Damp internal walls - suspicious pipe, unknown cause

Jenk57

Hi all,

I hope someone can help.

Myself and my partner bought our flat in March, knowing there were some issues with internal damp. At the point of sale we were quoted £6000 to fix this, but this seems extremely high. That quote was to 'tank' the whole flat, including sections of wall that aren't suffering from damp. The only section that's visibly damp is in one small area. The wall is covered in traditional horse hair plaster, and the other side of the victorian brick is a concrete lined wall facing onto the communal hall.

I've chipped away at the plaster and found a metal pipe, which aligns perfectly with one of the most sever patches of damp.This damp is also evident outside our flat in the corridor, where there are small damp patches on the concrete floor.

The property was constructed in 1906 and has a slate and !!!!!umen damp proof course. The pipe appears to be an electrical conduit as it goes straight to a light switch. During our renovations, we've also opened up the air vents into the property, each of which contained a bucket worth of debris.

SO, my questions are (1) what might the cause of the damp be?, (2) might the pipe be acting as a conduit for damp?, and (3) how do we go about fixing this? I am tempted to strip the plaster, let the brick dry, wrap the pipe to insulate it and then replaster with lime, but I'm not sure this will fix it.

All expert or experienced comments welcome!

Annie1960

Did you get a survey done? If so, you could phone the surveyor and ask. They are usually willing to have a quick telephone chat and give this type of advice.

Doozergirl

I certainly wouldn't be tanking a house before giving your idea a try!

Blocked airbricks will definitely contribute to issues. If there isn't an obvious problem on some walls then those arguably aren't damp at all!

Condensation is attracted to cold through thermal bridging and I guess it's a possibility, even inside the wall. You've nothing to lose by trying. In my experience, there is almost always a cause that isn't the typical 'failed damp proof course'.

A regular surveyor is often no help at all. They seem to buy into the whole damp-proofing industry and propagate it with their little machines.

Apodemus

Doozergirl wrote: »

I certainly wouldn't be tanking a house before giving your idea a try!

A regular surveyor is often no help at all. They seem to buy into the whole damp-proofing industry and propagate it with their little machines.

Amen to that!

Can I nominate this for "post of the year"?