Damp Problem - Who Should I Call?

loveandlight

My tenants have complained that there is damp in their bedroom along the main wall. I want to instruct someone who knows what they're doing and to make sure I don't get ripped off and that the problem gets resolved properly. I know its not condensation and I want to get it sorted before this coming Winter.

Any ideas on who I should contact?

justjohn

contact rentokil.
then do not use them. But use there survey report to make sure the job is done properly when you get quotes from everyone else.


Depending on what the report says you may be able to DIY

You do not say how long you have had the property...if its a recent prob in a property you have had for years. You may be able to find the exact cause of problem yourself.

baldelectrician

I would suggest you use a small independent company

I do a fair bit of work for a few landlords and I suggested a local guy who was less than half the quote from the larger company

loveandlight

Thanks guys. I live many miles away from the house so wouldn't really be able to do the job myself. The house itself is approx 100 years old and is in the Yorkshire Moors so it gets exposed to alot of the weather elements there.

I didn't know that about rentokil so will give them a call.

justjohn

loveandlight wrote: »

Thanks guys. I live many miles away from the house so wouldn't really be able to do the job myself. The house itself is approx 100 years old and is in the Yorkshire Moors so it gets exposed to alot of the weather elements there.

I didn't know that about rentokil so will give them a call.

rentokil are the most expensive but they do a good survey. I do not recommend you use them for the job. Get an independant in for the actual job. Price should be half or less of rentokill price.

Depending on the problem it can take as little as 1 hour+ to sort DIY. It could be just a case of drilling half a dozen holes along a wall and then just injecting with some cream. All depends on how severe and how long its been there, but rentokil survey should tell you that.

Dry_Rot

Hi,

I suggest you type you have a look at the property care association web site for a local PCA approved specialist. Rentokil are one, but I think it is maybe a bit cynical to have them do a survey, when you have no intention of using them. There are many well qualified and capable surveyors working for smaller damp specialists, if you would prefer a small firm.

Google property care association.

Dry Rot.

Horlock

A word of caution I've had a number of issues with damp in our rental house. None of the fixed ones were what we would have suspected - certainly not rising damp (so the standard stuff would have been a complete waste of our money! though to be fair we were told this by the rising damp person).
Problem one downstairs - the problem was circulation - this had been exaserpated by the upvc double glazing. Something I had not thought of. We were recommended a product from a company Nuair (if that is how you spell it) It goes in the attic and solves circulation problems costs about £1000 (however we didn't take them up and instead bought a cheap airconditioner/dehumidifier which solved the problem - or at least does provided it is used regularly - one tenant was not good at using it and so there was evidence of damp again, but as we paint whenever tennants change it didn't really matter - I think they were trying to save on the electricity (not thinking about how much cheaper it would have been to heat).
The second problem (not at the same time) upstairs actually turned out to be a dodgy tile on the roof which was allowing water in. Fixed by a roofer friend.
The third problem which is on the fire place above a sealed off feature fire - has still to be solved - no idea what it is! Any suggestions?

iamcornholio

loveandlight wrote: »

I know its not condensation and I want to get it sorted before this coming Winter.

Any ideas on who I should contact?

If you know that it is not condensation, then the cause must therefore be due to a fault with the building - roof leak, water pipe leak or other ingress through the structure

Then, by elimination you can deduce which cause is most likely and call the relevant tradesperson

If you can definitely say that condensation and/or tenant's use of the property is not a factor, then you should be able to go direct to the appropriate tradesperson

Barstoolfool

baldelectrician wrote: »

I would suggest you use a small independent company

I totally agree with this if you choose someone independent you don't have to worry that they're trying to sell you something.

Barstoolfool

iamcornholio wrote: »

If you can definitely say that condensation and/or tenant's use of the property is not a factor, then you should be able to go direct to the appropriate tradesperson

The thing is condensation isn't a problem anyway, it's an indication that the air has a higher than normal level of moisture so there's probably something else causing the moisture in the air. If you have consistent condensation and you've opened your windows and there's still a problem then it must be coming from elsewhere. That's when you know you need a survey, like I said in my other post go for an independent surveyor.