Damp in old house

dont_use_vistaprint

FreeBear said:

dont_use_vistaprint said:

FreeBear said:

Injecting magic creams in to the walls will not cure "rising damp", and slapping a waterproof render/plaster (tanking) on the walls will just trap moisture in the walls. In 10-15 years, the problem will poke its head out further up the walls and you'll be back to square one. 

Then why are these solutions certified by all the relevant bodies and the same? Solutions recommended when you get independent homebuyer for surveys if the injectable resins , removing plaster , tanking re applying waterproof plaster - if these do not work then why are they accepted by surveyors and mortgage providers as the solutions and if these aren’t the solutions then what are the solutions for internal walls where there is no external events causing damp? It is simply moisture in the ground and an old building

You pay enough money to the BBA, they will certify anything.

The PCA is a trade body promoting all the bad & dodgy products such as spray foam insulation & damp treatments - They have a vested interest in these products. Due to advertising and lobbying behind the scenes, they have positioned themselves as "experts" and have cosied up with mortgage providers. Bear in mind that you don't need any real qualifications to become PCA accredited unlike a chartered RICS surveyor (degree level training).

If you have damp on an internal wall, it is likely to be a leaking pipe. Or if close to a chimney, poor flashing and/or rain entering an open pot. But don't discount damage to an external wall - Had a crack in an external wall here about 3m above ground level. When it rained heavily, water would drip through a ceiling some 2m away adjacent to a flat roof. Spent quite a bit of time & money "fixing" the flat roof & adding extra flashing. It was only after the crack was pointed out (and repaired) that the leak was fixed.

I get what you are saying and I am also sceptical, but what do I know? I’m not an expert! I have to rely on what the experts tell me…

No disrespect but all these industry bodies and companies and chartered professional surveyors claim to be the experts and a random person on the Internet says none of it works it’s all a con sounds a bit flat earth doesn’t it ?

but I agree there is a difference between all this stuff and the chartered surveyors who don’t carry out the remedial work

if the damp on my internal walls is caused by leaking pipes and there are a few of them and they all seem to leak just above the skirting boards

dont_use_vistaprint

spannerzone said:

Most damp proof experts are nothing of the sort and simply sales people with noisy 'damp' detectors to scare you into purchasing almost certainly pointless solutions. Damp meters are actually electrical resitance meters, if you have one, try gently probing your hand and it'll detect damp!

There are plenty of good guides online and in books to help resolve your issues....check for raised ground level outside, soil agaist a wall, poor external drainage, leaking roof, chimney, gutters etc. Don't dry clothes indoors, open windows when showering, get extrator fans for bathroom and kitchen..

I have a 100 year old end of terrace with 'Damp' and fitting bathroom extractor, kitchen extractor and a low cost Nuaire PIV in the loft and fitted myself and it  pretty much resolved the issues, the previous owner had done stupid things like using metal foil backed wallpaper which hides the problem for a bit but actually traps in the moisture.

Remember, your breathing will create a lot of moisture...without somewhere for it to go, it'll condense on your walls and windows.

Yes, the noisy damp detector did make me chuckle!

So I do have a bathroom extractor fan and a kitchen extractor fan and until about 18 months ago the PIV was working. i’ve never had noticeable condensation, maybe I don’t have the heating high enough! 

I think the spot of mould in the corner upstairs was probably my daughter and her boyfriend not letting the room get adequate ventilation but this seems to be resolved now

so where I have obvious damp  with high readings and visible signs of damp, it seems the general advice is obviously try and resolve the root cause first but I don’t know if that’s gonna be possible, so I think I’m gonna go back to my original plan strip it off let it dry out and then apply a good plaster that’s breathable rather than magic potions :-)  ? And maybe don’t apply lining paper on top ? which is currently what the whole house has

dont_use_vistaprint

FreeBear said:

If you have damp on an internal wall, it is likely to be a leaking pipe. Or if close to a chimney, poor flashing and/or rain entering an open pot. But don't discount damage to an external wall - Had a crack in an external wall here about 3m above ground level. When it rained heavily, water would drip through a ceiling some 2m away adjacent to a flat roof. Spent quite a bit of time & money "fixing" the flat roof & adding extra flashing. It was only after the crack was pointed out (and repaired) that the leak was fixed.

This is the problem isn’t it? Identifying the root cause and in my case I just think it’s gonna be really difficult to know what’s going on without getting experts which might include independent damp surveyor and builders

FreeBear

dont_use_vistaprint said:

FreeBear said:

dont_use_vistaprint said:

FreeBear said:

Injecting magic creams in to the walls will not cure "rising damp", and slapping a waterproof render/plaster (tanking) on the walls will just trap moisture in the walls. In 10-15 years, the problem will poke its head out further up the walls and you'll be back to square one. 

Then why are these solutions certified by all the relevant bodies and the same? Solutions recommended when you get independent homebuyer for surveys if the injectable resins , removing plaster , tanking re applying waterproof plaster - if these do not work then why are they accepted by surveyors and mortgage providers as the solutions and if these aren’t the solutions then what are the solutions for internal walls where there is no external events causing damp? It is simply moisture in the ground and an old building

You pay enough money to the BBA, they will certify anything.

The PCA is a trade body promoting all the bad & dodgy products such as spray foam insulation & damp treatments - They have a vested interest in these products. Due to advertising and lobbying behind the scenes, they have positioned themselves as "experts" and have cosied up with mortgage providers. Bear in mind that you don't need any real qualifications to become PCA accredited unlike a chartered RICS surveyor (degree level training).

If you have damp on an internal wall, it is likely to be a leaking pipe. Or if close to a chimney, poor flashing and/or rain entering an open pot. But don't discount damage to an external wall - Had a crack in an external wall here about 3m above ground level. When it rained heavily, water would drip through a ceiling some 2m away adjacent to a flat roof. Spent quite a bit of time & money "fixing" the flat roof & adding extra flashing. It was only after the crack was pointed out (and repaired) that the leak was fixed.

I get what you are saying and I am also sceptical, but what do I know? I’m not an expert! I have to rely on what the experts tell me…

No disrespect but all these industry bodies and companies and chartered professional surveyors claim to be the experts and a random person on the Internet says none of it works it’s all a con sounds a bit flat earth doesn’t it ?

RICS surveyor - 3-5 years studying at degree level plus 5 years of real world experience.

PCA surveyor salesman - 2 or 5 years of experience, plus one of their "qualifications" (typically, between 2 to 4 days).

Since joining this forum some 10 years ago, have seen several people posting "we had damp treatments done 5/10 years ago. PCA surveyor is saying we have rising damp again". Often followed by "the original company has ceased trading and the insurance backed warranty is worthless". Draw your own conclusions from that.

Doozergirl

dont_use_vistaprint said:

FreeBear said:

dont_use_vistaprint said:

FreeBear said:

Injecting magic creams in to the walls will not cure "rising damp", and slapping a waterproof render/plaster (tanking) on the walls will just trap moisture in the walls. In 10-15 years, the problem will poke its head out further up the walls and you'll be back to square one. 

Then why are these solutions certified by all the relevant bodies and the same? Solutions recommended when you get independent homebuyer for surveys if the injectable resins , removing plaster , tanking re applying waterproof plaster - if these do not work then why are they accepted by surveyors and mortgage providers as the solutions and if these aren’t the solutions then what are the solutions for internal walls where there is no external events causing damp? It is simply moisture in the ground and an old building

You pay enough money to the BBA, they will certify anything.

The PCA is a trade body promoting all the bad & dodgy products such as spray foam insulation & damp treatments - They have a vested interest in these products. Due to advertising and lobbying behind the scenes, they have positioned themselves as "experts" and have cosied up with mortgage providers. Bear in mind that you don't need any real qualifications to become PCA accredited unlike a chartered RICS surveyor (degree level training).

If you have damp on an internal wall, it is likely to be a leaking pipe. Or if close to a chimney, poor flashing and/or rain entering an open pot. But don't discount damage to an external wall - Had a crack in an external wall here about 3m above ground level. When it rained heavily, water would drip through a ceiling some 2m away adjacent to a flat roof. Spent quite a bit of time & money "fixing" the flat roof & adding extra flashing. It was only after the crack was pointed out (and repaired) that the leak was fixed.

I get what you are saying and I am also sceptical, but what do I know? I’m not an expert! I have to rely on what the experts tell me…

No disrespect but all these industry bodies and companies and chartered professional surveyors claim to be the experts and a random person on the Internet says none of it works it’s all a con sounds a bit flat earth doesn’t it ?

but I agree there is a difference between all this stuff and the chartered surveyors who don’t carry out the remedial work

if the damp on my internal walls is caused by leaking pipes and there are a few of them and they all seem to leak just above the skirting boards

Freebear is correct.  I spent 20 years renovating old houses and for the first 8 I thought those people knew what they were doing.   They don't.  I've fixed far more damp by using common sense and finding the root cause - many times where walls had been treated by these snake oil salespeople when the true answer was obvious.   

Recommending a PCA person surveys a property is a very easy way for a valuer to indemnify themselves against future claims of damp - I think that is why it has perpetuated. 

Badboi

dont_use_vistaprint said:

spannerzone said:

a low cost Nuaire PIV in the loft and fitted myself and it  pretty much resolved the issues,

So I do have a bathroom extractor fan and a kitchen extractor fan and until about 18 months ago the PIV was working.

There’s your issue, replace the piv, and almost all your issues will disappear.  I accidentally turned ours off in December and the walls in the living room were damp to the touch in under 2 weeks! 

twopenny

If you are relying on a damp reader then wait and take more readings in the summer and make a comparison.

We've had an exceptionally wet summer last year and continued through the winter. Not great now either. But it would make sense to see what the variation was.

It might also help to find what is seasonal and what is a problem.

Doing any work on damp would be better when it's dried out throughly too

Not all trade bodies give the initials/badges/apparant authentication for quality or knowledge.

Many a business can subscribe to just to get some fancy trustworthy looking logo.

dont_use_vistaprint

Thank you, everyone for the comments and advice. Very very helpful.