Black marks above vertical radiators

Elvis the dog

I have been living in my newly renovated house since Christmas. The have a serious problem with dark marks above tall vertical radiators extending up to ceiling and around edges and patches going onto the ceiling. No smoking or candles and only gas fires. Even dirty inside the cover of fuse box. Gas fire guy says its not carbon. Can anyone help?

Zaph

Moved from Forum Requests

Wearb

Post a few pics on a file sharing site and PM me the link and I will display it here for others to view.

Elvis the dog

Wearb wrote: »

Post a few pics on a file sharing site and PM me the link and I will display it here for others to view.

Thanks very much for that. I will need to get someone to help me transfer photos!

Elvis the dog

Wearb wrote: »

Post a few pics on a file sharing site and PM me the link and I will display it here for others to view.

Will I send photos to your WhatsApp or how will I send them? My daughter can't help me!

Wearb

Elvis the dog wrote: »

Will I send photos to your WhatsApp or how will I send them? My daughter can't help me!

You will need to upload the pics to a file sharing site and then private message the link to me. You might have to get someone who understands my instructions.

Elvis the dog

Hi I hope that those pics have arrived to you?

Elvis the dog

Hope pics have arrived?

Wearb

Here are the pics

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0By5ui9M7LgY8cmlIM0VtMHhlNGNpanVPelI0S3VOdWtfblp3

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0By5ui9M7LgY8R1FSaDNBYjVhOHZlUnVXVUNDRGFZZE1oZWdn

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0By5ui9M7LgY8UTNmcTVfZTVLaHM5UFoyb1JRZ0FLUk1WQjYw

Elvis the dog

Wearb wrote: »

Here are the pics

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0By5ui9M7LgY8cmlIM0VtMHhlNGNpanVPelI0S3VOdWtfblp3

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0By5ui9M7LgY8R1FSaDNBYjVhOHZlUnVXVUNDRGFZZE1oZWdn

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0By5ui9M7LgY8UTNmcTVfZTVLaHM5UFoyb1JRZ0FLUk1WQjYw

Thanks very much! I hope people view these photos and can help. I have exhausted all options at this stage. Next step will be chemical analysis unless I get any suggestions.

niallb

Do you know if there was mold in those areas before it was renovated?

Elvis the dog

niallb wrote: »

Do you know if there was mold in those areas before it was renovated?

No unfortunately there wasn't! That was the first thing to check. Then checked to make sure it wasn't carbon from the gas fire. No apparently not as there is no black inside the glass. Strange thing though is there is a lot of blackish dust inside the cover of the fuse box. Also concerned it could be a problem with the radiators which are anthracite colour tall vertical aluminum radiators.

Ronin247

I would hazard a guess that it is dirt in the air. If you imagine a current of air circulating up from the radiator you get a convection circle with the warm air hitting the ceiling at the point directly above the radiator.

Dardania

What walls are the rads on - are they external? And likewise what’s above the rad - is the ceiling below a roof?

It looks like moisture...and the area around the rads is just drying out.
Could you have water ingress?
I concur with other poster thinking it might be mould related

Sleeper12

Elvis the dog wrote:

Thanks very much! I hope people view these photos and can help. I have exhausted all options at this stage. Next step will be chemical analysis unless I get any suggestions.

I would prime with white oil based paint and then give it a few coats of regular paint before going to the expense of the chemical analysis.

Elvis the dog

Ronin247 wrote: »

I would hazard a guess that it is dirt in the air. If you imagine a current of air circulating up from the radiator you get a convection circle with the warm air hitting the ceiling at the point directly above the radiator.

Thanks for that. That's what I am being told by a number of people. However doesn't it seem incredible to have such an amount before I was even in the house for three months? Nobody has actually ever seen such a big amount of staining.

niallb

Could you buy or borrow a dehumidifier?
Leave it running in the room with the rads for a day and see how much water it pulls out of the air.

If the house is recently renovated, was it empty for a long time or was there another reason behind the required work?

EdgeCase

If it's just dust from the radiator air currents put a glass shelf above the radiator and it will divert the current out and away from the wall.

Elvis the dog

EdgeCase wrote: »

If it's just dust from the radiator air currents put a glass shelf above the radiator and it will divert the current out and away from the wall.

Thanks so much for all the help!! I am being told that there is no dampness and its not mould. I lived in the house for a year before I started renovation work which was really just because I wanted to change things around and put on a small extension. There were no problems with dampness or mould. I put in new triple glazed windows and new doors. There are no vents in the house and I hadn't left windows open while I was at work and then the weather was too bad in the evenings. It's being suggested that this might be a reason for the unusual accumulation of dust. The marks are on both external and internal walls and right in towatds the centre of the ceiling. It's concentrated to a great extent in the living room and kitchen, and it's suggested that these main living areas would have more dust movement. I will try the dehumidifier just in case, though. I really do appreciate all this help!

EdgeCase

Radiators always so that. The vertical ones possibly create more of an intense current.

Other than giving the place more or a hoover, all I could suggest is the baffle above the radiator either a glass shelf or a wall coloured shelf will do the trick as it pushes the air away from the wall and breaks it up.

The source could be recent construction, people walking on grass / mud and walking in or anything like that.

Tails142

Hard to tell from the photos but are you sure that it's not mold? There should be some constant ventilation into each room and the new triple glazed windows could have cut down on drafts that were previously providing this

dathi

Elvis the dog wrote: »

renovation work . I put in new triple glazed windows and new doors. There are no vents in the house and I hadn't left windows open while I was at work and then the weather was too bad in the evenings.

it is mold not dust the problem you have is when you renovated your house you increased the internal air temperature of the room this allows the air to carry more moisture in it which condenses on the coldest surfaces usually at the junction of the roof/wall or around the window reveals . if you google cold bridges you will see what i am talking about . you will have to improve your ventilation rate to remove this excess moisture and improve the insulation at the roof/wall junction