You already contend with the stress of maintaining your home; including ensuring that damp doesn’t develop, and everyone knows that moisture breeds mould, something that can affect the appearance of your home as well as the health of those residing there. It’s disgusting, it’s unsafe, it smells awful, it affects the value of your home – the list goes on and on. But it’s not enough that this doesn’t get inside your house, you need to make sure it doesn’t get into your shed either.
Chances are, your shed contains a lot of items important and valuable to you; your Christmas and other holiday decorations, camping and outdoor equipment, outdoor furniture and garden tools – some people even store out-of-season clothing in this space too.
Needless to say, that’s quite a lot of stuff that could potentially get damaged. While you could debate whether to get a new shed entirely, what’s really going to do the trick is treating this almost as if it were your house. This is going to be the number one way to prevent a mouldy shed. So, here’s everything you need to know to prevent it happening during the colder and wetter months of the year.
Start by giving it a clean
Whether you’re putting items away for the winter or simply cleaning out the shed, it’s important to sweep out the entire area, making sure there aren’t any old leaves or other garden debris that can decompose and cause mould. Also, it’s a good idea to look for signs of rodent activity or damage, as they too are often the cause of moisture within a shed. Nearly all sheds are made from wood, so check to see if there are any signs of mould emanating from the wood itself. See if you can use plastic shed bases instead, as this could help a lot. Perhaps the first thing to do, if you suspect damp or mould, is to clean your shed and do a thorough inspection.
Is there ventilation?
Some sheds, not all of them, will have some sort of ventilation present within the structure itself. However, sometimes, ventilation could just lead to more moisture getting in. A concrete vapour barrier is a great way to do this, as it will stop moisture from reaching the floor of the shed. Generally speaking, it’s up to you, but it’s best to just look into this and see what your shed does and doesn’t have.
Consider installing insulation
One of the reasons why mould grows during the winter and autumn (and early spring) months is due to the sheer amount of moisture that’s present in the air. This constant moisture (and cold temperatures) essentially makes it impossible to dry out. So, in cases like this, it’s best to just go ahead and look into the insulation. In fact, when it comes to these cold months, the reason your house doesn’t mould is thanks to the insulation that’s present. Simply add some basic insulation into your shed (which doesn’t need to be too expensive) can instantly resolve a main portion of why your belongings get moulded during the colder months.
