Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Tiger Beer]

This is something new to me. But living in a fairly small studio apartment with a bathroom thats pretty much right there. Well, the moisure from the showers has been more trapped in the house or something or another.. no clue.

Anyhow, I'm having molds or mildew or something thats suddenly came out of nowhere and actually seems to be flourishing on my window-side wall in the living room behind my dresser.

How do I get it off the walls.. and how do I stop it from coming back?

[buddy bradley]

You've been in Korea for ages! Just ask one of your many, many broads why don't you, you sick dog you!

[Emma Clare]

Bleach down the walls to kill the stuff off. Always open any windows after every time you shower. Get a moisture absorber (you can get them everywhere. Usually with a hippo on the side) Turn on the Ondol. Maybe try praying as well.

[camel96]

Yeah the hippo things.
Mool Mawk Gerk Ha-ma Ta Won Hyeong.
Mutilated the romanization I know.
They look like really small ice-cream tubs and have pink lids.
I have maybe 10 of them around my place and they're all half full of water they've absorbed from the air.
Like everything in Korea they leave you wondering how toxic they are but hey they seem to work.
You can buy a 3 pack of them for about 3500won.

[Tiger Beer]

NICE... some good advice..

Weird how quick they just sprung up as well.. they just came out of nowhere..

I had been opening up the windows after showers in the past.. but getting colder.. its gonna be an interesting Winter..

I'll look for those moisture-absorbers..

[Derrek]

Tiger:

I was in the exact same situation this summer. Am sort of amazed that it's happening to you now (a dry time of year).

1. If it's just surface mold, scrub the mold off with a mix of water and maybe 5 to 10% bleach.
2. Running the Ondol does help remove moisture from the room and floor -- not sure how, but it does (not from room that don't have the ondol, like some bathrooms, though).
3. The water-removers are made for drawers and cabinets -- not rooms, really. I suppose that if you had 20 of them in an area, they would make a difference, but if you really have a problem, you need to buy a dehumidifier (Chae Soup GHEE in Korean). The place to buy on is in Yongsan, or you can find them online at www.enuri.com. DO NOT buy them from any of those LG or Samsung corner stores -- prices are much higher. You should be able to find a new one for around 180,000 or so. Better yet, check out the local Recycle/Used stores. They might have some more around this time of year (not in demand) for around 100,000 won. Make sure it works before you buy it (run it for 3 or 4 minutes and see if water drips).

Is there no ventilation in your bathroom? Buy a little custom-size window fan at E-mart for about 18,000 won (you've seen them in the bathrooms in bars). The air from outside should be pretty dry on most days.

Again, I'm surprised you are having mold now. My problem was bad, because I didn't have good ventilation, and I live in a shady area with trees and buildings all around. I'm also on the ground floor, and partially underground. It really grows FAST. In my case, it got in the wallpaper behind my bed, and a few other places. Also in my 2nd bedroom behind my computer desk. In the end, it was a good thing, because it gave me an excuse for the landlord to change my wallpaper and give me new flooring. I still scrubbed all of the crap off once I pulled the paper and floor back. A royal mess!

If yours is in the wallpaper, you might need to rip the paper off, clean it, and have it re-papered, as I did. Otherwise, the spores just stay there and come back to life when it gets wet again. Also, you'll be amazed at how they float around and grow in other places in the room -- staining your walls, etc.

Running the air con will take water out too. It sort of works like a dehumidfier. Perhaps this is why you are having the problem now, and didn't in the summer? Weird.

[Tiger Beer]

[Derrek]

Must have water leaking in the walls.. could a pipe be dripping? Or the window may not be sealed.

In a new place, it's very possible -- had a leaky window in my last place, and it was new. Otherwise, maybe the floor isn't sealed right in your bathroom, and it's coming through? Hard to tell without seeing.

Mold is very unhealthy, as you know.

Show your landlord immediately. They might know what to do.

[Tiger Beer]

[Derrek]

Unhealthy effects of mold:

http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2000/Mar-14-Tue-2000/lifestyles/13136597.html

http://www.runzheimer.com/corpc/news/scripts/111302.asp

[ratslash]

bleach is a good one. try doing what derrek sadi and scrubbing down the walls with a bleach solution. but, it will come back if you don't find out why it has come in the first place. my bathroom was infested during summer, but it didn't spread so i didn't do anything about it. i even gave it a name!

[Tiger Beer]

Update.

I sprayed the hell out of it with some anti-mold spray bottle and let it sit in that stuff.. did it twice Sunday and again Monday before work. After work on Monday I scrubbed and cleaned the stuff off the wallpaper.

Seems like its more or less gone. But cleaning it definetely put alot of spores in the air everywhere. My throat is itchy.. I must be allergic to the quantities in the air right now or something. Not sure..

So hopefully it won't come back.. I just cleaned what was on the wallpaper however.. so I don't know if it would grow between the wallpaper and wall or not. I hope not. There are still remnants or stains on the wallpaper.. but its more like spots of what was there rather than what is there. So thats good.

[Austin]

...

[Tiger Beer]

Strangely the bathroom is mold free. Its the living room wall near the window that became infested.

I wiped and cleaned it down.. and hoping its not too ingrained and underneath the wallpaper or anything. It looks bad though.

I think its because I'd leave the door open after my shower and the moist air enveloped the entire apartment. My purpose was to just air out the bathroom.

Now I've been leaving my windows wide open and taking a shower right before I leave the apartment. Everything is away from the living room window in case in rains in there.. but it seems to be working so far.

Mold spores seem to be rampantly about though. I had an itchy throat and other minor allergic symptoms..

[Derrek]

It could be a regular cold, or reaction to breathing chemicals all weekend.

I'm still surprised at the location of your problem. I still think that water is in the wall somehow -- leaking pipe or leaky window. Or water leaking thru from the bathroom.