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Homeowner Forum / Cleaning / August 2005Smelly apartment after a flood
Hi everyone, I need your help! 2 nights ago, a pipe in my apartment burst and flooded my apartment in several inches of water. Everything is mostly dry now, but the apartment stinks like you wouldn't believe. any hints on how to get the mouldy wet smells out? I have half carpet half floors. It is really humid out and very hot, and raining on and off, so i have the windows closed and the AC on. I also have cats, so the bathroom smells the worst, where the water mingled with cat food and litter. I cant breathe in here, but I have nowhere to escape to, please help! > Hi everyone, > I need your help! [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > with cat food and litter. > I cant breathe in here, but I have nowhere to escape to, please help! Your landlord should be addressing this. The carpet probably needs to be removed along with the padding. Water probably penetrated into the wall cavities and no doubt wicked into the wallboard. Of course, the contents are your responsibility. If you have renter's insurance, you should contact you agent to see what coverage might be available. The problem is that there is water in places you can't see. If not dried properly, you will have mold. The mold could be a health hazard. If I were you, I would also contact the local building inspector/code enforcement office to see what they have to say. You might also call the city/county health department. You should contact your landlord ASAP and follow up with a written notice. The landlord is required to provide a safe and sanitary apartment so at the very least, you should not have to pay rent while your apartment is not inhabitable. I would ask for compensation. If you get any resistance, contact an attorney immediately. Run fans and a dehumidifier for 2-4 weeks, until you see less water collected. You'll see a jump in your electric bill for that month, although this is the best method. Perhaps your landlord will supply the dehumidifier. Else, move out. > Hi everyone, >I need your help! [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] >with cat food and litter. >I cant breathe in here, but I have nowhere to escape to, please help! I have the AC on all the time, and the one fan I have. I am freezing and dreading the electricty bill, but maybe it will help speed the process. Moving out is not an option.  Signature****Wisdom is scar tissue in disguise**** > Run fans and a dehumidifier for 2-4 weeks, until you see less water > collected. You'll see a jump in your electric bill for that month, [quoted text clipped - 14 lines] > >with cat food and litter. > >I cant breathe in here, but I have nowhere to escape to, please help! I'd definitely remove all carpeting, wash whatever I could down with a diluted bleach solution, and dehumidify. Give the weather where you are opening windows just won't help. The AC is probably helping you out a little, that does take some moisture out of the air. The landlord should pick up the bill so keep all receipts. Any repairs he needs to make to fix your apartment are a tax write off for him (only give him your receipts AFTER he's reimbursed you--he'll need those receipts for his taxes). Don't be shy asking for the repair. > I'd definitely remove all carpeting, wash whatever I could down with a > diluted bleach solution, and dehumidify. Give the weather where you are [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > him (only give him your receipts AFTER he's reimbursed you--he'll need those > receipts for his taxes). Don't be shy asking for the repair. The landlord also should have insurance that covers damage to the structure from water leaks. Other than the deductible, there shouldn't be any tax-deductible expense. > > I'd definitely remove all carpeting, wash whatever I could down with a > > diluted bleach solution, and dehumidify. Give the weather where you are [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > from water leaks. Other than the deductible, there shouldn't be any > tax-deductible expense. I have lived in MANY apartments (I had to travel for work and stay for 6 or so months at a time in different locations) and I can tell you if the building is a 2 or 3 family owner-occupied home they WON'T have insurance for these type of problems or they won't have sufficient insurance or they won't want to file a claim because they are afraid of being dumped by their insurance company. But you are right--real apartment buildings with competent management will be insured, but they still need receipts for the claim. > > > I'd definitely remove all carpeting, wash whatever I could down with a > > > diluted bleach solution, and dehumidify. Give the weather where you are [quoted text clipped - 23 lines] > But you are right--real apartment buildings with competent management will > be insured, but they still need receipts for the claim. You are probably right, but in the end, it is the apartment owner's responsibility to provide a clean and safe dwelling. If a pipe broke and put several inches of water in the apartment, it needs more than a fan or dehumidifier. It really is no longer a "cleaning" issue. It is flood remediation problem and possibly a legal issue. > > > > I'd definitely remove all carpeting, wash whatever I could down with a > > > > diluted bleach solution, and dehumidify. Give the weather where you [quoted text clipped - 34 lines] > > Failing that, the tenant could also contact her local/regional media outlets--such as a TV station. In my area, there is a "10 on your side" (for the local Channel 10) reporter who reports on community and legal issues, many times involving landlord/tenant disputes not unlike the situation the original poster described. Perhaps the best thing she could do to get quick action on her situation would be to contact the local TV station. Although she's in Canada, and in a "small town", I would think their local/regional TV stations have reporters there who do much the same thing. Hope this helps-- Jean in VA >>>>I'd definitely remove all carpeting, wash whatever I could down with a >>>>diluted bleach solution, and dehumidify. Give the weather where you [quoted text clipped - 46 lines] > dehumidifier. It really is no longer a "cleaning" issue. It is flood > remediation problem and possibly a legal issue. Let me see, you have an unlivable (cat) sh.t - hole, and you are afraid to be kicked out of it? You can't clean it, you can't fix it, you can't move; I'm surprised that you found the ability to type the message! Of course you want a free service to come in! I want a free service to come in and do all my commercial and residential cleaning accounts today! I want a free service to come in and do my billing! I want a free service to come in and cut my grass, too! Perhaps leaving would be the best option. I'm sure that a free service would pack and ship for you. > >>>>I'd definitely remove all carpeting, wash whatever I could down with a > >>>>diluted bleach solution, and dehumidify. Give the weather where you [quoted text clipped - 56 lines] > Perhaps leaving would be the best option. I'm sure that a free service > would pack and ship for you. Yes, something was fishy with that one. If you look at the OP's posting history you see that there was money and transportation for tattoos, etc. >>>>> I'd definitely remove all carpeting, wash whatever I could down with a >>>>> diluted bleach solution, and dehumidify. Give the weather where you [quoted text clipped - 57 lines] > Perhaps leaving would be the best option. I'm sure that a free service > would pack and ship for you. Rather harsh I feel but I am not fully aware of all circumstances. If the person pays rent then surely it is not a free to have services come in and make the place liveable, isn't that part of the landlord's obligations? I do have some sympathy for this person - troll or not. > Rather harsh I feel but I am not fully aware of all circumstances. If the > person pays rent then surely it is not a free to have services come in and > make the place liveable, isn't that part of the landlord's obligations? I do > have some sympathy for this person - troll or not. I think the sympathetic answer is to get some legal advice. Since every single option that was presented to this person was rejected, then I wonder what their point was in posting this. They cited lack of transportation and money, but if you read their posting history on Google, you see that there is money and transportation for lots of recreational endeavors. >>Rather harsh I feel but I am not fully aware of all circumstances. If the >>person pays rent then surely it is not a free to have services come in [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > money, but if you read their posting history on Google, you see that there > is money and transportation for lots of recreational endeavors. Free legal advice, I'm sure. Could you go and do that for us? >>> Rather harsh I feel but I am not fully aware of all circumstances. If >>> the person pays rent then surely it is not a free to have services [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] >> recreational endeavors. > Free legal advice, I'm sure. Could you go and do that for us? The Green Form or 30 minutes with participating solicitors. >> Rather harsh I feel but I am not fully aware of all circumstances. If the >> person pays rent then surely it is not a free to have services come in [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > Google, you see that there is money and transportation for lots of > recreational endeavors. Goodness me, I can't trawl through hundreds of "big brother" posts to confirm your story which I have no doubt is true anyway. It makes not a jot of difference to my opinion. I have personal experience of unscrupulous landlords who harass tenants on a whim and force them to vacate properties for the street gutter. Perhaps the OP doesn't have a rent book or is not registered in the country, maybe she is anxious to keep the landlord sweet for fear of retribution because of previous landlord experiences, maybe she has recently moved into the place and is in hiding, perhaps she is not all there in the head and needs social services, there are many possibilities. Let's not be too hard on the girl without knowing all. >>>>>>I'd definitely remove all carpeting, wash whatever I could down with a >>>>>>diluted bleach solution, and dehumidify. Give the weather where you [quoted text clipped - 62 lines] > make the place liveable, isn't that part of the landlord's obligations? I do > have some sympathy for this person - troll or not. My "free" tirade was in response to the posters wish that a free service would come in and test for mold. We can all be assured that the poster would not then pay to have the mold removed. >>>>>>> I'd definitely remove all carpeting, wash whatever I could down >>>>>>> with a diluted bleach solution, and dehumidify. Give the weather [quoted text clipped - 71 lines] > would come in and test for mold. We can all be assured that the poster > would not then pay to have the mold removed. I have no idea where the OP is living but I will say that if the Council is her landlord they will without doubt come in and test for damp and rectify the matter at no extra cost to the tenant, it is a service that is included in the rent. If the furniture is damaged from living conditions then social security may assist by providing new. I see no reason to think private landlords should not do the same as the Council or Housing Associations but I can understand the OP's reluctance in asking for the Landlord's help and I also suspect she would be reluctant to ask in here for help again. The carpeting is attached to the floor, I cant remove it. I dont have a dehumidifier. The landlord person told me to wait til everything is totally dry before doing anything else. once it is, i will have them come up to smell it, and look at the cupboards and baseboards that have warped. I feel very confident they will just patch it up, not replace anything. so far there is no receipt, i vacuumed the water, i cleaned everything, i bought the cleaning supplies, etc, there have been no contractors or anything. Signature****Wisdom is scar tissue in disguise**** > I'd definitely remove all carpeting, wash whatever I could down with a > diluted bleach solution, and dehumidify. Give the weather where you are [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > him (only give him your receipts AFTER he's reimbursed you--he'll need those > receipts for his taxes). Don't be shy asking for the repair. I bought some baking soda to use with the vacume, as well as some vacume free foam stuff that you leave on. I am afraid I will just mask the smell/mold. Any ideas on which to do first? The carpet itself is dry, but all the edges and spaces around walls are wet, should I wait til they are dry too, before doing anything? >I bought some baking soda to use with the vacume, as well as some vacume > free foam stuff that you leave on. > I am afraid I will just mask the smell/mold. > Any ideas on which to do first? Call a restoration company, have them do the work and have the landlord pay for it. Or call the health department. The landlord should be dealing with this...there is likely mold growing in places that you cannot see. >I bought some baking soda to use with the vacume, as well as some vacume >free foam stuff that you leave on. >I am afraid I will just mask the smell/mold. >Any ideas on which to do first? >The carpet itself is dry, but all the edges and spaces around walls are wet, >should I wait til they are dry too, before doing anything? After 2 or 3 days a wet carpet will support mildew and mold growth. Keeping the place cool might buy you another day or two. You really need a dehumidifier. Protect your health. > >I bought some baking soda to use with the vacume, as well as some vacume > >free foam stuff that you leave on. [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > Keeping the place cool might buy you another day or two. You really > need a dehumidifier. Protect your health. I know it will grow mold, but getting a dehumidifiyer is not an optioon. I am disability, i have zero extra cash, and i already spent cash i cant afford on cleaning supplies. my landlord told me, and i quote "maybe they will give me some febreeze to cover the smell if i want it" > > I know it will grow mold, but getting a dehumidifiyer is not an optioon. > > I > am disability, i have zero extra cash, and i already spent cash i cant > afford on cleaning supplies. > my landlord told me, and i quote "maybe they will give me some febreeze to > cover the smell if i want it" Call the health department in your town/city. The landlord has to take care of this, and if there is mold growing, Febreeze is NOT going to do it. > > >I bought some baking soda to use with the vacume, as well as some vacume > > >free foam stuff that you leave on. [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > am disability, i have zero extra cash, and i already spent cash i cant > afford on cleaning supplies. Then borrow one from a friend, cousin, neighbor, member of your church/coven/whatever. You don't need to have one forever if money is that tight. Try craigslist or freecycle. You need to take responsibility for trying to make the situation better even though it's not your fault you the pipes leaked. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Tracey" <pepita@redherring.com> Newsgroups: alt.home.cleaning Sent: Monday, July 18, 2005 7:48 PM Subject: Re: Smelly apartment after a flood > > > I know it will grow mold, but getting a dehumidifiyer is not an optioon. > > > I > > am disability, i have zero extra cash, and i already spent cash i cant > > afford on cleaning supplies. > > my landlord told me, and i quote "maybe they will give me some febreeze to > > cover the smell if i want it" > > Call the health department in your town/city. The landlord has to take care > of this, and if there is mold growing, Febreeze is NOT going to do it. I live in a very small town, we do not have a health department. Maybe I will call town hall tomorrow and see if they know of the local equivalent. I am afraid to do anything to piss the landlords off, i dont want to be evicted, or have my rent raised or something. i have heard too many horror stories about this sort of thing, and the laws favour landlords, not tenants. i wish there was a free service that could come, tell me in writing there is mold, then i could go to the landlord, but they are totally downplaying everything. |
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