Damp - Very Confused

rcrane

Would someone please offer some advice......

Im a first time buyer buying a victorian terraced house. I had the homebuyer report done and he said that there was evidance of rising damp and to investigate further. I have been in contact with the vendor and they say that they have had the damp proof course done and it is still under guarentee.

So, we had someone to come round and they said that there was evidance of rising damp and want to charge £1700 for a new damp proof course. But, the vendor had the comapny to come round who the gurantee is with and they said that the work doesnt need to be done.Thay said the damp in the walls will take time to dry (the work was done 3 years ago) but no work really needs doing.

What do you think my next course of action should be, bearing in mind the differing opions? Does anyone know anything about damp?

Many Thanks.

Debt_Free_Chick

rcrane wrote:

So, we had someone to come round and they said that there was evidance of rising damp and want to charge £1700 for a new damp proof course.

Was this a company that sells DPC (damp proof course)? If so, then they nearly always recommend a new DPC, because then they get a sale :rolleyes:

Ideally, you need a specific survey from a surveyor (NOT someone selling DPC) who knows about Victorian buildings. Damp existed in Victorian times and the builders knew about it. Injecting a modern DPC is not necessarily the way to deal with it.

I would get a specialist surveyor to advise on exactly what's needed. Your original surveyor may be able to recommend someone, but don't get another DPC company out.

Oddgy

i would recommend a company called "Peter Cox Property Services". Excellent. We had dealings with them and top they are top notch!! You will find them on the net. They are a nationwide company so they will be able to come to take a look.
Also - they are very well known as being pofessional and honest.....so have a go ok.
Oddgy.

AndrewSmith

Unless the mortgage company list it as an 'essential' repair in the conditions of the mortgage offer I would not be too concerned.

Imagine, if you had been stood in a field for the last 100 years I expect you would be a touch damp as well.

Get documentary evidence of the guarantee from the vendor.

I would expect any victorian house to have some element of damp to be honest.

Debt_Free_Chick

Oddgy wrote:

i would recommend a company called "Peter Cox Property Services". Excellent. We had dealings with them and top they are top notch!! You will find them on the net. They are a nationwide company so they will be able to come to take a look.
Also - they are very well known as being pofessional and honest.....so have a go ok.
Oddgy.

Although they happen to be a company that sells DPC. I have to admit, it wouldn't be my first choice, as their main goal is to sell you one of their own DPC "solutions". As I said previously, these are not necessarily suitable for period properties, which originally had an original DPC installed.

pigeonpie

the only way to remove damp (so I am told by them that know!) is to line the entire area with a sort of hard plastic screening that stops it getting through and then plaster, floor etc on top of that. Don't leave any gaps, even small, as the damp will get in and even when you have to make a hole (eg to hang a picture) use a special hook designed not to perforate the lining.
Chemical damp proof courses invariably fail as there is inadequate ventilation.
No idea how much it costs for the plastic lining system but I am told it is very effective if properly done. Hope that helps.

Doozergirl

pigeonpie, your plastic lining solution sounds like 'tanking' to me and would be used for basement rooms or rooms where the ground level is particularly high. It would be complete overkill doing that in a regular room.

Damp comes from the ground, you won't get major problems from any moisture seeping in at picture hook height; as AndrewSmith says, stand in a field long enough and you're bound to get a bit damp.

elsien

I also bought a victorian terrace, and the report scared me witless when i first read it. They recommended "further investigation" on practically the whole house - the drains, the electrics, the damp, the woodworm treatment, the ceilings "reaching the end of their useful life", uncle tom cobley and all. 7 years on and it hasn't fallen down around my ears yet. I think that sometimes the surveyor puts these things in to cover him/herself, as it is beyond the scope of the homebuyer survey which is basically a visual report.
I would say use your common sense - mushrooms growing out of the skirtings = bad news, but the odd patch on the corner of an outside wall where the settee is is unlikely to be the end of the world.

Doozergirl

elsien wrote:

I think that sometimes the surveyor puts these things in to cover him/herself, as it is beyond the scope of the homebuyer survey which is basically a visual report.

Bang On!

elsien wrote:

I would say use your common sense - mushrooms growing out of the skirtings = bad news

:rotfl:

rcrane

Thank you very much for all your replies.

I have got a copy of the report from the people who the guarantee is with and they say that raised moisture readings were recorded to a hight of 3 feet above the skirtings. And the cause of this is likely to be residue moisture contained within the brickwork and plaster.

They said they will reinject the damp course for free and we can have the area replastered with 'plaster of a modern damp proff specification' for £400.

What would you knowledagable people do? Im wondering if replastering would actuyally make any difference....

Thanks again

clutton_2

i would grab this offer with both hands - when you come to sell, unless the house is damp-proofed properly you will have all this malarky to go thru again with your purchasers - not to mention that living in a damp house is not healthy. £400 is nothing in this day and age to treat damp. if you do get this done, make sure you get paperwork. There are very few companies willing to come back and do damp courses again - this sounds like a good 'un.