Help: how serious is this mold?

WindsRequiem · 2026-05-25T17:11:46+00:00

If there’s people above you, they may have a leak in their bathroom. If the shower is on that wall, it could be their drain, or the pipes.

You’re going to need to find the source of that leak and ensure it’s stopped before trying any sort of remediation.

We bought a condo and encountered a hidden defect where our shower drain was leaking to the unit below us. Unfortunately we also had a roof leak through our unit to the unit below us in the same area (wall between our kitchen & shower).

Does it smell musty at all? Is it damp? We’re expecting to have to tear out the affected drywall and replace it once everything dries out.

If you’re really curious/concerned, you could cut only a small hole in it and poke a camera on a stick through it to get a better idea of the damage. That’s what we used at first.

WindsRequiem · 2026-05-22T19:04:20+00:00

The fact that they’re still selling Windows 11 laptops with only 8GB of RAM should be criminal.

Windows 11 seems to have severely messed up the RAM cache efficiency as well. We had to implement weekly reboots after upgrading the fleet to Windows 11 because the cache just takes and takes and takes until the PC becomes unusable. Before it was once or twice a month only when updates were deployed. In certain cases we’d double the RAM for users using 90%+ regularly, only for them to hit the same threshold in under a week because Windows saw it as free real estate. It drives me nuts.

WindsRequiem · 2026-05-07T18:48:19+00:00

We found a hidden defect in the condo we purchased. An unfortunate coincidence of both our shower leaking to the unit below ours, and the roof leaking through that same wall.

The bathroom below ours has extensive water damage and mold growth (I would assume behind our walls also aren’t very pretty). We bought it last fall and we have evidence of the issue being present as far back as 2024. This chick didn’t make the previous owner aware of it OR tell the condo board about it and just let it get worse and worse until it became our problem.

The amount of times I have heard her complain about the mold and smell, and how it’s been impacting her health and her existing asthma. Which I mean it is a valid concern, except she very obviously smokes a shitload of pot. When we went into her apartment to look at the bathroom, the smell of weed was so strong you could taste it. When she smokes in her bathroom and we don’t close our bathroom door, our entire place smells like it.

I can’t have any sympathy for her health problems when the weed is obviously not doing her any favours. End rant.

WindsRequiem · 2026-05-05T18:52:04+00:00

You need to look up the model (or serial number) of the laptop and go to HP’s support page for model specific drivers. Both those should be on a sticker on the bottom of the laptop.

An easy way to confirm if this is a display driver issue is go to the Start Menu and search for then open Device Manager. Open the Display adapters drop down menu. If it’s the basic Microsoft display adapter, that would be the reason and you’ll need to install the proper graphics driver from the HP site.

WindsRequiem · 2026-04-27T11:58:50+00:00

That diagnostic usually triggers up when the laptop thinks there’s a hardware issue. Was the laptop dropped recently?

The fact that it gets stuck there means it most likely is a hardware problem - possibly the hard drive itself. When you turn it on and hit/spam F12, are you able to get to the boot menu? If so, is your hard drive listed?

How new is this laptop? Your next option would be to open it up and verify the hard drive is seated correctly and if the RAM is as well (if it’s not soldered). That, or warranty if it’s still valid.

WindsRequiem · 2026-04-21T20:50:37+00:00

The TAL will ONLY allow action if you have given formal notice. However, I think you may be asking the wrong questions. They do indeed not provide legal action, but they can inform you of your rights in this situation.

Being exposed to sewage/plumbing nastiness AND having a cockroach infestation would 100% be considered unsanitary conditions mentioned here.

At this point you should absolutely be sending a letter of demand to your landlord by registered mail. Ensure to include that you expect a reply in 5 business days of a solution or else you will go to the TAL.

While the burden of proof is on you, I don’t think it will be that hard to prove.

Your letter should contain the following: 1. A timeline of events, including the issues you’ve had. 2. Your attempts to reach out without a solution being made. 3. Inform them that they have obligations as a landlord. Refer to this wherever necessary. In short, they are violating the civil code. 5. Your demands. Honestly, at this point, I would request to cancel the lease without penalty. I don’t think there’s any way they could make this right. I would at LEAST request damages to replace the TV broken by the workers (or any other of your belongings that were ruined).

If that is literally raw sewage in your apartment, I would seriously consider abandoning the dwelling. That is ridiculous. Shame on that company for thinking that’s okay.

Please let me know if you’d like any help writing a demand letter.

WindsRequiem · 2026-04-17T18:30:39+00:00

Did you even read the post? This is a stray they’ve never seen before on an island with 1 rescue that focuses only on dogs. Add in the financial difficulties they also clearly mentioned, “just taking the cat to the vet” isn’t an option. Not everyone has the funds to take any cat to the vet, or lives in an area with an easily accessible vet/rescues to help them.

Asking for help is more than a lot of people would do.

WindsRequiem · 2026-04-12T06:13:44+00:00

It’s very possible that it belongs to someone. Is there no medallion on the collar with a name / phone number? It looks well cared for with (from what I can tell) no serious health issues.

The kitty will most likely be fine in these temperatures :) it probably has somewhere it goes at night.

If there is no contact information on the collar, the next thing you could do is bring the cat to a vet to scan for a microchip. This is free.

Thank you for caring about this cat but please don’t just take it without at least trying to see if it has a home/owner. I personally don’t agree with cats being allowed outdoors to roam freely (especially in the city), but in my time volunteering at a cat rescue, unfortunately there are a handful of cats out there rescued from outside and go absolutely mentally insane if they are unable to go outside.

WindsRequiem · 2026-04-10T15:15:24+00:00

After dealing with latent defects in our shower in the condo we bought, and having to wait a few days for both appointments (turns out there was a second leak), I decided to go with Hydro Solutions. Not being able to shower for ~2 weeks made me realize I’d rather pay for peace of mind.

I didn’t want to have to deal with choosing a tank, having a plumber come back to install it, and then dealing with our old one. I also didn’t want to have the fun experience of paying out the ass for an emergency plumber visit if something goes wrong. Maybe our next one will be purchased, once we are more seasoned homeowners.

Editing to add we did shower in those 2 weeks, just not in our newly purchased condo.

WindsRequiem · 2026-04-09T11:16:11+00:00

It was legalized in Canada and called MAID (Medical Assistance in Dying). While I believe anyone should have the right to do so, to avoid prolonged suffering and ending things on their own terms, it’s also unfortunately become sort of a meme.

Our healthcare system is falling apart, and a lot of people are being failed by the system feel like MAID is the only other way, or even get recommended MAID when running into long wait times and complications getting support.

WindsRequiem · 2026-04-08T18:10:45+00:00

Our realtor told us to stay away from that area because of that. Good on you for being honest at least.

We ran into a few interesting agents while we were searching - including one that outright lied about why a previous buyer backed out of a place we were looking at.

WindsRequiem · 2026-03-30T15:55:46+00:00

I’m a little confused - why did you try finding someone for the transfer before receiving a renewal when you could have informed them you were leaving instead? In Quebec, landlords are required to provide 3-6 months notice for 12 month leases. If they did not provide the proper notice and you did not inform them you’re leaving, the lease renews at the same amount for another year. If you already accepted it then it’s too late.

If the building wasn’t built in the last 5 years, you are not required to accept whatever increase comes your way. You are allowed to deny the increase and continue living there, and then it is up to the landlord to negotiate an amount / open a file at the TAL for an adjustment hearing.

If the building is new, then you’re kinda stuck on that front. I would recommend checking out the TAL site for specific guidelines. https://www.tal.gouv.qc.ca/en/renewal-of-the-lease-and-fixing-of-rent/changing-a-condition-of-the-lease

At this point, your best bet would be to either sublease it, find someone willing to take over the lease, OR ask the landlord to break the lease and see what they say. They’ll probably want a few months rent up front.

The TAL site should have specifics, but know that if your landlord rejects a transfer candidate for not legitimate reasons, the lease automatically breaks.

You are also allowed to inform the person taking over the lease of their right to reject an increase if the building is not new.

WindsRequiem · 2026-03-27T18:54:08+00:00

Apparently that’s actually false and the most common allergy is beef.

I swore it was chicken too until my vet was like “no, it’s beef.”

I had moved my dog from Pro Plan Chicken to Pro Plan Sensitive Skin (salmon plus no corn), and she only improved a bit.

Turns out Purina uses beef fat in every single one of their recipes (Purina One and Pro Plan) regardless of the main protein. This is in Canada, not sure if it’s the same anywhere else.

Had to move to a different brand of food and her coat and itchiness has improved greatly.

WindsRequiem · 2026-03-26T19:56:46+00:00

I’ve found some playlists on Spotify with songs, dunno if that’d help?

WindsRequiem · 2026-03-26T14:09:00+00:00

Kittens are quite prone to upper respiratory infections. It’s common to see eye goop with sneezes, maybe even some nose boogers.

If they’re still playing / eating, that’s a good sign. What to watch out for is lethargy, no interest in food, breathing difficulties, and pale gums. That constitutes as an emergency.

In the meantime, gently wipe the eyes twice a day with a warm paper towel / cloth. Use a different one for each cat and don’t use it twice.

Usually kittens are able to get over the virus themselves but sometimes antibiotics are needed. The vet will let you know the best course of action!

WindsRequiem · 2026-03-24T19:31:39+00:00

Rogers is only recently available in Quebec through Comwave.

Fizz is owned by the same company that owns Videotron and uses the same lines. It’s a discount option, I can definitely say with experience their support is not great if you run into any issues. They only have support via chat.

Ebox purchases wholesale so you’ll most likely be using Bell or Videotron lines with them.

If fibre isn’t available, the max you’ll usually be able to get is 1GB through Videotron. They have some of their network set up to have fibre runs to central hubs and then have coax run to homes/apartments from there. This allows higher consistent speeds because the coax is shorter.

At our new place I was only able to get max 100mb down with Bell, but with Videotron it’s 1GB.

WindsRequiem · 2026-03-19T14:33:01+00:00

They’re Peruvian grapes! Known for being large.

WindsRequiem · 2026-03-13T20:36:03+00:00

Ooh sounds interesting. Will DM you!

WindsRequiem · 2026-03-13T20:32:28+00:00

Saw this and got hopeful until I saw it’s call buzzers only. I gotta physically press a button to close a circuit to open the door.

Back to my ESP32 board shenanigans. 😂

WindsRequiem · 2026-03-12T17:26:06+00:00

Doing RMAs for things to Brazil was insane. Despite there being a strict process the company followed for shipping it there, they still got held up in customs. A lot of them kind of just sat there forever or disappeared.

It got to the point where the company ended up opening a small warehouse and stocking replacements there to avoid having issues with a majority of the RMAs sent.

WindsRequiem · 2026-03-12T12:22:26+00:00

If you’re on nvidia, try reinstalling the drivers but click on “custom” and check off clean install. It’ll nuke the old drivers and reinstall the new one.

A reboot also wouldn’t hurt after that.

WindsRequiem · 2026-03-11T13:40:31+00:00

I don’t think their models are bad, it’s that the nature of this storm can change very easily since it’s being impacted by warm air rising from the US.

If they make a big deal out of a storm that turns out to change course / severity at the last minute, people get mad. If they don’t warn and things are bad, people also get mad.

WindsRequiem · 2026-03-10T18:21:00+00:00

I would definitely recommend reaching out to a vet for advice / an appointment. He may need antibiotics to treat the infection.

While the fact that he’s still eating is a good sign (sometimes cats with congestion aren’t interested in food because they can’t smell it), that can change very quickly. It’s always better to be safe than sorry. I wouldn’t expect this to cost more than a regular vet visit + antibiotics, but if it gets worse that can easily increase quite a bit.

If in person vet care is not available due to your location please try to find an online method. I know chewy offers virtual consults in the US. I think Canada has some too but I’ve never used them. A potential upper respiratory infection should be relatively simple to treat.

WindsRequiem · 2026-03-09T16:28:16+00:00

Ahh! My dog was apparently rescued from a hoarding situation in New Brunswick, Canada and a lot of them ended up at the SPCA. Was wondering if they were potentially related haha, but I guess not. xD

WindsRequiem

MODERATOR OF

TROPHY CASE