As the south-west monsoon hits the country bringing in plenty of rainfall and cloud cover, it’s important to gear up and be prepared. Monsoon can be a nightmare for a homeowner, bringing maximum damage to your walls causing leaks, mold, fungus, cracks and chipping paint. During this season of unforeseen and sudden downpours its best to invest time and effort into rainy season cleaning and preventive measures, instead of having to pay for damages later on. These measures will help keep your home damage-free for the next 2-3 months.
Home Clean and Dry in the rainy season- Luxury Dream Homes
With monsoon comes a warm and humid environment that is perfect for insects and other pesky creatures. Therefore, it’s normal to see insects crawling in and around your house. However, while most are harmless, some of these insects can ruin furniture, walls and spread diseases.
Look out for these insects and opt for the following control measures:
Mosquitoes: Be it monsoon or summer, open water is a breeding ground for mosquitoes. However, stagnant pools of water during monsoon can be found almost anywhere. Therefore, ensure that there are no buckets of water in your bathrooms or open water coolers. Install mosquito nets to all windows to ensure ventilation while keeping mosquitoes out. You can also use chemical or natural mosquito repellents to get rid of them.
Termites: These winged insects infest wooden furniture and are extremely difficult to remove. Therefore, opt for preventive measures like treating wooden elements with anti-termite solutions. You can use boric acid, termicide or a number of other chemical solutions.
Earthworms: Usually found in bathrooms, these worms are harmless and surface during monsoons. However, they are unsightly and can be prevented from infesting your bathroom by keeping it dry at all times or covering the drain.
Prevent and treat damp walls
If you notice wet patches on your wall, you are probably a tad bit late. But there is hope! Finding the cause and preventing further damage is one way to deal with the situation.
Look around and spot the wet patches. Where are they?
If the wet patches are on the ceiling, wall or on the corners, there is probably a drainage block near that area causing the water to seep into the walls.
If the wet patches are starting from the floor it indicates that moisture is being absorbed by the ground or from some faulty plumbing below it.
If the wall is just damp and you’re not sure where it started from, it indicates that the room has excess moisture build up. Here, poor ventilation causes condensation to take place all over the walls.
Now that you know the probable cause of damp walls, here are effective ways to prevent damp walls during the monsoon.
Use sealant, putty or grout to cover cracks on pipes and walls.
Choose for waterproofing coating on the exterior walls to create a barrier from rain and moisture.
Invest in a damp proof course, an impervious material built into the brick wall to create a barrier between the ground and wall. This prevents water from the ground level to cause any damage.
You can also opt for silicon paints for indoors walls that have high water resistant properties. Prevent fungus and mold from growing on the walls
If you can see gross black-ish growth on your walls—that’s mold and when it becomes toxic, its fungus. Found in humid and moisture laden rooms like the basement or bathroom, this dense organism is not always creeping on your walls. Oftentimes they can be present without its dark and spotty appearance on your walls.
As it can be highly poisonous, look out for these signs of mold and fungus.
Bubbling of paint: If you notice tiny bumps underneath the surface of your wall paint, there is moisture and probably mold too.
Chimney smell: If your chimney has a musty smell, it’s probably collected a bit of mold from moisture in the kitchen.
Allergies: If you don’t have asthma you could show symptoms like watery eyes, itchiness, cough and cold.
You must contact a professional to deal with mold and fungus and rainy season cleaning. However, here are easy some ways to prevent mold and fungus:
Tips from Parasuram Experts
You must contact a professional to deal with mold and fungus and rainy season cleaning. However, here are easy some ways to prevent mold and fungus
Bleach removes mold and mildew from walls, tiles, shower curtains, bathroom mats, etc.
Borax and vinegar solution can be used with a scrub on affected areas.
Install a bathroom exhaust fan to facilitate proper ventilation
Repair leaks in the kitchen and bathrooms.
Ensure proper ventilation and air flow in all the bedrooms.
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