Korean Job Discussion Forums

[bojangles]

This stuff is EVERYWHERE in my house. Its on my refrigerator, my tables, my chairs, my clothes! Anybody know how to deal with this stuff? Do I need to move?

[NohopeSeriously]

[hack]

You're joking. Do you need to move? This stuff will cause you respiratory illnesses that make smoking 2 packs a day seem like a walk in the park. Google it! When I was teaching in Korea I stayed at a friend's place for a week when he went on vacation to look after his cat. I got so sick and I didn't even know it was mold until I left and a doctor told me to tell my friend to get out of there. His cat still died 2 weeks after he moved.
Well it got hit by a motorcycle but the mold would have eventually killed him

[twilczynski]

All last summer I was fighting with mould and I can say that without 'additional equipement' you just can't win (especially if you're in the countryside).

After that I bought this thing

http://www.auction.co.kr/common/through.asp?auction=-1&sort=2&page=0&product=0&area=0&cc=AA02&next=http://itempage3.auction.co.kr/DetailView.aspx?ItemNo=A562857270&keyword=dhp-2305t&Fwk=dhp-2305t&scoredtype=0&frm2=through&acode=SRP_SV_0301 (it was 380,000 last year )

Thanks to it the in-house humidity level is reduced from 90% to 70% and I can even do loundry and even hang and dry it inside the house!

If it's too late and your situation is dramatic I recommend calling a cleaning company and let them clean the mould (there are firms specialised in removing mould).

[marsavalanche]

its in a lot of places in korea. i almost pulled a runner because most of my things were literally covered in mold. my passport was covered in the stuff for example. get someone to come in and clean up. its worth the money. korea doesnt think mold is a big deal unfortunately

[Swampfox10mm]

Let me guess. You have no aircon?

You need to clean it all up as best you can. If it's in the wallpaper, then you'll have to pull it off, scrub the walls, and replace that area. If not, you'll be battling it the whole time you live there.

Buy a 5,000 won humidity meter/thermometer from a store. They usually show a comfort zone on them of between 45% and 60% humidity. If it's above 60%, you are just feeding the mold. I feel most comfortable around 50 to 55 percent.

First, thoroughly air out the house. You should run your aircon on high, or on Chae-sup mode (dehumidify) for several hours until the place dries out (assuming you don't have a stand-alone dehumifier). You have to get rid of the moisture in the house. Having dry air sucks the moisture out of the walls, too. If you shower, make sure your bathroom fan runs for at least 30 minutes after your shower is done, and you keep the door open afterwards to help dry it out.

Exchanging the air in your home twice a day or more is important, too. Run the aircon to dehumidify the place after you exchange, then you can turn it off and keep the windows shut as long as comfortable (or just turn the aircon on again).

[Gorf]

There's also those tubs you can buy at most stores that look like big legos, they absorb humidity. Get a few of them, they last for a couple of weeks usually. I think they're called "hippo"s or something, only in Hangul.

Kinda like this: http://www.alibaba.com/product-free/105406530/MOISTURE_ABSORBER.html

[premiummince]

Bleach.

[jrwhite82]

The dehumidifier is the answer to all your problems. The mold/mildew is thriving on the moisture in your home.

And this year seems much worse than usual. If you do buy one, you could probably sell it pretty easily when you leave on craigslist or the buy sell forum here, to recoup most of the cost.