# Black Mould Patches



## Monkey Hangers (Jan 8, 2009)

Oh joy, we get the smelly drain problem sorted and now we have mould issues. Can anyone advise, is it normal? For heating we only have the a/c units that blow warm air, which we were told are expensive to run. Hence, in the lounge we have a portable gas heater. We do use occasionally the warm air blower in there too. We have curtains on the stairs to keep the heat downstairs and our bedroom is downstairs, we don't heat in there.
We are getting patches in the lounge behind the sofas, on the landing, on the outside wall of our bedroom and now, horror of horrors, in my closet. I have hundreds of $$$$ worth of shoes stacked in boxes and behind them, the wall is all black patchy mold. Again, it's the outside wall. So, warm air inside meets cold air coming through from outside, makes mould maybe......but what can I do. Really starting to get fed up of constant problems with this house


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

I lived in four different houses in Spain and yes, all of them had damp patches and lots of them all over the place. I dont know whether its cos they tend not to have damp courses, cavity walls or because of the humidity, but from my knowledge and experience its a very common problem. The cure???? One of our landlords painted a wall with "special" paint, which did stop it, til it started peeling off

Jo xxx


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## Monkey Hangers (Jan 8, 2009)

jojo said:


> I lived in four different houses in Spain and yes, all of them had damp patches and lots of them all over the place. I dont know whether its cos they tend not to have damp courses, cavity walls or because of the humidity, but from my knowledge and experience its a very common problem. The cure???? One of our landlords painted a wall with "special" paint, which did stop it, til it started peeling off
> 
> Jo xxx


Thanks Jo, it's not just my bad luck then!


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## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

Monkey Hangers said:


> Thanks Jo, it's not just my bad luck then!


It seems to be a common problem. Most Spanish owners dont seem to worry about it too much and I believe paint over it in the spring????

See what some of the more knowledgeable posters on here say

Jo xxx


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## 90199 (Mar 21, 2010)

Spray or wipe the patches with a mild solution of bleach. The mould is caused by condensation, which attracts a bacteria and turns the wall black, also more ventilation is needed and a cavity in the outside wall, but they don't do that here. Clean or polish your leather shoes to prevent them also going mouldy


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## Stravinsky (Aug 12, 2007)

Firstly, pain the outside of the house up to about 1 mtr high in a clear sealant. When it's dry it shouldnt be too noticeable.

Secondly, buy a decent dehumidifier.

Finally, pain the inside with a really good plastic paint after applying the sealant on the interior wall. Dont skimp on paint, you WILL notice the difference

I know it's not the complete answer to everything, but you will find it makes a difference.

We run our dehumidifier in the bedroom every week, and in the bathroom every day. painted outside, and we dont have a mould problem now


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## youngagepensioner (May 18, 2009)

Wash mould with dilute bleach. Then, heat and ventilate. That's the only way we found to keep the mould at bay.


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## Cazzy (Nov 23, 2008)

Portable gas heaters put a lot of moisture into the air, hence the mould. We don't use our gas heaters now because of this.


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## CapnBilly (Jun 7, 2011)

I agree with everything Stravinsky says, but in addition I would paint the inside walls with antihumidad paint and then paint with a good quality plastic paint. You can buy it from any good paint shop. It's not cheap (about €35 for 5 litres) but well worth using. Since I painted out rooms we haven't had any mould. If you do decide to use it then wear a mask as its quite strong when you're putting it on. 

As far as your wardrobe is concerned, you need to check on a regular basis. Leather items ( belts, bags and shoes ) seem particularly vulnerable. As posted earlier cleaning and polishing helps. 

Whilst gas is great, it does create a lot of condensation into the air, which helps create the conditions that mould loves. A dehumidifier is a must. 

Air con units are not as expensive as you think to run, particularly if you are on day might tariff. They generally use 1.1 kwh per hour and are one of the most efficient ways of generating heat (google heat exchanger). The key is to put them on and then leave them on. I have two in my open plan living area, and in the winter I put them on at 7.30 am when we get up and leave them on all day when we 're in.


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## CapnBilly (Jun 7, 2011)

Sorry Stravinsky, just retread your post, and missed the line about using the sealant inside.


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## dunmovin (Dec 19, 2008)

you need a spray bottle called "Muffy Cid" Basicaly it is a hydrochloric acid solution. spray it on and leave it.you'll get it vidal or aki


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

We use one called Malvas which is very good. Don't brush the mould off when it's dry because the spores can be toxic. Leave the bleach solution on for half an hour to kill them off before washing it down. Then you can apply your fresh paint.


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## djhep (Feb 26, 2011)

Hi there, sorry to hear about your problem.......

I do the following and have had no damp problems, even during the wettest times.
Leave your ac switched on heat mode during the day, and if possible install a small extractor fan at the opposite end of the house running constantly. 
This will ensure that you have a constant flow of air through the house.
This is essential to combat the damp and mould in alot of Spanish built houses.

Regarding the cost of running an a/c unit
I have installed a small metre which gives a constant reading of how much electric i'm using at any one time. (well worth 30 euros and really easy to install)

I've monitered my inverter type a/c units, and the largest, which heats/cools a 37m2 lounge uses 440w/hour. (approx 8 cents / hour)

The normal type a/c unit uses 1.2kw/hour (18 cents / hr).

The extractor fan uses only 11 watts / hr ( 4 cents / 24hrs)

Hope this helps some and that you manage to get sorted

Best Regards.

Dave


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## CapnBilly (Jun 7, 2011)

djhep said:


> I've monitered my inverter type a/c units, and the largest, which heats/cools a 37m2 lounge uses 440w/hour. (approx 8 cents / hour)
> 
> The normal type a/c unit uses 1.2kw/hour (18 cents / hr).
> 
> Dave


Whilst I agree that inverter units are cheaper to run (but more expensive initially) the running costs you quote for a standard aircon unit are not quite right. Obviously your inverter costs are right because you monitor them, but the difference in costs are not quite as stark. 

The power consumption depends upon the size of the unit. I have a standard unit in my lounge (about 30 sq m but a 4 metre high ceiling) which has a heating capacity of 3.7kw and uses 1.02kwh , but the ones in the bedroom are slightly smaller and only 0.82 kwh. 

An inverter unit is on all the time, but reduces its power consumption to maintain the temperature, whilst a standard unit is either on or off. When its on it draws full power, but its not on all the time. Once the required temperature is achieved it goes on occasionally to maintain it. My experience is that it uses about 60%, so 0.6kwh


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## CapnBilly (Jun 7, 2011)

As a supplementary to my earlier posts, that means you would have to get at least 125 hours out of a gas bottle (€15.10 in our area) to make it cheaper than aircon units. Based on Dave's usage it's about 165 hours if you have an inverter unit. Both these estimates are based on standard cost electric, so night and day would be even more hours.


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## Monkey Hangers (Jan 8, 2009)

Many thanks for all the replies and really good advice. My husband has washed all the walls down today with a bleach solution (I was at work ) There are no stains so it's only on the surface. We are going to look at the different suggestions as to painting/ spraying the walls, but as we rent, if it's too expensive we will be speaking to the landlord about that.
The electricity consumption info is really great, thanks for that! I think our neighbours meant well suggesting the gas heater, stating the electric was too dear to run, but I'm wondering if they Pay As You Go with the gas bottles and don't realise the total cost, rather than the electricity bill, with it all on at once. Or maybe they are happy to sit in on a night in the cold? I'm not!
I've moved all my precious shoes to another room, so we'll see how it goes. No gas heater on tonight, using the electric wall heater.


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## snikpoh (Nov 19, 2007)

If the damp is coming from lack of damp-proof course, or is coming from outside, then using a plastic paint inside will NOT work! This is because you will be trapping the moisture in the wall - eventually it will force the paint (and plaster) off.

If the damp is (and this is the more likely from what you say) from inside the property due to condensation, then the only real cure is ventilation.

Basically, in Spanish houses, you MUST have air flow. Simply shutting all windows etc. and then turning on the gas heaters or whatever, is a recipe for disaster.



If you can get at the external walls, then they can be sealed on the outside with appropriate sealant. Then, inside, you MUST use a breathable paint.

As I say, from what you say about the wardrobe etc. it sounds to me like you have poor ventilation and a lot of moisture in the air - solve this first.


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## VFR (Dec 23, 2009)

snikpoh said:


> If the damp is coming from lack of damp-proof course, or is coming from outside, then using a plastic paint inside will NOT work! This is because you will be trapping the moisture in the wall - eventually it will force the paint (and plaster) off.
> 
> If the damp is (and this is the more likely from what you say) from inside the property due to condensation, then the only real cure is ventilation.
> 
> ...


My thoughts as well & seeing as the OP is renting I would simply move.


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

playamonte said:


> My thoughts as well & seeing as the OP is renting I would simply move.


I agree. If and when you get a house of your own, as soon as is practicable get the outside well cleaned down (it will probably have about a centimetre and an half of cal which attracts moisture like a sponge) then have the outside (especially on the weather wall(s) redone in capa fina which should keep the damp out of the wall (also makes it warmer), especially if it is then painted over with a good pintura plastica. Damp in the wall or coming through from outside, e.g. rain (as opposed to rising damp) then has to be thoroughly dried out and repainted with pintura plastica. For rising damp, unless you are prepared to put in a dpc, then you will have to seal the inside of exterior walls or both sides of interior walls with a PVA sealant then repaint with pintura plastica OR tile the lower part up to about 1 metre or so.


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