Guncho

My house has been suffering from a musty smell on the main floor for a while and I think I have narrowed it down to the bathroom. Specifically an area along the floor near the shower where I often see water near after a shower and once saw water dripping into the laundry room.

Anyway I pulled the baseboard out to get a look and this is what I saw. Is this mould? If so, how alarmed should be? Get it fixed in the next few months or run screaming from the house now? (I have a 6 month old daughter)

nealtw

Yes this is mold. All the affected plaster work needs to be removed a.s.a.p. Get yourself a good mask and gloves, bag this stuff and try to keep the dust down. The wood behind will have to be treated to kill the mold and allowed to dry out before repairs are done.
The leak will have to be found and repaired

Guncho

I think the faucet has hard water buildup which is causing it to spray against the shower wall when you have a shower. When it accumulates enough it runs over the side of the tub to the floor.

Do you think it's ok if we just don't use this room and keep the door closed until it is fixed which will be asap or should my wife and daughter not be in the house until then?

nealtw

More knowledgeable people will be along soon.

inspectorD

You need to remove this material ASAP, and most important, fix the leak.
Your family will most likely be fine, it takes a long time to build up enough to be an issue. There are NO standards that are recognized by the Gov. Only suggestions.

Clean it up, fix the leak, and if anyone even feels a little bit ill, go to a hotel or friends until the pro's are done.

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Guncho

It's all cleaned up and waiting to be patched. Scraped all the black paper off and removed the baseboards, all rotten drywall and wood. We snaked the wall and luckily the mold was only on the paper. There's no leak but what was happening was the bathtub faucet was spraying water when the shower was engaged and some would hit the top of the tub. After a while some of it would run down to the floor and seep under the baseboard. I soaked the faucet in vinegar to get rid of hard water buildup and it's a bit better now. Will put a face cloth on the edge of the tub to catch any drips. Would like to get shower doors but a baby needs a lot of tub time and it would be a pain to lean on with your chest every other day.

Thanks for everyone's help! The mildewy smell in the house is already practically gone.

inspectorD

Yeah, been there with the shower doors. We gave them up long ago for good sturdycurtains that stick to one end of the wall when they get a little wet. Keeps the spray down.

Glad it worked out.

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nealtw

Have a look at curved shower curtain rod. You can install it closer in and still have elbow room and they do a better job of keeping the water in.