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damp- council refusing to help, single skin wall
wrightk
Posts: 975 Forumite
ill keep it as short as i can.
we moved into our council house about 4 months ago, we love the house, the area, the neighbours and dont want to move. it was advertised as a 3 bedroom house with a bedroom downstairs and 2 up. we have two girls, but got the house on the strength of our daughter having additional needs and the need for her own bedroom which was accepted in our application and at the stage of taking the house.
the downstairs bedroom is the only room that our autistic daughter can realistically sleep in because it is an extension built onto the side of the house.its not connected to neighbours. she screams and bangs a lot against the walls particuarly throughout the night.
we had a problem with damp and got the councils building inspector round he did a test on the walls with a little handheld reader and all the walls were showing red. the inspector said that the council had problems with this extension as it should have never been built in the first place as it is a single skin wall, he said it was previously a shed.ive been having a chat with the locals and they say it was built by the council when a family with a large amount of children were here and they built it so they could have more space.
i received a call from the council saying they were not prepared to sort out any problems with this room as it was not to be used as a bedroom ( despite it being advertised as a 3 bed). i put the fact that it was advertised as a 3 bed with bedroom downstairs, it has heating, double glazing, the same external peddle dash render as the rest of the house, my chat with the locals who have lived here for 50 years etc and they said they couldnt comment.
Is there anything i can do further? seems to me like they dont want to do anything because it would be too expensive to, despite their obligations
we moved into our council house about 4 months ago, we love the house, the area, the neighbours and dont want to move. it was advertised as a 3 bedroom house with a bedroom downstairs and 2 up. we have two girls, but got the house on the strength of our daughter having additional needs and the need for her own bedroom which was accepted in our application and at the stage of taking the house.
the downstairs bedroom is the only room that our autistic daughter can realistically sleep in because it is an extension built onto the side of the house.its not connected to neighbours. she screams and bangs a lot against the walls particuarly throughout the night.
we had a problem with damp and got the councils building inspector round he did a test on the walls with a little handheld reader and all the walls were showing red. the inspector said that the council had problems with this extension as it should have never been built in the first place as it is a single skin wall, he said it was previously a shed.ive been having a chat with the locals and they say it was built by the council when a family with a large amount of children were here and they built it so they could have more space.
i received a call from the council saying they were not prepared to sort out any problems with this room as it was not to be used as a bedroom ( despite it being advertised as a 3 bed). i put the fact that it was advertised as a 3 bed with bedroom downstairs, it has heating, double glazing, the same external peddle dash render as the rest of the house, my chat with the locals who have lived here for 50 years etc and they said they couldnt comment.
Is there anything i can do further? seems to me like they dont want to do anything because it would be too expensive to, despite their obligations
Even a stopped clock tells the right time twice a day, and for once I'm inclined to believe Withnail is right. We are indeed drifting into the arena of the unwell.
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sorry i cant really advise but i personally would be tempted to contact my local paper, they might run a story and help you get results.0
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Write to your MP."You were only supposed to blow the bl**dy doors off!!"0
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Please don't take this the wrong way OP, but what realistically do you expect the council to do?
Knock the extension down & rebuild it?
Move you to another property?
Obtain a dehumidifier for you?
I speak from experience of living in a damp property, that we rented so I know it's not ideal/pleasant, but I also know it's something that's very difficult for the landlord to sort out and certainly not something they can do on the cheap.
You may have to fill me in on the councils obligations here as I'm not sure what they are?0 -
to be honest im not really bothered about how much it costs the council. if they didnt want me to complain they shouldnt have advertised it as they did, they shouldnt have built that bedroom with walls that wouldnt even pass building regs now. what do you want me to do put up and shutup is that what your saying?have you got kids? would you let them get ill for the sake of something that could be fixedPlease don't take this the wrong way OP, but what realistically do you expect the council to do?
Knock the extension down & rebuild it?
Move you to another property?
Obtain a dehumidifier for you?
I speak from experience of living in a damp property, that we rented so I know it's not ideal/pleasant, but I also know it's something that's very difficult for the landlord to sort out and certainly not something they can do on the cheap.
You may have to fill me in on the councils obligations here as I'm not sure what they are?Even a stopped clock tells the right time twice a day, and for once I'm inclined to believe Withnail is right. We are indeed drifting into the arena of the unwell.0 -
to be honest im not really bothered about how much it costs the council. if they didnt want me to complain they shouldnt have advertised it as they did, they shouldnt have built that bedroom with walls that wouldnt even pass building regs now. what do you want me to do put up and shutup is that what your saying?have you got kids? would you let them get ill for the sake of something that could be fixed
I would take the line that they advertised it as a 3-bedroom house and therefore the third, defective bedroom should be fixed.
From the council's point of view they may well take the line that it would be better (for them) to move you to a proper 3-bedroom house and re-use the one you are in now as a 2-bedroom house, as the third bedroom isn't suitable as a bedroom.Solar install June 2022, Bath
4.8 kW array, Growatt SPH5000 inverter, 1x Seplos Mason 280L V3 battery 15.2 kWh.
SSW roof. ~22° pitch, BISF house. 12 x 400W Hyundai panels0 -
go to your doctor and say the dampness it's giving your wee one a cough and your really worried about her health , tell them about the council not doing anything etc etc. Get the doctor to write a letter to your council explaining his/her concerns about your daughters health etc etc , it'll maybe force them into solving the problem.0
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just an update; i spoke to my local mp who wrote to the head of housing and received this response from the council;
'
We are aware of this situation. The case is currently with our housing management team for consideration as to the suitability of the property to the tenants’ needs given their personal and financial circumstances.
We have looked at this from a technical perspective and unfortunately there is not a technical solution to the problem. I have forwarded a copy of this to colleagues in Landlord Services.
Kind regards'
could i ask. what on earth does this mean?Even a stopped clock tells the right time twice a day, and for once I'm inclined to believe Withnail is right. We are indeed drifting into the arena of the unwell.0 -
It means "we cannot fix this problem from a technical perspective so the only solution is rehousing the family which we are currently looking at".could i ask. what on earth does this mean?
CheersThe difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has it's limits. - Einstein0 -
It means "we cannot fix this problem from a technical perspective so the only solution is rehousing the family which we are currently looking at".
Cheers
great
like we need to move again. thought we would be able to settle in here. all i ask is that they fix a defective bedroom which we pay extra for Even a stopped clock tells the right time twice a day, and for once I'm inclined to believe Withnail is right. We are indeed drifting into the arena of the unwell.0 -
You are asking for them to do something they have deemed technically impossible short (probably) of knocking it down and rebuilding. But as:
then I suppose you expect the ratepayers to pick up the tab.. You do have a valid point, however, on the advertised as 3 bedroom vs 2 bedroom issue but I'm not convinced thats a good enough reason to be socially irresponsible enough to expect everyone around you to divvy up their share of what would probably be a lot of money so that you can stay where you are.to be honest im not really bothered about how much it costs the council.
Sorry if that appears harsh.
Cheers .The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has it's limits. - Einstein0
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