Damp Proof your home
We are partnering with the best building experts, plumbers and roofers to help keep your buildings and homes dry and damp free. To book an inspection and repair service book here.
We get a lot of enquiries about damp issues in houses so now we are working with leading wall repair, roofing specialists and plumbers to diagnose damp and provide a full damp proofing repair package.
Click here to book a property survey and damp assessment
Before booking a survey via Humbrix or another company we recommend reading these recommendations from our leading wall and damp expert Robert Wood.
- Always check for condensation
This is where water from everyday living and appliances such as steam from cooking and showers condenses on the coldest parts of the building. For example you may see water vapour collecting on the window glass, on the sills, walls, ceilings. Left untreated it can lead to black mold.
Recommended remedy: open the windows when cooking and using the shower, put the heating when drying clothes indoors, consider installing extractor fans which suck up the moisture before it condenses and extracts it to the outside.
Note: if it is a wet, cold or a humid day opening the window will not achieve much as the low air pressure outside and humidity means your property’s water vapour will unlikely find its way outside.
- Check for leaks from internal appliances and plumbing
This is not always obvious but can cause damage to the building as its soaked up into the walls, floors and timber joists.
Recommended remedy: get a plumber to help locate and fix all potential leaks such as radiators. Book a service for your appliances such as the gas boiler here.
- Check for leaks coming from outside
Roofs, gutters, pipes, bricks and stone wall cracks, window and door frames, broken paving by the property. If you are unable to locate the cause of the leak asking a trusted building expert for advice or a survey would be a good starting point.
- Check for signs of penetrating damp
Locating the cause of penetrating damp is not always easy to find or treat, if the causes have not been fixed it is even harder to treat. It is typically caused by structural problems such as broken gutters and roofs, defective brick pointing, cracks in the bricks, render and stone work. As the water is absorbed by the building it can take several years to make its way out making the internal walls cold and encourage condensation on the surface.
Note: in some cases the paving slopes towards the property, this allows the flow of water to collect by the walls instead of flowing outwards.
Recommended remedy: with all structural issues if you suspect the property has penetrating damp, asking a professional and trusted building expert for advice or a survey should be your starting point.
- Check for signs of rising damp
Rising damp is typically caused by a defective damp course or covered air bricks, unlike penetrating damp this type of damp is absorbed from the ground up. It is potentially the hardest to treat but new innovation in wall treatments combined with good plastering techniques can help.
Typical signs of rising damp are: tide marks or staining on a wall up to about a metre from the ground indoors and external. Peeling wall paper from the skirting boards. Wood rot – damaged, soft and rotten skirting boards. White fluffy salt deposits in the plaster. Black mold above the skirting board where the water has cooled the surface to such a level that becomes cool enough for water vapour to condense.
Recommended remedy: once an assessment has been carried out usually with a moisture meter there are several steps that are usually undertaken by a professional expert. These can include taking the plaster and mortar back to brick and adding a chemical damp proof mix into the brick pointing. Our leading expert Robert Wood uses a product called Dryzone https://www.safeguardeurope.com/products/dryzone-system/dryzone-damp-proofing-cream