Damp - what to do?

MissMoneypenny

diamond_dave wrote:

Could easily be condensation. I live in a large victorian house and i suffer from condensation especially under windows where the brickwork is thin without insulation. Borrow a dehumidifier from a friend for a couple of days and you'll notice the difference- then try to insulate the cold wall

I could smell the damp in my son's student house when he first moved in in September. I bought a dehumidifier (from EBAC after reading various advice on this site), and the damp smell has now gone. It is really cheap to run and seems to make the house warmer.

The Landlord told my son not to keep the dehumidifier on when people were in the house as "it sucks the moisture out of peoples bodies":eek:

Annando

MissMoneypenny wrote:

The Landlord told my son not to keep the dehumidifier on when people were in the house as "it sucks the moisture out of peoples bodies":eek:

:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

bengarton

Annando wrote:

Have you considered this might be penetrating damp?

If this is at ground level check that there isn't some kind of soil build-up against that wall or near that wall where the moisture could travel. Also check that if you have a patio or slabs on the outside near the wall that they are not breaching the DPC, any slabs patio should be 150mm (15cm/6inches) below the DPC level, otherwise moisture might be drawn in.

Check your pointing, water might be drawn in through cracks in the pointing, we had penetration damp in the back bedrooms (upstairs) despite the fact that the sellers had redone the pointing at the back. We rendered the back of the house and we haven't had anymore problems since. Several builders came to look at it, most said we would have to open-up the cavity and clean it...would cost us a fortune...the simple solution is usually the best.

In the same spirit, check around the window for cracks. Is this a new window or an old one? There might not be a DPC at cill level and that is where the water might be getting in. Is your fire place closed or open? If closed does it have an air vent or an air brick?

If this is upstairs, check the lead on the roof at firewall level to see if it has any holes or cracks even tiny ones can do a lot of damage when water travels. We had a very damp party wall in the kitchen and had it chemically treated thinking the DPC had gone and this didn't solve the problem, the neighbours were literally having water coming out of their sockets. We tried different things and nothing would solve it, until we checked the lead on the firewall between the two houses, there was a tiny hole that was letting all this water in, wish we had thought about that one before we paid for the DPC treatment.

A friend of mine who is a builder type person looked at the outside wall and said there doesn't appear to be any damp there. The outer wall is in the alleyway in between mine and neighbours house. It is a ground floor room. The fireplace is open, we use it regularly in the winter. I will check the window now, but haven't seen anything obvious.

Annando

If the fireplace is open and you use it then the moisture isn't coming in from there, condensation will only build up if the fireplace was blocked and no air bricks or vents installed.

bengarton

I have been reading about hygroscopic (moisture attracting) salt contamination which can be caused by burning coal. I guess it could also be this?

devmcc

Hi there
I would not pay them a penny - how rude!!
We asked about getting info on a damp course here a while back and were inudated with people suggesting a company called Peter Cox. They came out - FOR FREE - and told us what we needed and what we didn't need - no pressure at all - AND their quote for the work came in at £340 nearest quote to it for the same work was over £600!!
I would get these out.. just even for a bit of advice...
Good luck..

bengarton

devmcc wrote:

Hi there
I would not pay them a penny - how rude!!
We asked about getting info on a damp course here a while back and were inudated with people suggesting a company called Peter Cox. They came out - FOR FREE - and told us what we needed and what we didn't need - no pressure at all - AND their quote for the work came in at £340 nearest quote to it for the same work was over £600!!
I would get these out.. just even for a bit of advice...
Good luck..

Thanks for that. I have used their website to request a survey.

imi_m

Hello

Please can I have some advice too? We bought our mid terrace victorian house last year and we knew it had rising damp so we paid a company called Dampco (located in Brighton) to undertake the work. This kind of work is not cheap, it cost over £2000. We understood that the work came with a 20 year guarantee and we also decided to take out an additional guarantee with another insurer just in case Dampco were to go out of business. It has now been about six months since the work was done but there are some areas that do not seem to be drying out - if anything they seem to be getting worse! I eventually managed to get hold of Dampco who said they would call round and inspect the problem but they have said there will be a charge for this. We are fuming as surely this should all be covered by the guarantee as it is the work that they have carried out. If someone could give some advice I would be most grateful.:mad:

dampdaveski

Hi imi,
you've resurrected a very old thread, however that aside my thoughts are as follows.
It is not unreasonable for a 'damp' company to charge a 'research fee' if you are claiming on their guarantee, usually this is refunded if there is a problem found.
In my opinion it is very unreasonable of them to charge a fee to come back if the works were only carried out approx 6 months previously.
I suggest you contact the Property care Association www.property-care.org and ask their advice. Dampco are members, the PCA should be able to help you out and resolve your problems.
hope this helps
DD

David_Aldred

Hi,
Agree with dampdaveski to chase it with the PCA in the first instance as it is a poor show to not come back so soon after initial treatment even if the company are not to blame. The PCA may also arbitrate if you are not satisfied with the outcome after the contractor has re-inspected the area of concern. Please let us know how you get on. Kindest regards, David Aldred Indpendent damp and timber surveyor