Morning brief · prepared for Michael · Thursday, November 5, 2026
The Magnolia casita
A practical answer for one small place, and one lunch break.
Good morning. This one isn't about your place. It's about his.
If you read one thing
Start with the air path.
The window unit cools the front room; the closed bedroom at the back is outside that path. Put a floor fan at the bedroom doorway, blowing into the bedroom, and leave the door open.
Tonight: set that fan in the doorway. If the bedroom has a window, compare indoor and outdoor dew points with the calculator below.
The two-minute check: at lunch, pick up a pin moisture meter. Tonight, compare a known-dry spot of the same material in the same room with the closet floor edge and baseboard. This is a comparison, not a mold test. It answers one question: is that spot wetter than the rest of the room?
01
Pick the problem you notice
Start · What's getting to you in there?
Question 1
What's getting to you in there?
Whole tree · scroll sideways inside the drawing on a narrow screen
Whole tree · plain text
The air feels heavy and still.
Bedroom door usually closed → keep it open; doorway fan on the floor, blowing into bedroom.
Bedroom has a window → use the calculator at the dew point decision. If outside air is drier, open up and run the bedroom window fan on exhaust[7]. If outside air is wetter, keep it shut and let the AC work. About the same (within 2°F): either is fine. The outdoor dew point comes from the NWS hourly graph[5].
No bedroom window → doorway fan + open door is the whole fix. Pick up one floor/box fan.
Check the AC panel and manual. Some units have a small Open / Fresh Air / Closed tab. If yours has no such tab, it only recirculates the air already inside.[6]
It's hot at night. The front AC is separated from the back bedroom → doorway fan, door open.
Hygrometer over 60% RH for a few days → the AC is losing to moisture; add the dehumidifier tier.[1]
Otherwise → start with the doorway fan tonight.
I'm worried the flood left mold. Smell must or see spots? Either way, compare a known-dry spot of the same material with the closet floor edge and baseboard tonight. This is a comparison, not a mold test. It answers one question: is that spot wetter than the rest of the room?
Readings similar → it's dry at that spot; the flood is over there. Recheck after heavy rain.
Closet reads higher, or there are visible spots → take a photo and tell the landlady with the text below.
Visible growth under about 10 sq ft → EPA says you can handle it yourself in most cases; tell the landlady with a photo, then clean the small area per EPA guidance.[3]
Bigger than that, EPA suggests a professional may be worth it. In a rental, that's the landlady's call, so tell her.[3]
The landlady's dogs. Ringworm is a fungus, not a worm. It spreads between people, pets and shared objects. Don't pet the dogs; wash hands after contact and wash bedding a dog has been on. Use over-the-counter antifungal cream for an itchy ring-shaped rash; see a doctor if it doesn't clear.[8]
Optional antifungal cream if an itchy ring-shaped rash shows up.
Rain's coming → after heavy rain in the NWS forecast, compare the closet reading again the next morning and log it. Pick up a pin moisture meter.
02
Tonight
Approximate, from a description · airflow shown as arrows
Set a floor fan at the bedroom doorway, on the floor, blowing from the front room into the bedroom. Keep the door open.
If there is a bedroom window, compare indoor dew point from temperature + humidity with the outdoor dew point on the NWS hourly graph[5]. Outside air is drier: open up and run the window fan on exhaust[7]. Outside air is wetter: keep it shut and let the AC work. About the same (within 2°F): either is fine.
Some units have a small Open / Fresh Air / Closed tab. If yours has no such tab, it only recirculates the air already inside.[6]
03
Lunch run
Pick up what the reading calls for
Prices as listed online .... For aisle and stock, open the Home Depot app and set the store to #0588; it shows both.
A starter set for checking the closet and moving cool air.
Solid...
Peace of mind...
04
The closet, measured
About four months ago, water came up through the kitchen sink, crossed the floor, and settled about an inch deep in the bedroom closet before drying. The landlady was told only that water got in; she lent two fans. The useful question now is whether that closet is wet or damp today. Mold needs ongoing moisture; water-damaged materials should be dried within 24–48 hours.[2]
This is a comparison, not a mold test. It answers one question: is that spot wetter than the rest of the room? Read a known-dry spot of the same material in the same room first, then the closet floor edge and baseboard. Similar readings mean dry at those spots; a clearly higher closet reading means moisture is still there.
Keep indoor relative humidity below 60%, ideally 30–50%.[1] The hygrometer tells you which side of that line the room is on.
05
If the closet reads higher
If you smell must or see spots, take a photo and compare the readings. If visible mold covers less than about 10 square feet, EPA says that in most cases you can handle the job yourself. Bigger than that, EPA suggests a professional may be worth it. In a rental, that's the landlady's call, so tell her.[3]
Text to the landlady
Hi, following up on the water that came in a few months ago. I should have been more specific: it came up through the kitchen sink and stood about an inch deep in the bedroom closet before it dried. I took a moisture reading there today: [reading] vs [reading] on a dry wall. Photo attached. Could you take a look when you get a chance?
06
The dogs
Ringworm is a fungus, not a worm. It spreads between people, pets and shared objects. Don't pet the dogs. Wash hands after contact, and wash bedding a dog has been on. Use over-the-counter antifungal cream for an itchy ring-shaped rash; see a doctor if it doesn't clear.[8]
07
When rain is forecast
After any heavy rain in the NWS forecast, take the closet reading again the next morning and log it. That gives you a comparison over time. Pick up a pin moisture meter for the reading. Open the NWS hourly forecast for San Antonio.
08
How this was checked
Each source below was opened and the sentence this page relies on was found on it. Prices were read from retailer listings, not from a store visit. The floor plan is from a verbal description; no one has measured this unit. Stock can change during the day.