Is tanking necessary?

alelly

Hi All, I’ve recently bought my first home which has a basement conversion. The conversion is currently used as storage/utility room as well as an office and has floors, electricity etc. however the walls are just painted rough concrete and as I understand the basement has not been tanked, although there is no sign of damp. 

I was thinking of getting the walls tiles or panelled and getting some built in storage to turn it into a more “finished” utility room. 

Do I need to get the room tanked first? Is this an absolute necessity to finish the walls etc? I was hoping to get away with some minor improvements as the main works (ie digging out the extension) are already done, but I believe tanking is a major job. I was considering calling a damp specialist or similar but I anticipate they will obviously suggest it’s done as it’s in their interest for getting more work.

to be honest I am a bit surprised the previous owner did not have it done as they have been very diligent in the works on the property, which in itself is making me think it might not have been a necessity. 

Appreciate any advice.

markin

If its the right paint it may allow water to evaporate and anything you put on top will block it and get damp mouldy, Is the outside at least tarred or painted? As its summer even a damp meter may say its dry or at least the surface is.

If you cant tank it leave the walls as they are and run a dehumidifier to keep it dry and see how wet it gets in winter. 

FreeBear

Are you sure it is rough concrete and not a coarse render ?

Depending on how the walls are constructed, there may already be a waterproof coating on the outside and multiple layers of DPM built in to the wall.

alelly

FreeBear said:

Are you sure it is rough concrete and not a coarse render ?

Depending on how the walls are constructed, there may already be a waterproof coating on the outside and multiple layers of DPM built in to the wall.

It could very well be. I don’t believe there is any waterproofing as the sellers (who did the conversion) were asked about tanking during the process and said it has not been done and they had never had issues with damp. So I feel like they would have highlighted any damp proofing measures if so?