g18c

Dear all, we have been happily living in a 2 bed JVC apartment in the 10th floor for the past 2 years without any issues.

About 2 months ago we reported to the watchman paint bubbling off the walls about a foot from the floor around the bathroom are walls (i don't have a leak that i can see).

1 month on from that complaint he sent the maintenance guy who literally just polyfillered over it (can see in pics of the attachment), not surprisingly about 1 month later it started bubbling off again... he says all the apartments on that side have it "as too much cold and no sun on this building side".... i don't have any issue in the living room however so i think more likely a leak.

1 month on from the "repair" and to present day - more seriously I have found mould is suddenly growing on clothes, furniture and walls. It caught me completely unaware, and to my shock when i checked under the bed base it was covered like something out of a horror movie. Went in the spare room that hadn't been in to for a few weeks and same story.

The air feels moist in the bedrooms (the one with most mold feels moister), the floor a bit sticky when you walk on it. The living room is fine.

They sent their AC "engineers" a few days ago who said they have now "increased the airflow" but they suspect warm air is getting in from outside but cant see where from. Doors and windows are all sealed OK.

Their latest hair brain idea yesterday was to turn off the AC and have us open the doors "to dry everything out", they don't really get the concept of warm air on cold surfaces - I felt increased moisture after that so closed the door and gave up.

Currently have a dehumidifier running 24/7 pulling liters of water daily, humidity is at 60% as per the unit's screen and although it feels less sticky that is not a long term solution, we are currently sleeping in the living room.

So I think this is a combination of moist air from AC (maybe from a common area) and rising damp (leak from another apartment or leaky pipe in ours). Since the issue of mould 10 days ago was reported, no resolution or sensible plan of action and I have zero confidence they have any idea what is going on.

I'm currently looking for a new place as the people i am at the end of my tether dealing with groups of guys who who turn up and just scratch their head - frankly they have a very limited mental capacity and most importantly i will not wait before my families health is affected (children can get even sicker than adults, i have a 18 month baby).

I have some questions please:

1) I am documenting with e-mails now, would registered post and signed copies to management office be better? they haven't responded officially in writing, only by sending "engineers" and i use the term loosely.

2) Any ideas what could be the cause so i can convince them to get a proper maintenance company to fix it? Although an outside contractor can i charge that on to landlord?

3) If i move, we are paying 70k (as we have been here a while), other places are now 100k. My contract is up in April. Can i get my money back for the current lease plus any damages (rent difference, belongings that had to be thrown due to mould) for having to move due to their failure to provide a safe place to live?

Very stressed and beside myself dealing with these people, I would really appreciate any advice people can give and stories of hope too from people who have experienced the same.

Picture attached of what i have documented so far.

Ditzy

Hi,
I can tell you exactly what this will be.

You have a leak under the tiles (probably behind the bath) in your bathroom. The water is traveling to the nearest walls and climbing 'up', leaving you with damp patches and bubbling plaster & paint work.

Solution: Find leak behind tiles in bathroom, you will need a good plumber who can quickly locate and fix it, it will involve removing some bathroom tiles but other than that, it is not a big or expensive job, if you are being quoted a lot, shop around. It is worth paying your watchman 50 AED to get an on-the-side plumber who will know what he is doing. Strip the paint from the walls and allow it to dry out, this will take a few weeks. Once completely dry inside, repaint.

It is not an expensive job but I am sure this is what the problem will be, we have had it too. Good luck!

g18c

Thanks Ditzy appreciate the reply - there was also mold around the AC outlet vent and walls/ceiling too (high up, far away from the bubbling paint), do you think this is related (due to the high moisture levels) or a separate issue?

mikewot

I would say that the mould is due to the high humidity. How is your DEWA water bill? You can view a consumption graph, has it gone up?

g18c

Not really noticed an increase no (not had last months though), its been the same for months at 750dhs monthly

Ditzy

it is probably related, if the walls are wet on the inside everything will just be damp.

You'd be surprised how far it can travel, ours traveled across the bathroom, across the bedroom and then halfway up the hallway walls - so we didn't think for a minute that it was a bathroom related leak! We also had all types of a/c people out for ages and were also told too-cold stories until we got someone who knew what they were talking about!

gottheTshirt

This is common in the GCC and also in all of the countries from where they recruitbthe plumbers, Plumbers are selfvtrained and can only use DIY type pipe fittings, pipese are built into thecwalls and start to leak after a few years. Best to find a new apartment. Electrical installations are no better, thebinsulation tape ueed to make connections starts to fail after 15 years.

Boomhauer

How about some dehumidifiers as a stop gap measure?

Mold can cause serious health issues.

flares

it will be an embedded pipe leak.

Irishbeekeeper

As mentioned above, its probably a leaked pipe inside the wall combined with high humidity from the AC Vent.

1. Get your family out of there as soon as possible, especially the baby. Maybe find a short term lease fully furnished apartment and take it for a month or so till you sort this out.
2. Even if you take your case to the Rent Committee in the RERA office (Dubai Municipality Portal) they probably wont have a solution to your unique problem. But it wont hurt in trying.
3. Have you tried talking to some experts? I did a google search and got :
Mold Remediation Dubai, Abu Dhabi - UAE
and
https://www.saniservice.com/mould-re...ion-dubai.html
Like I said it wouldnt hurt in trying as the alternative to everything mentioned above is finding another flat which as you said is a 30K increase in rent in this overblown property market right now.

Bongoman2

I had a similar thing happen in our apartment. The apartment above us had been flooded and we could not get rid of the mold for a long time. It was behind the kitchen cupboards. It can play havoc with little lungs!

Call R-Squared for the best mold removal in Dubai, they are awesome and very switched on, I am very cautious spraying any chemical in a house with babies. but these guys put my mind at ease with their professionalism.
04 2859939

Bongoman2

oh yeah and be sure to send the bill to the landlord, that is counted as an emergency maintenance for health and safety.

g18c

Maintenance come round 5 guys all just looking at one another, I pointed out the bath sealant had come away in both bathrooms - that would certainly be a source of water but how much i am now sure. I am the one pointing out the possible issues, they are literally clueless, pretty scary they are running an entire building.

Dehumidifier running 24/7 dripping constantly, humidity at 2am is 75%. It never drops below 60% humidity and is mostly at 65%. I feel like I'm living in a cave. In my car its 35% humidity with ac running (the reading of the portable hygrometer matches that of the dehumidifier display so it seems accurate enough).

Building maintenance seem to think its perfectly acceptable for the humidity to be that high - it is high humidity (65%+) even in the common areas too even many floors away from mine... I think the entire building is knackered.

Perhaps there is a serious issue with their plant equipment... as opposed for the watchman and his engineer's theory of the paint bubbling due to from "mopping floor" and "too much cooling, no sun coming".

I'm looking for another apartment, what concerns me is that given the cheap state in which many apartments are built, i don't want to jump out of the pan in to the fire as many maintenance companies share many common traits.

So questions please:

1) Recommended home humidity levels when the AC is running? What are other peoples humidity levels (please post if you have a portable device)

2) Would embedded pipe leaks raise humidity, or is the leak and high AC humidity 2 separate issues?

3) Who would be the preferable estate agents to use so that if ever i face a problem again they would respond responsibly and professionally? I've heard good things about Better Homes.

4) If reported to Dubai municipality would they come round and condemn the place? Obviously the more crap I can cause them the more I am likely to get my money back.

5) After all said and done and i have moved, any damages i can claim from the landlord via the Rent Committee for breach of contract? How to get my money back (my lease is due for renewal in April, they still have 2 cheques of mine)

Sorry for the plethora of questions, 2am and angry lots of questions in my head and just for my own understanding in future so i cant be fobbed off

MataHari

you first need to establish what causes it and I believe someone suggested a company that can do this.
If you did something wrong, you will end up paying for it, if its a structural fault, it will be for your landlord and the building management to sort it out.
In your contract there will be a clause specifying who is responsible for maintenance.

With regard to real estate agents, they are not responsible for solving this sort of problem for you. When you moved in and 2 years afterwards you had no issues. No real estate company would get involved and help you with this as it's not part of their duties. They need to make sure that at the time you move into a property, all the maintenance has been done and the property is in good order. After that it's between you and the landlord (and between the landlord and the building management/developer). Only when you occupy a property that is actually managed by a real estate company/property management company, they will be your contact in matters like this.

mikewot

Hhhmmm I thought agents were supposed to know the law.
Article 16:
Landlord shall, during validity of the tenancy contract, be liable for undertaking
maintenance of the property and shall rectify any defects or faults that affect
tenant’s intended benefit from the property, unless the two parties agree
otherwise.

If there is a clause about maintenance in your contract then it is an illegal clause because it breaks the laws of Dubai.
Tenants' right to reject Dubai rent contract - Emirates 24/7