Survey showing damp

SarahG001

Hi,


I'm a first time home buyer and recently fell in love with a old (at least 80 years old - maybe more) terrace property. we've just got the results back from the survey and this has shown damp in some of the walls.
The sellers have a certificate for a damp proof course they installed when they moved in ~3 years ago so shouldn't the walls have dried out by now?
Also the surveyor mentioned that the damp was at the highest level at the back of the single story extension (at the back of the house) but he suggested this was because the land level was quite high there (its into the side of a steep hill).
My husband and I still love the property and are keen to go ahead with the sale, we were thinking of getting a second opinion from another certified damp specialist to see what they say about the work that was previously carried out - I'm concerned that if we get the company that carried out the original work they'll just cover their backs and say it's all fine.


Any thoughts or suggestions about this would be great.

Danger_Mouse

Hey,

I was in the same situation. Currently purchasing a 100 year old mid-terrace and the homebuyers report mentioned damp (among other things). From the advice I've been given the majority of points were just some !!!! covering from the surveyor and very common in older properties.

Damp was the major concern so I got an independent damp & timber surveyor to take a look. Had the report back yesterday and all is ok apart from a couple of minor spots which shouldn't cost much to sort out, £275 for the report but least it's peace of mind when the house is £218k

Thanetia

Make sure you use an independent specialist who will investigate and suggest solutions but will not contract for the work. stating the obvious, but most damp problems are caused by water penetration - e.g. raised ground level bridging a damp course (which may be your problem here), or defective guttering leading / dodgy roofing leading to ingress. Google 'rising damp' and try and work out if it exists or not.

Once you work out what you've got, you can work out a solution. Plenty of old threads on here about different damp scenarios and the potential solutions

ydt88

Buying a similar property with "damp issues" Surveyor even down valued the house which we had to then renegotiate with a very unhappy seller (which you can understand)

We got a company to check it out for us (free of charge) who confirmed work would be needed at a similar cost to how much it was down valued. We plan to do the work when we move in but our main concern was ensuring our lender was happy with this.

gwynlas

Please try and watch back episodes of Homes under the Hammer as this is acommon problem, One solution recently shown was tanking in the sameway you would waterproof a cellar. Search for companies that offer a variety of solutions oyjer than just injection.

dc197

If there is damp despite a damp-proof course, it's likely that the damp is coming from somewhere other than the ground. Leaking gutter, holey roof, etc?

kingstreet

It's probably not damp but a high moisture reading caused by moisture bridging the damp course because soil is in contact with the brickwork.

As suggested, get a T&D specialist here;-

http://www.independentdampsurveyors.co.uk/

and pay for the inspection/report, don't put the rats in charge of the cheese-store by getting a damp contractor's "free" report.

G_M

SarahG001 wrote: »

Hi,



The sellers have a certificate for a damp proof course they installed when they moved in ~3 years ago so shouldn't the walls have dried out by now?
Also the surveyor mentioned that the damp was at the highest level at the back of the single story extension (at the back of the house) but he suggested this was because the land level was quite high there (its into the side of a steep hill).
.

If the level of the ground is above the level of the damp proof course, then you'll get dampwalls.

The soil outside will be damp and that will soak into the walls.

What is needed is to dig out a gulley along the wall (there's probobly a recommended width), deep enough to be well below the dpc. Part fill with shigle, and ensure the side of the gulley is supported to that the gulley does not fill with soil in future.

If water runs down the hill when it rains hard, ending up against the side of the house (or in your nice new gulley) you may need to divert it away (round the side of the house.

It's not rocket science: keep water and damp soil away from your walls other than well below the dpc.

Do provided that IS the cause of the damp, some minor work should sort it.