yet another damp question.....decking

lobbyludd

Hi,
The lounge suffers from damp - some is condensation which I'm trying to amange the causes of, some is penetrating from a leaky guttering that I have fixed once, but needs fixing again after strong winds.

But I think there is also a patch of rising damp on one wall - flaking paint and soft plaster in waves up to about 4 foot and the wall this is on is half interior and half exterior so don't think it can be penetrating, although the skirting board seems sound so not really sure. We have a suspended floor and I've cleared the air bricks that are in this wall that had been blocked. but the air bricks are directly above (1cm) decking that the previous owner has installed that butt directly up to the wall that has this damp.

I can feel (with a stick!) that there is a concrete base under the decking (say another 20-25cm further down), but also lots of debris/soil on top of it.

I have 2 questions

1) could the decking + debris be causing the damp? providing a bridge for water and generally just being too high? If so I can remove it from near the wall as a temporary measure for the winter months.

2) How fast does rising damp cause a problem that needs major work? I know no-one can tell me definitively, but is it a problem that develops over years slowly, or something that can go from dry to completely falling down rotten in a couple of months (house built c.1900, so it has done OK so far).

nickj_2

as long as nothing is above the damp proof course then you shouldn't have a problem , if the debris is higher just clear it away ,i wouldnt have thougfht that the decking would affect the walls , check how much water is coming from the gutter , also check any downpipes in case they are blocked
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lobbyludd

thank you,

hmmm. I've been reading around on damp from some of the links here. I have a 1910 house, the previous owner (my ex) put in a damp-proof course that is above the floor level downstairs, won't that just trap water at about floor joist level? I queried having the DPC put in at the time but was brushed off in no uncertain temrs. Also the gable end is rendered (doubt it's lime) and painted with water repelling paint.

Plus as far as I can tell under the decking there must be a drain, as there is a run off from the guttering down pipe that runs under the decking. It's probably blocked.

The DPC (chemical) has made no difference to the damp in the lounge downstairs, although the waterproof paint has stopped the damp upstairs.

Am I looking at having to remove the render? how do I find someone who doesn't have a "sales" interest to advise me?