Moldy Nuremberg Apartment! Prevent mold growth in your German Apartment with these simple steps
We were warned, multiple times, about how quickly mold grows in these closed-off, unventilated, German apartments. We did everything we thought we needed to do: Cracked open all of the windows, left windows open when we cooked or took hot showers, turned on the heaters to keep the air dry, everything! Not enough. Winter rolls around and the dreaded condensation happened. You know, when the inside of the window gets a little foggy and the beads of water collect in the corners or start to drip onto the windowsill? What are we doing wrong? Well we found out and the difference was immediate! Try these simple steps to keep your house humidity down and your house clean of mold!
- OPEN YOUR WINDOWS! Not just tilt them open as we have discovered. The reason being is because the air needs to fully circulate and by tilting the windows, the air may get colder but it is still the same damp air as before. Leave them wide open for a minimum of 20 minutes a day, better yet 20 mins in the morning and the afternoon before going to bed. We have a cat so we have to make sure she is on the leash or in a cage for the time being, but its worth the hassle to not have mold!
- When cooking: or running the Washing Machine or Dish Washer, turn on the oven vent to help move the moist air out. Keeping the window open is the best option, but I dont want to keep it open at night (we live on the first floor and the american robber mentallity is still big!).
- If hang drying, Hang everything outside! is it snowing? dang... Hang them inside with the windows open for as long as you can! The heater will do an OK job at drying them quicker, but its not ideal. Combine the heater and a dehumidifier to get the best indoor results.
- Buy a dehumidifier - Cant open the windows as much as you would like? We get it. Buy a floor humidifier and empty the water out a few times a day. Chnage the room it is in every few hours to make sure the whole apartment is being treated. One room with mold is as bad as any!
- Plants and Rice: Both work well as an additional air purifying alternative. Sit a nice vase or bucket filled with rice in a small damp room without windows (Closet, Storage, etc.) and change the rice about once every other month. Plants will ofcourse help to soak up the water in the air, as well as send out fresh oxygen acting as a double benefit! Be careful no to over water though, the wet soil will attrack more mold and be counter-productive.
- Clean! Sounds like a dumb tip, but cleaning the walls, and surfaces will give the mold less to stick to and will make the place look good too!