Can Plants Help to Stop Mould

Can Plants Help to Stop Mould

By Ruth MacEachern

Product Manager

If you have discovered mould in your home and are looking for an effective way to deal with the problem, you may have heard that plants can help to stop mould, and while they will have some effect on the humidity levels in your property, they will only play a small part in the process.  To stop mould permanently, you need to deal with its causes.

How could plants help with mould levels in your home

The leading cause of mould in your home is high humidity levels, causing condensation.  In areas where condensation forms, it can soak through porous surfaces and cause a damp.  These damp patches provide the perfect environment for mould to grow, and it can quickly become a problem.

Some plants can help to reduce the humidity levels in the air by absorbing moisture through their leaves and using it to grow.

Not all plants absorb moisture through their leaves, and not all plants will thrive in your bathroom due to lighting and moisture levels, but some popular choices that will happily grow in such conditions include:

• Peace lilies
• Snake plants
• Palms
• English ivy

These plants will absorb some of the moisture from the air. Still, unfortunately, they will be unlikely to have much of an impact on condensation because they don’t drink enough moisture to make a big difference to the humidity levels that cause mould to grow.

Water vapour is released into the air when you take a bath or a hot shower.  On average, 1.7 litres of water vapour evaporates during a bath.  In an unventilated room, this will quickly condense on cold surfaces such as a window or exterior wall.

Plants only take up as much water as they need to grow; most of this water is drawn up through their roots.  If you think about the amount of water you need to give a plant, it is tiny compared to the amount of water vapour released by an average family taking daily showers over the course of the week.

It is also important to note that plants release water through their leaves' pores in a process called transpiration. Filling your bathroom with plants in a bid to reduce condensation and stop damp could make the problem worse.

Stopping mould means reducing condensation

Plants do not absorb sufficient water to prevent condensation. Instead, suppose you want to reduce the humidity level in your bathroom or kitchen when bathing and cooking. In that case, you need to ensure that the room has adequate ventilation in the form of either an extractor fan or as part of a whole house ventilation system.

Modern extractor fans use moisture sensing technology to measure the amount of water vapour in the air and adjust their power levels to remove the humid air as quickly as possible to stop condensation from becoming a problem.

Get help with condensation and mould

If you have discovered a mould problem in your bathroom, it is essential to solving it as quickly as possible.  Mould releases allergens that can affect health; some species are toxic to humans and pets.  Cleaning the mould away is a temporary but essential measure; in the long term, you will need to deal with the root cause.

Our local ventilation specialists can visit your home and carry out a free survey that will identify the causes of condensation and then provide you with advice about the best way to deal with it.  Enter your postcode below to find a ventilation expert near you, and we can help you to stop mould for good.