Korean Job Discussion Forums

[grandpa]

I seem to be getting a lot of moisure and mold around the windows.

I don't mind just placing towels by the windows to collect the water buildup, but my concern is the mold.

Does mold that forms around windows (on the windows, on the caulking, on the walls surrounding the windows) pose a serious health risk?

[Weigookin74]

It can. You must live in an older Korean building. (IE More than 5 years old.) Old thin windows, water and dampness accumulates. Then, it mixes with your carbon dioxide and viola mold. Do you turn on the heat? Sometimes when people don't turn on the heat in winter, this seems to aggravate it. Just rip off the wall paper where it forms and keep that area clear. Mold seems to grow on wallpaper where dampness from the outside gathers on it. Rip off the wallpaper in those regions and scrub that part of the wall with soap and water. Disinfectant spray can be good too. Then get some of that plastic wrap used for sealing windows in winter. Just seal off the whole side of the wall and windows if necessary. More mold will grow under this as time goes on. But find some way to tightly seal it. Don't want to breath that shit it.

It's because buildings were built cheaply and quickly. Piss poor quality 3rd world construction. But many newer buildings are built to western standards. Well, mine is. No mold now and plenty warm in winter. But I use to suffer through. So, I feel your pain. Good luck.

[lemak]

Buy some of those hippo tubs that absorb the water. You'd be amazed at how much they can collect. Spray the mold with chlorine bleach as soon as you see it.

[Swampfox10mm]

Those hippos are useless in open spaces.

You need to be airing out your house at minimum 2 to 3 times per day for 5 to 10 mins or else you will not be able to dry out the house and also exchange carbon dioxide for fresh oxygen. Open all or most windows. The carbon dioxide is what contributes greatly to mold. Dry air in your home will literally suck the water out of the walls.

Westerners often are not used to this problem because our homes are built with central air duct vents, and a forced air heating system that dries the air and circulates.

If you problems are more serious, buy a dehumidifier. But try exchanging air first. Especially after showering.

Any mold found must be cleaned quickly. Use Homestar green bathroom cleaner to kill it. It smells good, not nasty, and works.

[grandpa]

Thank you Weigookin74, lemak, and Swampfox10mm.

Does the wallpaper really need to be ripped off the walls, or will spraying the moldy wallpaper with a disinfectant spray be enough? I don't want to be dinged for damages to the apartment.

[Weigookin74]

[Swampfox10mm]

My last place was a 450,000,000 Samsung Ramien 3Br. We still got mold on the veranda if we didn't crack an outside window in that area. Mostly in the storage closet and on the wall. I had to scrape paint and repaint with mold killer paint when we moved in.

OP, try the home star green cleaner I mentioned earlier bfr tearing the paper

[grandpa]

[Weigookin74]

[Weigookin74]

If you 're public school and the local education office will let you get your own place, you can try to find a better one. Copy and paste this into Naver: 원룸월세 You can search by city too. It depends on you and your budget. In Seoul / Gyeonggi deposit and rent will be more. In other metro and regional cities will be cheaper. There may be a "New Town" with new buildings built and planned together depending on the size of your town. If you're in a real rural place, you might be out of luck with no new buildings built.

Found a couple of sites:

http://www.skyoneroom.kr But you have to know at least a smidgen of Korean to use these.

http://www.oneroomclub.com

Avoid ones specifically for foriegners. They'll rip you off and try to put you into bad places.

There are many places around called 부동산 (Bu dong san), which you can go to. They are rental agents who'll help you find a place. Find one near the area you want to live. Get a Korean friend to help.