FREQUENTLY
ASKED UK MOULD QUESTIONS
About Mould Problem, Mould
Removal, Health Problem, Toxic Mould, Mould Analysis, Mould Inspector,
Black Mould, Mould Products, Mould Services, Mould Training, Mould
Inspection, Mould Testing, and UK Mold Inspection.
Email your UK mould questions to mould expert
Phillip Fry at
envirodangers@yahoo.com
for his FREE answer and help.
Also please visit:
[Landlord-Tenant FAQ] [International-Mould-Questions]
Q.
We have this brown lumpy mould
in the kitchen in the staff accommodation where I am staying, it is an old
building and quite damp and I have heard the mould causes respiratory
problems. I would be grateful for any information. <February 11, 2005>
A.
Airborne mould spores from the kitchen mould
growth will travel in air currents to mould cross contaminate your entire
staff accommodation facility. Employees will get sick by continually
breathing in elevated levels of airborne mould spores, regardless of the
precise mould species growing in the kitchen. Learn the to 60
mould health
symptoms on the homepage of
http://www.moldinspector.com. You should encourage your employer to
do immediate, effective
mould remediation by following the 25 steps for
successful
mould removal at
http://www.moldinspector.com/mold_removal.htm.
Q.
My partner and I have been
living in a one-bedroom bungalow in York, UK for the past three years. The
house has serious mould problems. Mould appears to be worse in the
bedroom, it has even attacked one of my partners suits and one of my
leather belts. We wake up with extremely dry mouths even though we both
regularly drink water throughout the night. We are thinking of buying a
dehumidifier but we are not sure if it will help. We need some advice
please. <February 06, 2005>
A.
You need to move to a mould-safe place to live
to protect your health against severe mould health damage. Learn more about
mould health problems in the mould health section of
Mould
and
Mould Inspector. Whether it is your present rental
home or somewhere new, if the indoor humidity exceeds 70% (common in the
United Kingdom because of its seaside location and heavy and frequent
rain), you
should consider using one or more programmable dehumidifiers to keep the
indoor humidity to a mould-discouraging 50 to 60%. Use a low-cost digital
hygrometer [from hardware store] to measure indoor humidity. If, by
chance, you are the property owner rather than tenant, learn the 25 steps
for safe and effective
mould
removal at
http://www.moldinspector.com/mold_removal.htm.
Q.
How do I remove mould off
a painted surface without damaging the paint. Our bedroom was painted 2
years ago, and mould has recently reappeared, in the corner of the room
which is exposed to the prevailing weather. We thought we had rectified
the problem with ventilation, we will try a dehumidifier to see if that
controls it but we want to remove the mould from the painted walls,
hopefully without damaging the paint. Thank you.
A.
If you have
access to Borax laundry detergent [from USA] or the generic Borax powder
[available in most nations], you can use a solution of Borax in distilled
water to try to clean off the mould from the painted surface. The problem
is that the mould may have grown too deeply into the paint and, possibly,
even into the wall materials themselves. If Borax cannot clean off the
mould, consider spraying hydrogen peroxide (usually available in drug
stores) onto the mould growth to kill it. If the mould growth is too
deeply embedded into the building materials, you will need to remove and
replace the wall materials. You can get some valuable tips on
mould
remediation at
Mould Removal
Q.
We
don't have a lot of mould at the moment, but I tried a bathroom
preparation and it changed the colour of the paint.... so I stopped real
quick... Do you think a dehumidifier would help the problem? In winter we
do get condensation on the windows, but not as much now that we have a
window open permanently with security stays.
A.
New Zealand Mould. Your year-round humidity indoors needs to be in the 30 to 40% range. If it
is in the 60% or more range some or all of the year, you are inviting
mould to be a permanent guest in your house. Use a digital hygrometer (US
$30) to measure humidity through out your house year-round. Yes, a
programmable dehumidifier to keep indoor humidity to 30 to 40% is great.
Be sure to check humidity in basement, crawl space, and attic areas, as
well as rooms.
Q.
Dear Mr. Fry, I have been unsuccessful in locating a mould inspector in my
area. If you have some connections, would you please send me a reply. I
live near London, Ontario, Canada. A
couple of phone numbers would be wonderful. Thanks.
A.
Please visit our
Canadian
Mould Inspector Directory website.
Q.
I
was wondering how harmful black mould is on an unborn fetus. I am
approximately 5 months pregnant and was just inform that our recently
purchased home has black mould throughout it and that sump pump is way
below standards. The people that sold us the home had painted over the
mould and did not disclose this information to my husband and myself.
Regards.
A.
Miscarriage is one of the many health problems possibly
caused by mould infestation in one's home. Please visit
Mould and Health for
details.
It is very important to get rid of moulds as soon as
possible. Here are your options:
1. Conduct (preferably not you to avoid mould exposure) a
mould testing and mould inspection using our Do It Yourself Mould Test
Kits.
2. Note also that ordinary paints cannot kill moulds, unless
if the paint is mould-resistant.
3. Review your homeowner's insurance policy or your tenant’s
insurance policy to discover what, if any, insurance coverage you have for
water and mould damage from items such as broken pipes. Whether or not you
are making an insurance claim for the water damage, your insurance agent
or the claims adjusting office of your insurance company is another good
source of leads for recommended professional cleanup companies. If you
have trouble with your insurance company for water & mould damage, you may
be wise to hire either an independent insurance adjuster (works only for
your well-being against the insurance company on a commission basis) or an
insurance-oriented attorney.
4. You need to know how seriously and where your home might
be mould contaminated. Use do it yourself
mould test kits to
mould test your entire house. You can have
your mould sample submitted and analyzed by certified mould laboratories,
so that you will find out the toxicity level of your mould. You can use
the result of the mould laboratory test as evidence, in case your mould
problem will be brought to trial or any legal means. For more details,
please visit
Mould Analysis and Identification.
Q.
I live in an apartment in Canada. I live with
my husband and kids. I have M.S. and also am waiting for an operation on
my neck having deteriated disks. For the last year or so we all have been
experiencing cold symptoms headaches ear and throat infections and more
feeling sick and flu symptoms we cant seem to shake. The mould is in the
bathroom all along the ceilings edges. The maintenance people came up a
long time ago to fix the ceiling as the upstairs bathtub was falling
through at this time I told them that they hadn't finished the job and
showed the superintendent they never came back. We have an apartment check
every year where the superintendent checks every room and hallway for
problems and I have shown them this many times, now this black mould is all
over the ceiling and expanding around the bathroom I have had
an excess of dust lately that I thought was just my lack of cleaning as I
have been sick. Could this mould be adding to our sickness and if so what
could it do to someone that already has a immune problem like M.S. and
what actions can I take to make them properly get rid of it without the
chance of getting sicker or having it return. I live in Waterdown Canada
and any info you send would be appreciated.
A.
With your
family's serious health problems and the existence of substantial visible
mould in your apartment, you need to move as soon as possible to a
mould-safe apartment. Most landlords will not pay for mould testing and mould
remediation to fix mould infestation problems [and if your landlord did,
you would have to move anyway because mould remediation cannot be safely
done in an occupied area]. Be sure to do mould decontamination of all of
your clothing and personal property before you move so that you don't mould
cross-contaminate where you move to. So that you will know how involved it
is to do safe and effective
mould remediation, please read the mould removal
steps explained at
Mould Removal.
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