Wet bricks under front door - do we need to investigate or worry? 1 March at 3:35PM edited 1 March at 3:36PM in In my home (includes DIY) MoneySaving 18 replies 833 views

k1rkyc

Hello lovely people,

I would just like some opinions please if there are any builders on here! 

We have an issue with wet bricks under our front door. They are like this all year round, no matter if it's wet or dry outside. 

We had my friend (who is a builder) come with a meter last week to check moisture levels and he said 'the bricks are off the scale wet'

His opinion is that because the bricks are below the damp course that we shouldn't really worry and just leave them as they are.

That's all very well and good, but I am a worrier so wanted some more opinions, hence my post  

Here are some pics. To the right of the front door is where the downstairs loo is, and where the stop tap is.

Thanks in advance for any replies! 

twopenny

Since I've had patio doors I've found this is common.
The water drains off the sill and back underneath. Tends not to dry out easily once they are soaked.

Having to dig into the gravel drain and replace the mortar when I moved in I don't want to do that again so i cover with boards or slabs in winter when I'm not out there and drop them down for dry spells and summer.

I have googled a lot but didn't find any other way to deal with it.

k1rkyc

Thanks, twopenny. It did cross my mind that this could possibly be what it is.

Although.... if you look to the left of the double doors nearer the back door, you'll see another 'wet patch' and it was also high moisture in that area as well?

We also had a leak in the kitchen when a pipe under the floor decided to split. The kitchen is to the left of the back door. I'm just wondering if it could be another leak somewhere along the pipeline?!

diystarter7

Hi OP

I've just had a look at our doors but all are almost flush against the step/s.
However, I got this skill where/when I see something that does not appear right is not indeed right.
There should be a drain channel under the sill that allow water to drip away from the wall.

The above principle is also applied to windows

I'm no builder but pretty confident that what you have should not happen, well at least to that extent.

However, I'll let a double glazing/builder advise you 100%

Thnaks

diystarter7

Btw, the bricks to the right of the door are looking too wet as well

GDB2222

Can you put a bead of silicone on the underside of the sill, so the water drips off away from the brickwork.

I assume that there’s no drip groove?

k1rkyc

Thanks for the replies. The thing is, it’s not rained for weeks so I don’t think it’s that? It’s also wet along the wall towards the other door so can’t be from the sil? Or can it?! Confused!

FreeBear

GDB2222 said:

Can you put a bead of silicone on the underside of the sill, so the water drips off away from the brickwork.

I assume that there’s no drip groove?

There is already a drip bead molded in to the uPVC cill  - If you look at the photos, you can just about see it. So no need to put s bead of silicone on.

I suspect the wind is blowing around in that space, picking up water dripping from the cills, and blowing it back on to the brickwork. As it is only the bottom three courses that are damp, it shows the DPC is ding its job.

Another possibility is the tarmac slopes towards the building and rain water is pooling at the base of the wall - In which case, a narrow gravel filled trench up against the wall should stop the water pooling. The trench need only be ~150mm wide and deep enough to get below any tarmac/concrete.

Grenage

FreeBear said:

Another possibility is the tarmac slopes towards the building and rain water is pooling at the base of the wall - In which case, a narrow gravel filled trench up against the wall should stop the water pooling. The trench need only be ~150mm wide and deep enough to get below any tarmac/concrete.

This would be my guess.

stuart45

Wet bricks below the DPC can be caused from moisture running down the inside of the outer skin inside the cavity, and pooling on the concrete infill.
Moisture in the cavity comes from driving rain penetrating, especially on exposed flanks. Also from condensation in the cavity.
If you look at the original designs for cavity walls, there were weep holes to allow this moisture out.
This is one of the reasons why the lower bricks look dry. Certain types of bricks will hold more moisture when laid frog up. LBC Flettons are like this because of their deep frogs.

k1rkyc

Thanks Stuart. Does this mean we shouldn’t be worried?! We’ve not seen any other house in our village like this?