Did anyone deal with Kenwood damp proofing?

devotee · 18 July 2011 at 9:34PM

I'm buying a property at the moment and I need a quote for some damp treatment.
Apparently Kenwood do a free survey, so I contacted through their website so they can meet with the estate agent to access the property.

As I don't have much control over the survey and I won't be there, I was wondering if they are what they say, meaning, do they really show up when they say they will, how reputable they are? You never know these days!
Or do I just find a tradesman and go with him to get an estimate of the work?

Thanks!

Leif · 18 July 2011 at 10:08PM

Disclaimer: I know nowt, just your typical internet 'expert'.

If you google you will find an awful lot of information about damp proofing companies, and in particular that many will do free 'surveys' They are free in the sense that you do not pay directly, but it is in their interest to diagnose a fault which, by complete coincidence, they can fix. So can you trust the results of the survey? My opinion is that the survey is of no value because it is not independent of a product being sold. In fact the survey is worse than worthless. Useful links:

http://www.dampbuster.com/recognitions.html
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/3346216/Doctor-can-you-cure-my-damp.html
http://www.dampbuster.com/wall_video.html

Get the damp surveyed by an independent damp specialist who has no connections with any damp proofing company. Then find someone to correct the problems. It MIGHT just be inadequate air flow, perhaps due to a blocked air brick under the floor, or damp due to a bridged cavity wall.

devotee · 18 July 2011 at 11:44PM

Leif wrote: »

Disclaimer: I know nowt, just your typical internet 'expert'.

If you google you will find an awful lot of information about damp proofing companies, and in particular that many will do free 'surveys' They are free in the sense that you do not pay directly, but it is in their interest to diagnose a fault which, by complete coincidence, they can fix. So can you trust the results of the survey? My opinion is that the survey is of no value because it is not independent of a product being sold. In fact the survey is worse than worthless. Useful links:

http://www.dampbuster.com/recognitions.html
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/3346216/Doctor-can-you-cure-my-damp.html
http://www.dampbuster.com/wall_video.html

Get the damp surveyed by an independent damp specialist who has no connections with any damp proofing company. Then find someone to correct the problems. It MIGHT just be inadequate air flow, perhaps due to a blocked air brick under the floor, or damp due to a bridged cavity wall.

Thanks for that!

I was thinking that, but also I'm hoping to ask for the discount on the property as there is some damp present, mortgage survey confirmed it, but mortgage offer was not conditional.

And I could definitely smell the damp, so EA told me to get a quote and he'll see what possible to do - it's a basement flat we are talking about here!
Having a general survey this week too, so maybe my surveyor will suggest someone independent.

But I thought a big damp proofing company quote might actually work in my favour this time!

Leif · 19 July 2011 at 7:23AM

I friend recently bought a terraced house and the ground floor had damp. He got a £5K discount from the seller after having made an offer that was accepted, as a result of the survey finding damp. Apparently true rising damp is rare, more often than not it is condensation, due for example to damp air from an unventilated bathroom hitting a cold hallway floor, or penetrating damp due to something like blocked guttering.

I had a home buyers report on my house, but they are not really much use. He missed rather too much for my liking as they cannot or do not remove any wallpaper or carpet to see what is actually there.

devotee · 19 July 2011 at 11:37AM

Thanks Leif. I trust this surveyor as a friend recommended him and I pester him regularly about what to check. No wallpaper in the flat thankfully and I told him to lift the carpets as the property will be vacant.
It's probably penetrating damp, I mainly smelled it in the master bedroom that opens out to the patio, especially in the built in wardrobe on the outside wall.
But I might try Kenwood and see what they say in their report and then haggle with the vendor.

glubalub · 24 April 2012 at 9:18PM

devotee wrote: »

Thanks for that!

I was thinking that, but also I'm hoping to ask for the discount on the property as there is some damp present, mortgage survey confirmed it, but mortgage offer was not conditional.

And I could definitely smell the damp, so EA told me to get a quote and he'll see what possible to do - it's a basement flat we are talking about here!
Having a general survey this week too, so maybe my surveyor will suggest someone independent.

But I thought a big damp proofing company quote might actually work in my favour this time!

Damp in a basement can be a big problem. It needs proper investigation and assessment and is probably outside the scope of an ordinary house buyers report. Ordinary damp proofing companies who specialise in injecting chemical damp courses may also struggle with a basement. The worst case scenario would be a failure in the tanking and repair would involve the removal of all the walls and the floor to allow a new tanking system to be installed. If there is a problem it is likely that holes will need to be cut in the floor and the walls just to investigate. Question your surveyor very carefully about the cause of the problem and get as much as you can in the written report. If in doubt instruct an RICS surveyor to investigate and make recommendations before you exchange.

Mollie90132 · 25 April 2012 at 4:05PM

Wary of Damp company 'surveyors'. Yesterday, council landlord sent a company to investigate damp coming up from floor and into my furniture.

First he said there were no probs with the cavity wall - Wrong, it is 1920s solid wall.

Then he said it was condensation. I asked where was the moisture coming from. Blank stare and shrug from him.

Then, the furniture should be at least 2inches from wall. I pointed out the blaringly obvious, the solid wall means the telephone and electric sockets stick out meaning furniture sits just over 1in 3/4 back from them. Ok it is just short of 2ins!

I suggest he look in the roof space where the last few roof boards are constantly wet along north facing wall.

So up he went with suit and tie not suitably prepared for working with insulation fibres.

Couldn't crawl to end of roof as said nails were sticking out.
Took his damp meter off him and crawled myself and got Amber and Red, Red, Red you can visibly see it is wet.

When I asked him what qualifications he had as a surveyor he became quite angry but still could not say what his actual qualification was. Stormed off saying he was late for next appointment. He had only been in for 40mins.

So a 4th day off work wasted waiting for technical experts who cannot shed light on where the moisture is coming from to cause the condensation. PS neither me nor the cats breathes heavy!!!

What type of survey would highlight all the problems even if it means paying for it myself?

pureplayer · 21 May 2012 at 12:12PM

Kenwood have lots of vans and cars running around here in London. They rank top for damp proofing in Google so that helps with lead. I cannot say if they are any good or not however. It's always a good idea to Google company name followed by reviews and see whats out there. Beware though as everything can be faked. I think you should get three surveys done. If they are free then they are more like call out charges that the company has forgone in the hope of business - not necessarily in the hope of ripping someone off.

katejo · 21 May 2012 at 2:34PM

pureplayer wrote: »

Kenwood have lots of vans and cars running around here in London. They rank top for damp proofing in Google so that helps with lead. I cannot say if they are any good or not however. It's always a good idea to Google company name followed by reviews and see whats out there. Beware though as everything can be faked. I think you should get three surveys done. If they are free then they are more like call out charges that the company has forgone in the hope of business - not necessarily in the hope of ripping someone off.

I used Kenwood on damp in my first property just after buying it. The flat was first floor but the entrance hall was ground floor and the damp was there on one side. They did an ok job for me and it lasted the 12 years that I lived there. I am still in touch with my buyer who has had the flat since 2006. The problem has recently returned but i don't know whether that is normal or not. It remained ok from 1993 until 2011. I think they honoured the guarantee for her but would have to ask her to be sure about that.

One_Five_Four · 21 May 2012 at 8:10PM

Another useful link here:

http://www.askjeff.co.uk/rising_damp.html

Luckyluckylowell · 6 August 2012 at 12:38PM

Iused Kenwood to tank my basement and found the whole process quite frustrating.The contractors didn't arrive on time, they left early and I have been chasingthe paperwork for my guarantee for months. Now I have a leak (1 year after thetanking) and they want me to pay £150 for a survey which is refundable if theyfind the fault is their own. I wouldn't use them again.

Did anyone deal with Kenwood damp proofing?

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