Rising damp in survey

kapszone

Hi Folks, need some advise please regarding damp.
We are in process of buying a house and in the survey the damp ratings were high in one of the WCs understairs, specifically on bottom of the walls near skirting boards. Although the ratings were little high (around 26) on the extreme top of the walls as well and it is a plaster wall, may be they built the toilet recently and got it plaster board the original wall.
Estate agent told us that there was a leak previously from upstairs bathroom and walls are still wet but that issue is fixed now. However we fixed the survey with damp proof specialist and they stated this:

"This inspection revealed evidence of Rising Dampness to be affecting the areas marked in red on the attached plan
In our surveyor’s opinion, this defect is due to the lack of an effective damp-proof course.
In order to remedy this defect we recommend that a new chemical damp-proof course be installed in accordance with our technical specification and the walls replastered using the Kenwood Plc waterproof rendering system and skimmed with plaster to provide a smooth finish."
The cost to do all this work is around 984£ inclusive of VAT.

Other than the cost of this remedial works, do you think rising damp is a serious issue as on the Internet there are lots of bad things listed on the rising damp subject. Please could you feed in your opinions if we should be really concerned or go for another viewing to see some more areas to investigate if we are not overlooking some big hiding issue.

Just to give more idea, the other side of the toilet is a garage and its all dry, so dont know where this could be coming from.

firefox1956

I am always very skeptical about a 'damp proof specialist' finding work for himself I am afraid.
And moisture meters & house walls are another story as you probably have read on the internet.
I would use your common sense........
Go back & have another look yourself.
Look in all the awkward places under the stairs under the sink behind any kitchen units, take a torch with you.
Does it smell damp ??
It the wall paper or wall covering blowing off the wall ??
I would think millions of house have some form of rising damp & I for one would not be too worried about what you describe.
HTH

FreeBear

firefox1956 wrote: »

I am always very skeptical about a 'damp proof specialist' finding work for himself I am afraid.

Indeed. There is nothing independent about this survey, and could quite possibly be damaging to the building.

"we recommend that a new chemical damp-proof course be installed in accordance with our technical specification and the walls replastered using the Kenwood Plc waterproof rendering system and skimmed with plaster to provide a smooth finish."

If this is an old house with lime plaster walls, then you would be locking the damp in where it can freeze during the winter and eventually require even more expensive repairs. If it is a modern property built with cavity walls, then one has to ask why a waterproof render is required internally.

I think the answer to that is "because we can charge extra for it".

If you have damp walls, check outside to see if there is a buildup of soil - It should ideally be at least one brick below the damp-proof joint. If the soil is above this level, dig it out and let the building dry out naturally.

Hoploz

How is the rest of the wall? If the part where the wc is is the only section of wall that's damp, it's more likely to be something local causing the damp, rather than general damp rising up from the ground, which would not affect only the presumably small bit of wall where the wc is.

TheCyclingProgrammer

These companies are charlatans. Sticking a damp meter in a wall (which it's not calibrated to test - they are for wood) is not a sufficient means to diagnose the lack of an effective damp proof course. Add to that that many people don't believe rising damp actually exists, the chances are the damp is coming elsewhere (penetrating damp, a leak, high ground levels etc.).

No free damp survey is going to tell you this as they are only interested in one thing - flogging their expensive and often unnecessary chemical DPC and the remedial works.

If you're truly concerned pay for a proper independent damp survey, or just get a decent builder in who should be able to figure out the cause.

DRP

kapszone wrote: »

Estate agent told us that there was a leak previously from upstairs bathroom and walls are still wet but that issue is fixed now.

FUnnily enough when we bought our current damp-riddled house, the EA told us exactly the same thing , almost word for word :rotfl:

I'd probably get a proper damp surveyor in rather than a 'free' one. PRobably more important initially, is to use a bit of common sense and have a look around the place outside, under floorboards (probably not possible), behind furniture etc

FreeBear

TheCyclingProgrammer wrote: »

These companies are charlatans. Sticking a damp meter in a wall (which it's not calibrated to test - they are for wood) is not a sufficient means to diagnose the lack of an effective damp proof course. Add to that that many people don't believe rising damp actually exists, the chances are the damp is coming elsewhere (penetrating damp, a leak, high ground levels etc.).

Worth having a read of this - http://www.heritage-house.org/managing-damp-in-old-buildings.html

And before anyone is tempted to have the Dutch damp control system installed - http://www.heritage-house.org/managing-damp-in-old-buildings.html

phil24_7

A lot f good advice in this thread.

ALL old houses are damp to some degree because they rely on the walls allowing moisture to pass through (outwards during the summer and inwards during the winter).

If there is significant damp, there is a cause. It is the cause you need to find and remedy, not the symptoms.

Investigate what might be causing the damp (high outside ground; leaks; high water table; build up of soil below ground; cracks in external, cement based render allowing water behind it which can't escape; poor ventilation; condensation amongst others) and see if it is easy enough to sort out.

NEVER trust a free damp survey by people selling damp proof courses. They have no place in old buildings and there are much better remedies in newer builds. They are a complete waste of time and money and as mentioned can cause more harm than good. PAY for an independent damp survey by a reputable damp specialist surveyor if you cannot easily find the source of the damp.

Regards
Phil