Dusty
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| posted on 3/1/12 at 10:32 AM |
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Damp wall
Calling on the collectives advice as to who to get to assess a house problem. Had the outside re-rendered 8 months ago. It's a solid wall
1900's house. The work seemed to have been done to a high standard.
Couple of days ago the coat rack pulled off the outside kitchen wall and close inspection reveals the wall is very damp, the plaster is blown over a
wide area, floor to ceiling. It's not clear if the damp is rising, penetrating or falling from a hidden pipe in the bathroom above. The outside
of the house looks perfect. The problem is new and the old damp course worked well till now. It is possible the re-rendering has bridged it but
waterproofer should have been added to the base coats of render and probably was. There is evidence of an old leak in the bathroom which was detected
when it discoloured the kitchen ceiling and which I fixed a year ago but it is all dry as a bone up there under the bath now. That does not appear to
be the problem.
The question is how best to assess the problem. One option is to get the builders back but they have a liability issue and I'm not confident
they would give an honest opinion or be capable of making the correct 'diagnosis'. There are damp proofing companies but do they have the
skills. I can see this is going to be costly. I may end up trying to sue my builder.
Who does this sort of work and could fully assess the cause and extent of the problem, advise on remedial work and possibly be an expert for us in
court at some stage.
[Edited on 3/1/12 by Dusty]
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zilspeed
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| posted on 3/1/12 at 10:48 AM |
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You need a Building Surveyor 
First things first, you're thinking along the right lines with all of the potential sources of the dampness you're considering.
If there was no issue prior to the rendering being done, it's certainly worth considering whether or not the rendering has indeed bridged the
DPC.
How high up is the dampness apparent ?
Rising would generally be capable of coming up to a height of 1M from the external ground level.
If it's higher than that, it's most likely not rising damp.
If that's the case, you need to start looking at other possible causes.
What is the nature of the staining ?
Does it have a clearly defined edge or is there possibly mould growth ?
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Peteff
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| posted on 3/1/12 at 10:57 AM |
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If it's in one area and as high as a coat rack it's not very likely to be rising damp although any external render should not go to floor
level but it is easily remedied by chopping it off to a higher level. Do any drain or waste pipes run in the vicinity ? They may only show leaks while
water is running through them as I had this problem earlier in the year.
yours, Pete
I went into the RSPCA office the other day. It was so small you could hardly swing a cat in there.
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mookaloid
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| posted on 3/1/12 at 11:18 AM |
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mmmm get your self a damp meter - something like
this and find the full extent of the
problem.
If it is wet then generally you are looking for a source of water - ie a pipe (you say it is below a bathroom so some likely suspects there!)
If it is just damp then it might be condensation - usually accompanied by black mould. If this is the case then you may need to install additional
ventilation after carrying out repairs. You might need to do this anyway because the new rendering such as you describe prevents the fabric of the
building 'breathing' and can cause some problems whilst curing others.
I would certainly check carefully for water leaks before calling a surveyor - it would be annoying to pay someone a large fee to tell you you had a
defective bath waste!
"That thing you're thinking - it wont be that."
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zilspeed
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| posted on 3/1/12 at 12:01 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by mookaloid
mmmm get your self a damp meter - something like
this and find the full extent of the
problem.
If it is wet then generally you are looking for a source of water - ie a pipe (you say it is below a bathroom so some likely suspects there!)
If it is just damp then it might be condensation - usually accompanied by black mould. If this is the case then you may need to install additional
ventilation after carrying out repairs. You might need to do this anyway because the new rendering such as you describe prevents the fabric of the
building 'breathing' and can cause some problems whilst curing others.
I would certainly check carefully for water leaks before calling a surveyor - it would be annoying to pay someone a large fee to tell you you had a
defective bath waste!
Of course, the meter above only does measurement mode, no search mode for testing the fabric at depth.
Might be helfpful for giving an indication of the limits of any moisture though.
As you said, more or less, get your detective head on and find the source.
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Black Cat
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| posted on 3/1/12 at 01:24 PM |
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If you have a water meter, and there is a leak in any supply pipework in the property, whether it is heating pipes or hot and cold supplies, this will
be indicated by the meter dials turning on the meter providing no water is being drawn off at any other point. If not turning then you can eliminate
the supply pipework.
Steve
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cliftyhanger
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| posted on 3/1/12 at 02:27 PM |
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I take it the wall above isn't damp? If that is the case it is likely to be a leak in the bathroom, you need to have a good look under the
floors. Even a pinhole can cause huge issues over a long period of time n a mains pressure pipe, or indeed a waste one.
Also worth checking gutters and so on, again defects there can cause damp.
my solution in my 1850-1900 rental properties, which all have basements that are a bit damp, was to batten and board with a vapour barrier. A simple
an effective solution, but shouldn't be needed more than a meter from ground level. Worth remembering that the DPC you have is probably slate,
so that can become damaged.
May be worth getting the builders back, opinions are always worthwhile if you can't find a fault, especially as you think they did a good job,
and you chose them in the first place. It probably isn't down to their work.
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mookaloid
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| posted on 3/1/12 at 04:07 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by cliftyhanger
my solution in my 1850-1900 rental properties,
Do you mean that you have nearly 2000 rental properties? 
Or is that the age?
"That thing you're thinking - it wont be that."
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Dusty
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| posted on 3/1/12 at 11:26 PM |
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Thanks everyone. Have located one bathroom leak to gap in shower screen to wall seal. This lets water down the wall and into the ceiling. The ceiling
actually had a puddle. I can't work out how it gets to the affected wall which is 4 feet away. On the other hand it's very tempting to say
what chance two leaks at the same time. For now it's all sealed up, new screen ordered and I will wait to see if it starts to dry out.
Thanks for all your suggestions.
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