arrears with fourteen days to make good any arrears and followed by termination of your tenancy if the arrears are not paid in full within the fourteen days.

For the sake of a €1 bottle of bleach, some warm water and a few minutes light housework is it worth the hassle?

April 73

There are loads of mould sprays available to clean it off & kill it, including cheap bleach or something like this...
http://www.diy.com/departments/hg-mould-remover-500ml/136829_BQ.prd

It would be quicker & easier than emailing the agent & writing a post on boards or trying to get someone in to do the job for you.

bren2002

Agree with the above. Take a bit of personal responsibility and sort it yourself.

FishOnABike

April 73 wrote: »

There are loads of mould sprays available to clean it off & kill it, including cheap bleach or something like this...
http://www.diy.com/departments/hg-mould-remover-500ml/136829_BQ.prd

It would be quicker & easier than emailing the agent & writing a post on boards. Opening the bathroom window after showering will make a big difference.

All well except thr original post says :
3 tenants are sharing 1 bathroom which has no window.
Ordinary household bleach is cheaper and just as effective.

handlemaster

With holding rent is not legal as all poster has said 5 mins with beach and its gone. Move on.

April 73

FishOnABike wrote: »

All well except thr original post says :
3 tenants are sharing 1 bathroom which has no window.
Ordinary household bleach is cheaper and just as effective.

Yep I realised that after I posted & edited the post with the reference to the window.

colleen85

Thanks for the replies. Im still a bit concerned about what I can breath in while cleaning it. Should I wear a mask or something or is it not that dangerous. As I said I had asthma. Thanks again.

handlemaster

colleen85 wrote: »

Thanks for the replies. Im still a bit concerned about what I can breath in while cleaning it. Should I wear a mask or something or is it not that dangerous. As I said I had asthma. Thanks again.

Best to get a full body suit and oxygen tank. Ask at your local DIY store.

El_Duderino 09

handlemaster wrote:

With holding rent is not legal as all poster has said 5 mins with beach and its gone. Move on.

Everyone seems in agreement about this point.

Yes wear a mask or get one of the other house mates to bleach it. Or do one wall and leave it to air out for an hour. Getting it done with minimal dramatics is probably the best solution. The real danger is that they could withhold the deposit when you move as the bathroom is now mouldy.

I'd make sure this is all documented in emails though. You can demonstrate that the mould developed whilst waiting 5 weeks for the extractor fan to be repaired.

GuitarMusic

If you want to go extreme you can put a moisture absorber in the room first for a day or two (ensuring no one has a shower in the meantime) before scrubbing the walls with bleach.

If you have any respiratory problems these days and are concerned about mould Id recommend a dehumidifier with an anti-bacterial filter and ioniser. The reason you are finding it harder to breathe is because there is a large amount of positive ions in the air (mould spores, dust, pollens etc).

An ioniser attaches negative ions to positive ones. The enlarged ion becomes too heavy to stay adrift and falls to the floor where it can be hoovered up. With a lower number of positive ions in the air you'll find it easier too breathe.

Colser

Just buy any of the Mould and Mildew sprays (less than 5e) spray them on the mould everyday but dont wipe them off,you should be sorted in a few days.

vagazzled

I would recommend buying a dehumidifier also. And putting out 'damp traps' - which are plastic boxes with silica-gel and can be got pretty cheaply (dealz had them for 1.50 for 2) .
If you are prone to asthma at all it will be an investment for you. Just a fan for a bathroom being used by 3 people might not be adequate depending on quality of the fan. Humidity meters can be got very cheaply on eBay etc.

Mrs OBumble

colleen85 wrote: »

Thanks for the replies. Im still a bit concerned about what I can breath in while cleaning it. Should I wear a mask or something or is it not that dangerous. As I said I had asthma. Thanks again.

So ask one of your housemates to do it.


Mountain. Molehill. Much.

4ensic15

Complain to the local council. There is a breach of Section 12(1)(b)(2) of teh Residential tenancies Act.

ted1

4ensic15 wrote: »

Complain to the local council. There is a breach of Section 12(1)(b)(2) of teh Residential tenancies Act.

(ii) the interior of the dwelling all such repairs and replacement of fittings as are, from time to time, necessary so that that interior and those fittings are maintained in, at least, the condition in which they were at the commencement of the tenancy and in compliance with any such standards for the time being prescri



Don't see anything there about cleaning mould. As stated previously it's a 5 min basic cleaning job.
I can't believe society has gotten so bad that you think a basic cleaning job required by a tenant warrants a complaint to a local council.

4ensic15

ted1 wrote: »

(ii) the interior of the dwelling all such repairs and replacement of fittings as are, from time to time, necessary so that that interior and those fittings are maintained in, at least, the condition in which they were at the commencement of the tenancy and in compliance with any such standards for the time being prescri



Don't see anything there about cleaning mould. As stated previously it's a 5 min basic cleaning job.
I can't believe society has gotten so bad that you think a basic cleaning job required by a tenant warrants a complaint to a local council.

Not providing a vent in a bathroom is a breach of the regulations. That is the cause of the mould. Cleaning it alone is only dealing with the symptom. I can't believe society has gotten so bad that you think a basic vent intstallation should be ignored by a tenant at risk to his health.

aido79

4ensic15 wrote: »

Not providing a vent in a bathroom is a breach of the regulations. That is the cause of the mould. Cleaning it alone is only dealing with the symptom. I can't believe society has gotten so bad that you think a basic vent intstallation should be ignored by a tenant at risk to his health.

Did you read the original post? There is a vent. There was an electrical fault in the vent. This is now fixed. It's a simple job to clean the mould. The OP is making a big deal out of nothing. Cleaning it and using the vent as required will solve the problem.

ted1

4ensic15 wrote: »

Not providing a vent in a bathroom is a breach of the regulations. That is the cause of the mould. Cleaning it alone is only dealing with the symptom. I can't believe society has gotten so bad that you think a basic vent intstallation should be ignored by a tenant at risk to his health.

There is a vent provided, it broke the landlord organised repaid but was let diwn by trades men

Maybe you should take more time to read the OPs post.

Jen44

they sell a mould cleaning in lidl, its great, in a spray bottle. You spray it on wait a few hours wipe off the loosened mould with a sponge then spray more on to stop it from re growing and leave that on

BabysCoffee

I got mould spray in Homestore and more. For about 7.99. It was really effective.

I also use the damp traps from Dealz too.

Presume you can get a face mask in your local DIY shop?

loyatemu

BabysCoffee wrote: »

I also use the damp traps from Dealz too.

do those work well? Has anyone tried using one of these: http://www.woodiesdiy.com/product/unibond-aero-360-pure-humidity-device/21347/11

BabysCoffee

The damp traps certainly soak up a lot of water. But I don't know they will entirely prevent mould returning.

I think you need to constantly keep cleaning the mould if it does return

Thargor

Just FYI spray that mold spray only on the mold itself, any of it that touches radiators/chrome fittings/light fittings etc will cause them to rust, it can make plastic type paint bubble up aswell.

Smiley11

Such dramatics over a bit of cleaning...spray it with mould & mildew spray & build a bridge!

athtrasna

OP I think you've had plenty of great advice on this thread. Hope you take some of it. Am closing the thread now

Mod