Did damp surveyor lie? 100% damp in my wall.

endoffeather

That's what I thought about tanking. It doesn't sound advisable to me at all.

The floors are solid. Asphalt I think?

Our damp seems to be caused a bit near the front and back doors (there are stone garden walls attached to the house and the neighbour's garden soil is high against these). And all along the party wall there are maybe five inches that look damp very occasionally when I have the dryer going and am batch cooking a load of stew etc. I've found ventilating and heating stops it happening. This part of the wall is cold (and almost like it is underground) because the house is stepped and the floor is higher next door. All the other walls are fine and the slight damp on this wall has never caused us a problem especially now we ventilate well when needed.

MisterBaxter

I would say that even tanking can require a Party Wall Notice as it is potentially a fundamental 'repair to a party wall'. It may depend on what they are calling tanking though.

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/393927/Party_Wall_etc__Act_1996_-_Explanatory_Booklet.pdf

From your last posting it may be that you main problem is one of condensation; you possibly have a cold bridge where there are differences in height, moisture in the air is condensing on these cold spots.I would also suggest that reducing the ground level outside or at least having a gap between the soil and house wall would be a sensible idea as moisture could be penetrating the brickwork. The fact that the problem is lessened when you heat and ventilate the property and is worse when you cook and dry clothes is a bit of a give away. Structural dampness isn't going to be dramatically affected by your lifestyle.

A survey now would give an indication of the problem as it exists; if there were to be an immediate impact from work done next door then it would probably be easy to point the finger but if it happened over an extended period how would prove that it wouldn't have been the same without the work having being done.

Even if it is condensation then a damp surveying specialist would identify this and would help you with finding solutions.

endoffeather

Thank you so much for your advice.

I did think that about the party wall act - that anything that could caused damage should count but next door, her contractor and her surveyor are adamant it doesn't apply.

I've requested a notice for six weeks only to be derided as a silly woman with no clue and ignored. It is very frustrating!

At least they're finally listening to the request to drill instead of tank at last (although they will rank below the injection but I believe they have to?)

I wouldn't complain about damp that occurs over an extended period - more just the next year or two (extrem changes). Hopefully my plan to win the lottery and emigrate to sunnier climes will materialise before then

Am in process of getting quotes from surveyors so fingers crossed. Thinking we may act on any sensible recommendations next time we decorate now

The neighbour's surveyor filed the report today and they actually did write we have 100% damp in it! 60% was the lowest she quoted finding in our wall. Which is funny when the highest I was shown was 30%

The highest I can find myself is 31% but maybe my Meter is different? I'm using the masonry setting but these things seem to be unreliable anyway. Still seems like a huge difference though

SJshah

endoffeather wrote: »

I'm just worried it will delay the works and thinking about it that if we ask for a notice for the drilling, they'll just tank.

Call their bluff.

endoffeather wrote: »

As the house is 140 years old and hasn't got worse in the five years we lived here, it'd be a bit weird for it to get horrendously worse overnight unless something caused it. Wouldn't it?

Or would it really be that hard up prove?

Would a surveyor be happy to state the current level of damp so we can use it to compare the state of the wall in future?

An I asking the impossible?

You're asking the right questions and you should be concerned about everything they are doing. Make sure everything is surveyyed and documented.

endoffeather wrote: »

I did think that about the party wall act - that anything that could caused damage should count but next door, her contractor and her surveyor are adamant it doesn't apply.

Don't listen to them, serve them a party wall notice ASAP.

endoffeather wrote: »

I wouldn't complain about damp that occurs over an extended period - more just the next year or two (extrem changes). Hopefully my plan to win the lottery and emigrate to sunnier climes will materialise before then

Am in process of getting quotes from surveyors so fingers crossed. Thinking we may act on any sensible recommendations next time we decorate now

The neighbour's surveyor filed the report today and they actually did write we have 100% damp in it! 60% was the lowest she quoted finding in our wall. Which is funny when the highest I was shown was 30%

The highest I can find myself is 31% but maybe my Meter is different? I'm using the masonry setting but these things seem to be unreliable anyway. Still seems like a huge difference though

Take pictures/videos and any type of evidence you can to prove this before they start.


Sounds like they are pushing to get it done fast but it's in your best interest to get it surveyyed and documented by your own independent person first.

endoffeather

Thanks again for all the advice. We had our own survey done and it turns out that we don't have any damp at all. Which is very good news for us but does make me angry about how much the neighbour's surveyor lied. Awful.

Lungboy

Did you report their supposed surveyor?

endoffeather

Not yet but I intend to. On the plus side we have now learned ways to minimise the condensation in our home and can show the survey to any buyers if we ever move out and their surveyor tries to say there might be damp. Looking for a positive side to this!