Damp smell in my shower room, help.

FishDUDE · 21-09-2008, 8:12 PM

Hello

I have a downstairs shower room which smells of damp, now there is no window but there is a fan. we moved into the house in jan and at first we could smell the minging toilet seat which I replaced.

Any Ideas?

Also I noticed today that the light fitting (globe looking thing ) has mold init, I think prehaps I will have to replace the lino but I dunno.

paulyoung666 · 21-09-2008, 8:35 PM

where is the fan venting to , it should go outside of the building , is it ???

shahedz · 21-09-2008, 8:43 PM

does the fan continue to vent for a few minutes after you switch the light off?

FishDUDE · 21-09-2008, 9:20 PM

it vents to the roof of the extension and it stays on for about 2 or 3 min after the light is switched off.

Ewan

Tuddy · 21-09-2008, 9:27 PM

Check to see if the vent pipes haven't become disconnected (if there are any)and leave the light on for about 10 mins after a shower. Might help for now.

GasDad · 21-09-2008, 10:36 PM

Also try leaving the door open when the room isn't in use.

**Steven** · 21-09-2008, 10:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FishDUDE

it vents to the roof of the extension and it stays on for about 2 or 3 min after the light is switched off.

Ewan

That sounds quite short, especially after a hot shower/bath, even if it was a quick shower. Our fan stays on for about 10 min after switching the light off (switching light on triggers fan)

Razor · 21-09-2008, 11:50 PM

Firstly bleach the room to kill off mould spores. Use toilet bleach or domestic bleach. Products like flash/jiff dont seem strong enough and the mould returns.

Now buy a extractor fan with a humidistat control feature. This will operate the fan when the humididty is too high as well as when you want to use the room.

Also is the shower room external wall cold? If so this might need to be insulated with special insulated plaster board.
Or a cheap method (but not the prettiest) would be to stick a thin layer of polystyrene on the external wall to help insulate it.

I hope this helps.

contraste · 22-09-2008, 10:27 AM

Kill the problem at its source:
Stop using the shower!

GasDad · 22-09-2008, 10:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by contraste

Kill the problem at its source:
Stop using the shower!

That would work - but then we'd all be suggesting solutions to the 'Strange smell in my arm pits' thread that would be sure to appear.

zmoosa1 · 22-09-2008, 10:57 AM

Make sure you don't have any drips working it's way to the flooring. If, water has worked it's way under the lino then the stale smell could come from there. Best to check the lino around the shower.

sleepyone · 22-09-2008, 2:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zmoosa1

Make sure you don't have any drips working it's way to the flooring. If, water has worked it's way under the lino then the stale smell could come from there. Best to check the lino around the shower.

I second this, we have had a damp smell for months in the bathroom, finally got round to lifting the lino but nothing looked amiss. Smell got stronger when i lifted the lino however, took the side off the bath and poked about with a screwdriver. Bad idea as it looks like the cold tap of the bath has been steadily dripping for months/year, floorboards are soaked and the floor joists are half rotted away.

We are having to get the floor and joists replaced.

On the up side it's a tiny bathroom so only two joists need replacing and I also came into a bit of money due to begin made redundant so we are putting in a new bathroom suite after the floor has been fixed

Bobdk · 22-09-2008, 7:45 PM

I would also suggest you get a light in and look very carefully around the grouting. If there is a crack in the grout then water will get in and mould will start to grow behind the tiles. I know because this happened to me recently. I live in a modern house (8 years old) and recently noticed the mouldy smell as I walked into the bathroom. Cutting to the end I took a lamp into the shower and found a crack in the grout. I poked at the grout with a removal tool and a row of four tiles came away with the wet plaster board. It's fixed now and the smell is gone. i used mould killer in the hole before I attempted any repair. Best of luck and as everyone seems to be pointing out - extend the time the fan is on.

FishDUDE · 22-09-2008, 8:17 PM

Thanks for the replies, my wife wanted me to ask on my forums as in hers she got no replys (netmums) So thanks again, I will leave the light on and lift the lino to check on my next day off.

Hopefully the damp isnt behind the tiles!!!