I think there might be damp in one of the walls - its an external one. The house is approx 115 years old and is brick built. There was leak in the bathroom back at the end of last summer - after the shower company came to "fix" the shower. The water ran down from the bathroom into the kitchen - anyway to cut a long story short the shower company paid for the wall to be stipped (the walls all have lining paper on them) and re-decorated. The decorator said he could smell damp when he stripped the wall - but i couldn't smell anything. (The wall had been left for weeks to dry out because i was living in a friends house while they were away). However all the work was finished at the start of December and i have been able to smell something horrid since then. At first i thought it was the paint! I have sniffed the wall (new sport - everybody is doing it!) and it is worse towards the bottom. I def think it must be damp. The pointing on the house needs doing but i cant afford this at the moment and i dont know what to do - it's not something that should be left is it? I looked at goggle and am more confused than before. There are injections that you can put in the wall... has anybody else done this please? Is it very expensive I thought it may be something i can buy and do myself. Any thoughts or experiences would be welcome.
My house is mid 1700's with the newest bit about 1850. Don't talk to me about damp!!!! You need to get it investigated to find out the exact problem. This place has been injected twice but with very little success. I have recently had a blitz and had plaster removed walls tanked and then relined and then plastered but not plastered over the brick. If you have got damp then there is usually signs of it inside, plaster falling off etc. Re-pointing on the outside is important as well. Is there moss growing on the outside of the offending wall?
Hello Jo, If your house is that old, does it have cavity walls or is it solid brick? Ours is about 200 years old and has solid brick walls. These allow a bit of moisture through which just evaporates. The only problem is that if you cover the inside wall with modern paints or wallpaper the moisture eventualy pushes it off the wall. We have used distemper on our exterior facing walls which allows them to breathe. We also found that the ground outside was 6" above the floor level inside which caused damp, as old houses didn't always have a damp course, so took the ground level down and the problem was solved. There are chemical damp courses you can apply by drilling holes in the outside bricks and filling with the chemicals but these should be done under pressure so would guess a pro would have to do it. Dom
Thank you for the replies - i'm even more worried now The internal plaster has blown slightly but this was quite high and near to the ceiling so i'd forgotten about that but that would be a sign that all is not well? There is a cavity because it was insulated with that foam stuff (technical term) approx 4 years ago. On the outside there isn't any sign of mould but lots of ferns seem to sprout up - not in the wall but along the path where it meets the wall - possible that they like certain conditions? Or damp conditions? The existing pointing is old and somebody once told me what it was - but i have forgotten - i think they mentioned a lime mix. Me thinks i'm in trouble!
I just thought about the paint aspect. The new paint that has gone on is for kitchens and bathrooms - the old paint was normal emulsion. Perhaps the new paint has stopped the wall "breathing" and hence the smell is noticeable? I suppose there must still be a problem in the first place though Thanks for your help and thoughts.
It's not the getting rid of it (thats the easy bit in some respects) its the correct diagnosis thats hard to do.
Be very wary of "damp specialists" who offer "free" surveys, I am sure that there are some who are quite reputable but there are many that aren't. These companies are in effect just finding themselves work. If you need to get a survey done use a qualified surveyor (who you will need to pay) but you will get impartial advice as he/she will have no financial interest in the survey result.
Whereabouts in Berkshire are you ? I have damp meters and endoscope cameras etc and if you are not far away from me (Farnborough) I will glady pop round and have a quick look for you.
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Is the damp at the top or the bottom? f at the top the damp is coming from above. If from the bottom from the ground. Ours was from the bottom because the ground level was too high outside. When the level was taken down we also had a trench dug which was filled with gravel so that there was no saturated soil against the wall. Old mortar was lime mortar which allows movement in old houses that didn't have concrete foundations. Ours is on what are called spreaders, they used to build a wide layer of bricks then the next layer was narrower and so on until the house wall started. You need to work out what sort of damp it is and where it's coming from and then it will hopefully be easy to cure. Dom
4pigs wrote:Thank you for the replies - i'm even more worried now The internal plaster has blown slightly but this was quite high and near to the ceiling so i'd forgotten about that but that would be a sign that all is not well? There is a cavity because it was insulated with that foam stuff (technical term) approx 4 years ago.
Jo x
If the damp is at the top of your internal wall the problem could be a leaky pipe in the bathroom.
Penetrating damp is normally at the base of the wall.
Regarding the paint if the decorator used a vinyl matt that will not allow any moisture to pass through and will blister if damp is preent, ordinary contract emulsion will allow the wall to breathe but any excess moisture will normally leave a stain and/or mould.
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my penny's worth Damp can only go 18" up if you have damp higher than this then it is comming DOWN the wall or the ground out side is higher than the damp course or you have no damp course and the ground outside is higher hope that makes sence ! if you have no damp course you can use a diy kit and do it yourself do not use the stuff from a diy shop go to a hire shop you can hire the injector and they will sell you the chemicals as well. you drill holes in BOTH walls (if you have cavity walls)and inject the suff every 6-8" when it dry's you will have made a line of a type of silican, which is a water barrier to stop the water rising up the wall(damp course)
i do not give a damm what the people who sell this stuff say DAMP CAN ONLY GO 18"UP A WALL the reason is, gravity wont let it go any higher it will "pull " the water down do not mix up a very cold wall for being damp !
check your gutters as a knackerd gutter can pour water down a wall !!!! hope this has been some help
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The smelly bits are worse at the bottom of the wall ... There is a small area of blown plaster near the ceiling but it's not smelly... perhaps just age? FH - you are a star! I do have a builder coming round (friend of a friend) this coming week so i'll see what he says (i'm not sure how much of an expert he is) - but i will let you know what he thinks - because i am a bit out of my depth with all this - if that's ok? I'm very near to Newbury Showground - so you are within range of me coming over and dragging you back here!!! Thank you
4pigs wrote:The smelly bits are worse at the bottom of the wall ... There is a small area of blown plaster near the ceiling but it's not smelly... perhaps just age? FH - you are a star! I do have a builder coming round (friend of a friend) this coming week so i'll see what he says (i'm not sure how much of an expert he is) - but i will let you know what he thinks - because i am a bit out of my depth with all this - if that's ok? I'm very near to Newbury Showground - so you are within range of me coming over and dragging you back here!!! Thank you
Jo x
No worries, send me a pm if you want me to whizz over
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I thought it may be something i can buy and do myself.
