Mushrooms coming out of the walls!

[Naga]

Had a leak, which went unfixed by the landlord and now there is a real odd dampish pong in the room and mushrooms are growing out of the ceiling! I have a small baby and have moved out until the problem is fixed as I hear breathing in the damp can cause health problems, is this correct?

EDIT: At first I saw something coming out of the wall, I thought this was some type of light rusty coloured filler which may have been around the pipes then I saw these white mushrooms which looked a bit like long thin button mushrooms.

[tamsin]

I would speak to your landlord again, if he still does nothing then try environmental health! Yes, spores from mould can cause health problems.

[shirlthegirl43]

Yup, get environmental health to check it out. We used to live in a council flat and both our boys ended up with ventolin inhalers. Younger son had recurrent bronchitis too. When we moved, we moved our bedroom wardrobe to find the whole wall was blue/green with mould

[quark1]

I understand that fungi spores are not good to inhale whatever the age - but the younger and older peeps are most at risk.

[tulip]

yes- it does cause health probs - the mould may also get rapidly worse if not nipped in the bud. if you phone environmental health - they will send someone out to assess the situation and do a report, and the landlord will then be required to sort it out.

(realise same info has been posted while i was writing this)

[Naga]

Thanks guy's, we have someone coming round tomorrow but I don't want wanna go back until it's sorted, we also have mould in the babes bedroom too but I bleached it and it has gone, however we done it when we first moved in as the walls were covered so I am gonna have to get some anti-fungal spray or something, though it's not gonna be a cure. The mould is around the window seal.

[Hilary B]

It isn't the damp itself that is dangerous, just the mould spores that it encourages. If the original cause of the damp has been dealt with, lots of ventilation will go a long way towards getting rid of the problem (which is why you get damp-mould behind the wardrobe, the air doesn't move much).
Inadequate ventilation is all too common when old buildings have been 'brought up' towards modern standards. People stop the draughts, double-glaze the windows, insulate the loft, and then get condensation!
Mould around the window seal is nearly always caused by condensation.
While sorting plumbing in the loft, check what sort of base the tanks up there stand on (especially if they are plastic). The base should support all parts of the bottom of the tank, no overhang, no gaps (thick ply-wood is ideal). Over-active central heating (due to a minor fault) with inadequately supported tanks, have caused a few really nasty incidents.
When it comes to older houses, the key word is "Ventilation, ventilation, ventilation".

[BFG]

The mould is a symptom of high humidity. Reduce that and the problem will go away.

Opening the windows whenever you can (and always when showering/bathing) will probably do. If not, get a dehumidifier to remove the excess moisture in the air.