Mould Spores & Health!

In my room is the house's airing cupboard, containing an unused hot water tank. It's 30 years old. In December of last year, it sprang a leak which might have been dripping (very slowly, though) for weeks before I found it and put a bowl under it. The water had gone through the leak in the copper tank, soaked broadly and widely into the squashed lagging and grew a vicious looking mass on almost all of the tank's outer hardboard covering.

Has anybody any experience with mould, mould spores, coughs and medical issues?

I starting to develop a cough in February and I never have any such thing, unless I've had a cold (the last of which was 21 years ago) or another reason. I'm already certain that it is the spores from the mould that have caused accelerated production of mucous in my head, which then overloaded the lungs' capacity to raise it back up to the throat, for swallowing away or coughing out. The cough, I'm guessing (which my GP already knows about), is because of that post-nasal drip excess load reaching the lungs.

So far, I've sprayed WD40 (spray lubricant) over every scrap of mould I can reach so that the spores are too heavy to take to the air, and I've sealed off the airing cupboard with bin liners, where needed. Right now, for technical reasons, I'm unable to have anything else done about this.

I did an air current check: I lit two cigarettes, placed them on a glass ash tray on a shelf inside the airing cupboard, away from where the WD40 had been used. I turned the electric heater on, stood in the far corner of the bedroom, light off, and watched. Just as I thought was going to happen, in torch light, the smoke moved out of the airing cupboard, along the ceiling, and landed smack on my bed's pillows. It was actually quite dramatic to watch, I admit, and a little scary. Mould spores are smaller and lighter than smoke particles.

I'm just wondering what other members' stories might be, about exposure to damp/mould, in the home or workplace!

Re: Mould Spores & Health!

Interesting thoughts my flat suffers from damp and I have had a cough on and off since Christmas.

Re: Mould Spores & Health!

Hi

Mould growth can seriously affected a persons health, especially as regards respiratory problems, which can be life long.

The presence of mould in a property can make it prejudicial to health.

Mould is one of the commonest reasons Housing EHO's serve legal notices on landlords and prosecute them.

http://www.nhs.uk/chq/Pages/Can-damp...?CategoryID=87

Re: Mould Spores & Health!

When i had mould in my last house on ceiling i washed it off with Bleach ..it killed it off

We have a small amount of mould in corners of bathroom , and spray it with a mould spray we got from B&Q called Ronseal 3 in 1 Mould killer ,

kills on contact , strong smelling so if you do use it be out the room while it activates , or wear a mask . Open a window is good advice ..

Ive not suffered with health problem concerning mould so cannot help on that..

Re: Mould Spores & Health!

I've had small amounts of mould, which I think is black mould in the house, but I've not had any ill effects from it. I got rid of it with a mould spray and by having works done to replace a gutter on the extension and repair a chimney that had some masonry damage leading to leakage. We also painted over the area with anti-mould paint and then some vinyl silk. The mould spray worked really well. It was just something from amazon.

If the water tank is unused is it not possible to empty it and close off the water supply to it?

Re: Mould Spores & Health!

Well, Annie...that's where I got lucky. The water inside the tank, dripping out and causing all of this since December of last year......has run dry!

Without water, mould dies! A friend has told me that he'll fit blocks onto all water supply pipes that lead into the airing cupboard (he tells me that that will involve only the one and the job's then done) That should keep the mould dead and gone, I think...I hope so, anyway. The cough has had me concerned for a while, but that's in my nature as a Hypochondriac, anyway.

Re: Mould Spores & Health!

That sounds like a great solution. The mould might die off over the summer but the sprays really are worth trying.

I hope your cough goes soon. I know how unpleasant that is, especially if it wakes you at night. I had a cough for three months, turned out to be gastric reflux!

Re: Mould Spores & Health!

'Fraid not matey, just because the water has now dried, it doesn't automatically kill off the mould - the water vapour in the air is sufficient in itself to feed the mould. You have to scrub it off properly otherwise it will continue to grow and spore.

Re: Mould Spores & Health!

Mould is terribly bad for health, many people living with it develop asthma type symptoms, it can if not dealt with kill.

One of our previous flats was condemned as unfit for human habitation by the council due to it. It was there when we moved in and we thought we could deal with it but over 4 years we tried all sorts and never managed to get rid of it.

Re: Mould Spores & Health!

Certain mould can cause a multitude of health issues.

Your cough maybe the virus that goes around and lingers for months, but worth getting checked out I would think.

I have a similar problem in my bathroom, window open or closed, makes no difference. Apparently, de-humidifiers can solve the issue but some are better than others and they aren't particularly cheap.
I say 'apparently' as there are conflicting reports. However, there must be a way to eradicate, so hiring a de-humidifier could be a possible solution to start with.