Refurb Projects - November 2018

HEATING & VENTILATION
Who is responsible for taking care of mould?
Dan Bourke, Social Housing Regional Manager at EnviroVent, looks at the issue of mould growth and whether
residents’ lifestyles or other factors have a major influence on the problem.
Mould is an issue that affects homes of all sizes
and build types during the colder months and
the cause of mould growth is regularly
debated by local authorities and private
landlords. In the past, there was a view that it came about
as a result of lifestyle choices, with the generally accepted
view that mould is a result of activities that residents carry
out in their home that create excessive moisture. As
modern, energy efficient homes have largely become
sealed boxes, the amount of natural ventilation is
therefore far less. But does it really make sense to put the
issue down purely to lifestyle choices, or should local
authorities and private landlords be doing more to solve
the root cause of the problem?
Black mould has been the subject of a recent study by
campaigning consultancy Sustainable Homes, an
organisation that helps landlords and suppliers to improve
the quality and environmental performance of their
homes. In association with EnviroVent, Sustainable Homes
has revealed its results in the ‘Breaking the Mould -
Should landlords be doing more?’ report. This study
involved four social landlords in the
South East and Midlands, with
initial information for the study
gathered from a questionnaire sent
out to residents, which received 260
completed responses. The study was
divided into two parts. Phase 1 took
place in the spring of 2017 and
Phase 2 over February and March
2018. The questionnaire for
residents covered various aspects of
air quality, including the incidence
of mould in their homes during the
recent winter. The responses were
then cross-referenced with building
data held by these landlords about
the homes themselves and also with
data from Energy Performance
Certificates. The study intended to
identify types of buildings where
mould would be likely to occur and
also to look at the impact of mould
on the health of occupants.
Phase two involved monitoring
the home environment, specifically
internal temperature differences and
variations in humidity and
ventilation rates.
The study used a sophisticated
information gathering technique to
examine over 20 different factors
that could contribute to the causes
of mould, in order to find which
were the most significant. This
included the home’s size, its usage -
including daytime occupancy and
whether pets were present, levels of
insulation, age of construction, as
well as other factors such as glazing
and heating fuels.
The factors were then ranked in
terms of how much they raised the
mould score. The most significant of
these was found to be occupant
density – the more occupants, the
more likely the house was to suffer
with mould. In the context of the
current housing crisis where there is
a shortage of homes of sufficient size
for growing families, this factor is
outside the control of residents.
Poorly installed insulation was
another factor, as it meant uneven
surface temperatures and the
opportunity for condensation to form
in cold spots on walls and ceilings.
Newer, more energy efficient homes
with less temperature fluctuations
and better quality insulation were
found to be less likely to have mould
present, as were homes that had the
best loft insulation.
Homes that were continuously
occupied were found to be at a
higher risk of mould. Cold weather
was also found to lead to mould
growth as heat is conducted through
the walls, making the interior cooler,
so the dew point is reached more
often.
HEALTH ISSUES
The study found that residents were
more likely to experience respiratory
issues in homes with mould. In the
139 homes with no mould, the
percentage of people with a
respiratory condition was 28%. If
the mould score was increased by
1.5, then respiratory conditions, such
as asthma, rose to 36% of residents
and if the mould severity score was
above 3.0, it became 63% more
likely that the resident living there
had a respiratory condition.
The report highlighted a need for
both landlords and residents to
better understand the most practical
ways of dealing with condensation
in homes and discusses the issues
that landlords should be doing more.
While residents can take practical
action up to a point, it is to the
landlords’ advantage to step in
sooner, rather than later, with
effective remedial measures.
One way of reducing
condensation and eliminating black
mould effectively is to install a
whole house ventilation system, like
Positive Input Ventilation (PIV) from
EnviroVent. A PIV system works by
delivering clean, fresh, filtered air
into the home from a central
position. The unit gently ventilates
the property and dilutes high levels
of humidity so that condensation
and mould cannot form. It also
reduces the level of harmful
household contaminants, thus
improving indoor air quality and
creating a healthy all-year-round
living environment.
UNDERLYING CAUSES OF BLACK
MOULD
The ‘Breaking the Mould’ research
clearly challenges the traditional
assumptions about mould in homes
being directly linked to resident
behaviour. As the study shows,
there are underlying causes of black
mould, such as occupant density and
failed/poor insulation, which are
beyond the control of residents.
The study encourages social
landlords to work proactively to
tackle damp and mould. As there
was found to be a strong correlation
between household size and mould,
due to more breathing, showering,
clothes washing and cooking taking
place this meant effective
ventilation systems are required to
remove this extra moisture.
Social landlords are being
challenged to review their mould
complaint procedures and to
introduce better ventilation into
buildings, as well as to improve
training for staff to better deal with
residents’ complaints about mould.
The ‘Breaking the Mould’ report
recommends that landlords must
review their approach and understand
the long-term implications regarding
stock management.
The report clearly shows that
landlords have to be more proactive
to prevent mould. For example, this
should include staff training, reviews
of mould complaint process and
better use of ventilation in
buildings.
The final recommendation was
that landlords need to gain a better
understanding of residents’
demographics to prioritise space and
quality over quantity and to
consider tackling fuel poverty and
mould together. Some landlords
have taken this advice and are
already re-thinking their processes
and taking a more proactive and
preventative approach to improving
ventilation across their housing
stock. Retrofitting ventilation
systems is having a very positive
impact on indoor air quality and
improving tenant health.”
For more information on
ventilation solutions from
EnviroVent, visit the website
www.envirovent.com or call
0345 27 27 807.
6 NOVEMBER 2018, REFURBISHMENT PROJECTS