[quote=FlyerInHi]What floor is the apartment on? First/ground floor can be humid from ground humidity. Best to replace the carpet with tiles.
What about the leak in the wall? Was it fixed?
Other than that, your friend should frequently open the windows and air out the space. Running the AC helps. Cooking, showering and breathing in a small space causes humidity build up.
Btw, flood/mold remediation is a huge scam.[/quote]
It is not a scam, though some ‘remediators’ are scammers. Mold is spread through spores(they are the ‘seed’ for Mold and other fungi-incl mildew). Spores are resistant to a hard vacuum(space), radiation, and chemicals. You don’t just dry it up and paint over it. Doing that instead of true remediation can get you in a lot of financial trouble.
[quote=FlyerInHi]I would add that concrete slabs release moisture. That’s why when you remove linoleum off of slab, you get that moldy smell. So avoid moisture sensitive flooring such as carpet or even wood (if you don’t have good moisture barrier, wood will get moldy). Go with stone/tile. [/quote]
It would be better to say that concrete slabs are porous to water (unless the concrete is hydrophobic). Normal concrete ‘wicks’ water up from the ground. This is why a moisture barrier is required when building a slab foundation, as well as certain types of retaining walls. Most slab garages do not have a moisture barrier (cost cutting), personally I think garages should have a moisture barrier. Patios also don’t have moisture barriers – this is why ‘extending’ a house onto a segment that used to be a patio is problematic (No foundation supports, no moisture barrier). Many unlicensed/non-permitted additions are done off of ‘patio slabs’.
[quote XBoxBoy]Find all sources of moisture. Leaks in the roof, or from apart above. Leaky sinks, etc. Places in the bathroom where caulk has dried out and water can get behind boards. Fix those.
Removal of all materials (wall board, studs, baseboards) with mold or exposure to the moisture. You can’t just dry out moldy areas, you must rip them out and replace them.
Thoroughly dry out any areas with moisture.
Replace all materials, making sure that enclosed areas are dry and will stay dry.
Remove all carpet and replace with materials less likely to hold moisture or mold.[/quote]
Good quick summary of what to do (what the landlord should do).
[quote doofrat] It was a lame design because all the steam would just go into the bedroom and there was no fan. [/quote]
This is a residential building code violation. Probably an non-permitted addition. Bathrooms are required to be vented, either powered vent or a window of a minimum size.
As for what to do on the rental, photograph(both overview and detailed photos), document everything you can on the mold. See if you can get the landlord to do proper remediation. If not, move out and pass a copy of your documentation to ‘authorities’. https://www.google.com/search?q=landlord+mold+issues&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8
