Strange Power *pics* updated

sofsofsof

https://ibb.co/F6KB5nS
https://ibb.co/98SLbxr


its a tiny bit of powder, 8cm high - 12cm wide
it doesnt seem to get any bigger.
i have tried bleach and water to remove it and cleaned wall with it, it took 5 days to come back (normally if i just wipe it off it comes back 1-2 days) it doesnt even require water to remove just a simple swipe of dry finger and it comes off. Confused by it! i have taken a pic of outside bricks where this wall is.
Please any advice!! am a little bit worried, its the wall behind the TV so hidden away but its certainly 'strange'.


Would adding this to the exterior bricks help at all *if* there is a problem?
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ronseal-TWSEAL1L-Thompsons-Water-Litre/dp/B002SHPSCS/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1549367653&sr=8-2&keywords=water+membrane+brick
it is also mentioned that it could be removed using vinegar and water mixture? would this be first thing to try? can i add vinegar and water to the outside bricks? even tho they show no sign of efflorance? would a water and vinegar solution work inside if this is a plaster issue? as on top of the plaster we have lining paper and then the paint. the paint is not pealing nor is the lining paper peeling


*UPDATED* Theres a damp course membrane in wall where Mortar is crumbling away...
https://ibb.co/nmx0PDF
i have been told that this needs to be flat and the mortar above it.. so to simply refil the holes and leave the membrane where it is would mean it cannot work/function for damp proofing?
im guessing now i definately cannot just refil the hole with mortar?

DaftyDuck

That wooden fence post has crossed the damp course. May not be the only problem, but it's one obvious one. One wonders what fixings were used, and what damage there is....

Mind you, disappointed not to meet some strange power...

sofsofsof

Hi there isnt a issue against the wall that the fence post is on, plus post has been there for years .. before us! & we had a surveyor out who never said anything about this..?
Also the wall its on did have some fresh plaster put on it from removing a fireplace but not specifically right in that corner however... So just to be in that corner is weird still

sofsofsof

DaftyDuck wrote: »

That wooden fence post has crossed the damp course. May not be the only problem, but it's one obvious one. One wonders what fixings were used, and what damage there is....

Mind you, disappointed not to meet some strange power...

id like to add i just rechecked our surveyors report and no where does he mention about rising damp or about the fence post being like that against the wall (he mentions some are rotting and may need replacing very soon) but thats about it.. the house does and did then suffer from condensation and mould in winter. (we get it bad in bathroom, bedroom and little sections in lounge like on ceiling with again a kind of mould but not mould substance on the ceiling which is very easily wiped away but unlike this patch does need a wet cloth). the outside walls look fine, not sign of efflorance on any of the bricks. there is a teeny weeny 1-2mm if that gap between wall and fence post it is tiny, a fairly large vine recently passed thru it at the bottom so we cut it off and away incase it wasnt helping.


I'd imagine if a serious damp issue the problem would only get worse? I presume not only a small 8 x 10 cm section would appear and that the wall the fence post is on would have damp issues? Id also guess, tho i could be wrong, the bricks outside would look 'off'?



as i mentioned before we did plaster up this wall as we removed a fireplace. however the fireplace wasnt in this tiny section at bottom, also no paint is peeling no lining paper is peeling.. it is just this weird little spot... just find it confusing!

societys_child

Looks and sounds like it may be a bit of damp.
White powder sounds like efflorescence ( a crystalline deposit of salts which occurs when water leaves behind salt deposits and is present on or in the surface as it dries)


Washing with water won't help as you're just introducing more damp into the area.



Could be caused by condensation if the tv or whatever it stands on, is preventing air flow in the corner.

sofsofsof

Yeh im torn.. im torn on it just being condensation and damp .. tho damp proofing seems to work well by what ive read

-taff

3 bricks up from the bottom it looks as if the pointing has been repeaired a few times. I'd check that bit out.
Where is the DPC on that part of the wall? Because it looks as if it's at the very bottm where the earth meets the bricks.

sofsofsof

Do you mean how many bricks above ground dpc? It is that third brick up.. with the "bits missing" as i call it.. earth etc does seem to be 3 levels below dpc

sofsofsof

-taff wrote: »

3 bricks up from the bottom it looks as if the pointing has been repeaired a few times. I'd check that bit out.
Where is the DPC on that part of the wall? Because it looks as if it's at the very bottm where the earth meets the bricks.

had this discussion with my neighbours about another thing but, basically we figure it is that third brick up..where the dpc is , its got a 'skin' there and also its darker when had rain etc.. apparently meaning its doing its job re keeping others dry? not sure tho tbh...
its such a tiny patch of powder.. it never gets bigger the paint isnt peeling nor is the lining paper and floorboards are in same nick.

-taff

I'd knoc that pointing out and repair it properly and see if that makes a difference.

If it is that, the patch might not be getting bigger due to placement of the bricks, and the weather that they endure. Looks pretty mossy on that side, as if that part doesn't get much sun [the fence post is greening at the bottom] so unless it's subject to the rain coming in against it, it wouldn't get bigger. It would just be consistently damp.
If it is condensation, try and increase the air flow inside for the next few weeks and see if it improves.

sofsofsof

-taff wrote: »

I'd knoc that pointing out and repair it properly and see if that makes a difference.

If it is that, the patch might not be getting bigger due to placement of the bricks, and the weather that they endure. Looks pretty mossy on that side, as if that part doesn't get much sun [the fence post is greening at the bottom] so unless it's subject to the rain coming in against it, it wouldn't get bigger. It would just be consistently damp.
If it is condensation, try and increase the air flow inside for the next few weeks and see if it improves.

so it *could* be simple condensation from inside home? the substance is in no way hard to get rid of literally wipe it with a dry finger! (i dont know if that helps diagnose it?)
outside i cant see efflorance on bricks.. there is that part where it looks like mortar is missing..
is repointing simply laying new mortar inbetween the bricks? being this is the damp proof 'line' can it be any old mortar or something more specific?