During the renovation of apartments in Porto, the main of the most frequently encountered elements of the work is the elimination of mold. The nature of its appearance is very simple - it is high humidity (especially in coastal areas, which Porto is), as well as insufficient thermal insulation of the premises.
It is important to understand that there is no impregnation, primer or paint that would help get rid of mold forever. It is like treating the symptoms of a disease, but not the disease itself. Therefore, a simple repaint will help to eliminate the problem only for a while. It can be a year or even two. Or maybe one or two months. Everything depends on the conditions. It is important to eliminate the CAUSE of its appearance.
But we have digressed a bit. Let's get back to the topic of renovation. We managed to get acquainted with the apartment, which was about 120 sq. m. and was located approximately in the center of Foz. The owners wanted everything to look in accordance with modern requirements and therefore completely replaced the old tiles in the bathrooms with new ones, leveled the walls and ceilings, pasted a wide ceiling cornice, repainted the ceilings and walls, pasted wallpaper on several walls, laid parquet boards everywhere and completely replaced the doors. The kitchen and plumbing were also completely replaced.
Surely many have noticed that mold usually appears in rooms with windows facing north and much less often in rooms with windows facing south. And this is one of the important factors: the sun helps dry the surface. In addition, it makes the walls warmer in winter, when the difference in temperature outside and inside the room, together with humidity, helps shift the dew point to the inner surface of the wall, and this in turn causes mold to appear.
Thermal insulation of the building will help to avoid its occurrence. The so-called "hood". And it is very good when thermal insulation is done on the outside of the building. But very often there are apartments that do not have such thermal insulation. Nevertheless, this is absolutely not a reason to refuse housing in such a house. Insulation can be done from the inside in such a way that, firstly, it will not take up much space, and secondly, with minimal costs, it will make housing much more comfortable.
This material is foamed polyurethane. It is sold in Leroy Merlin. It is 2 cm thick and is suitable for use outside and inside the building. It is very easy to install with foam glue. After its installation, it is treated with a special solution for the mesh, putty, sanded and painted. It is quite durable and is not much inferior to plasterboard in this indicator.
Carrying out these tasks will not only eliminate the mold itself, but will also eliminate the cause of its appearance in the future.
For ceilings, the ideal option for heat and sound insulation is moisture-resistant plasterboard, inside which mineral wool is laid. But this option is not always suitable, since many apartments are no more than 2.5 meters high. In such a situation, you don’t want to lower the ceiling again.
