Condensation and Mould in Yorkshire’s housing needs skill to control
It’s winter again and black mould is growing in many peoples cupboards. Most calls to our customer damp service line, at this time of year are concerned with black mould, musty smells and coughing children. Damp is the cause but good diagnosis of why a house is damp is crucial to getting the mould killed off once and for all.
With nearly 30 years in the damp proofing industry we have answers of course, but what many people don’t understand is that Britain’s housing stock is going through a huge change, as great as the switch from solid walls to cavity walls back in the early part of last century. It is leading to real damp problems all over Yorkshire.
The phrase driving this is ‘global warming’ and as a result our houses are being sealed up and made air-tight to save heat and save the planet. This is all very well and good, but like any change there are consequences and these are a massive increase in dust mite levels, mould growth, damp and condensation problems.
These are rarely the fault of the tenant or home owner, or indeed the Landlord. It is merely an unforeseen side-effect of the rush to save energy.
However, dampness and mould is unhealthy and unpleasant too, so anyone effected by damp, which is causing these issues, needs good advice and effective remedies.
It’s not just a cease of improving ventilation and turning up the heat though, this is often unrealistic and tenants in particular are sick of being blamed for the damp and mould problem, which in their eyes, seems to have no connection to what they do; proper damp diagnosis is needed.
Education is the key and this is why the Property Care Association have developed a range of in-depth courses, to help surveyors and others get to grips with these problems, by using the basic understanding of the fundamentals of the home environment, combined with the latest technical measuring and damp diagnosis equipment. A good knowledge of building construction and damp surveying is needed too of course and that is where we excel.
We attend PCA courses regularly and last week competed the latest PCA offering, presented by respected damp expert Graham Coleman. The day was well attended by the cream of the Property Care Association membership, including surveyors from large and small firms who’s job is controlling damp.
The ‘Condensation Masterclass’ included data logging and advanced humidity and temperature modelling, which enables unprecedented accuracy and gives local authorities, private landlords and owner occupiers of mould and damp effected housing real information. Information which is not based on a quick walk-around, a few ‘snap shot’ humidity readings or damp meter readings.
We were very impressed and whilst we?ve been using the data logging technology for a few years now (see our MD?s Preservation Expert blog for details and case studies), the new modelling methods are a revelation and a great help to us and our clients in controlling damp.
Thanks go to the Property Care Association, who have really put lots of effort into broadening and deepening their training courses.
Our damp and mould surveys are available across Yorkshire via our qualified local damp and timber surveyors covering Leeds, Pontefract, Barnsley, Tadcaster, Malton, Selby, Holmfirth, Marsden, Dewsbury, Harrogate, Cleckheaton and Heckmondwyke.
If you have problems controlling damp; phone our free customer advice and survey line on 0800 591541 for details or to book a survey use our form here….
Our range of damp diagnosis services are featured on this page
