Any builder in this forum!!

cherry76

Does this make sense to anybody? Just got building survey's report. This is a newly refitted kitchen. I do not understand that bit about floor timbers, I thought the foundation should be in concrete first and then timber. The kitchen has been tiled how can the surveyor said it is timber floors. I will need to ask him to expain, in the meantime, I thought somebody in this business can explain this to me. Thanks

"There are no vents serving the floor in the kitchen area and this is a point of concern as the floor is effectively unventilated. We are surprised that this is a timber floor in this location as commonly in properties of this age kitchen floors were laid in concrete. It is possible that the floor consists of timber overlying concrete in which case no ventilation would be required. Further investigations are necessary to establish the construction of
the floor and if it is timber you will need to plan for its replacement in concrete as there is no effective means of providing ventilation. This will require the removal and replacement of the kitchen fittings. Until such time as the floor is replaced the floor timbers are at risk of rot."

vaio

If the floor is timber on concrete then the concrete is waterproof and stops things getting damp and rotting

If it’s timber with no concrete then damp from the earth can rot things unless the space is ventilated. If the space can’t be ventilated then the wood should be removed and replaced with concrete.

cherry76

Thanks Vaio, is there any way to find out whether it is timber on concrete. The kitchen was recently refitted, do you think the owner will know, will have to ask EA? Surely it must be timber on concrete, how can a kitchen fitter fixed floor timber directly on earth!!

latecomer

Why not just phone the surveyor and ask? Thats what you are paying them for.

vaio

Unless you have the original construction plans the only way to tell for sure is to open it up and have a look. This might involve lifting some tiles but you can probably do it by drilling a hole under a unit or appliance