What should you make of a tumble dryer that is vented into the room rather than outside?

What is the fuller explanation?

Vented dryers are meant to discharge to the outside through a duct. A hose pushed out of a window only while someone remembers, or a hose left in the room, puts litres of water into the air from a single load. The cold walls and the windows then take that moisture as condensation. Condenser and heat-pump dryers are a different machine. The surveyor can see a hose lying on the floor or a duct that ends inside a cupboard. They cannot see how the household actually uses it every wash day.

The mould that follows is a ventilation problem caused by the appliance, not a ground-moisture problem. A RICS home survey records visible arrangements. It does not test appliances and does not guarantee ducts buried in joinery. If the report mentions the hose, do not answer it with an injected damp-proof course. Plan a proper discharge to outside, or a different dryer, and then see whether the condensation eases.

What should you ask your surveyor?

• Where does the dryer hose end: outside, in the room, or unknown?
• Is there mould in the same room as the hose?
• Did you see a condenser dryer, which is a different arrangement?

What are the typical next steps?

1. Do not treat room mould as rising damp if a dryer hose ends indoors.
2. Ask the seller where the hose is put when the machine runs.
3. If you keep a vented dryer, give it a duct to outside air. The survey did not fit one.

Costs vary with the building and with who you instruct. Where this page does not cite a published figure, ask the surveyor, a relevant specialist, or your solicitor for a written quote. Do not treat a forum average as the price.

Also asked about this

Which pages should you read next?

• Is green algae on the outside wall the same thing as black mould indoors?
• Does a buried air brick prove the floor joists have already started to rot?
• Flight holes in a beam have no fresh dust under them. What can the survey not say about whether the beetle is still active?
• Guide: What does ventilation mean in a home survey?
• All UK home survey questions

Sources

• RICS: RICS Home Surveys (Home Survey Standard)
• Property Care Association: Structural problems, including damp, dry rot, wet rot and woodworm (homeowner advice)
• GOV.UK: Damp and mould: understanding and addressing the health risks for rented housing providers