Why Is My Property Damp ?
The Truth.
The majority of property owners in this country are uneducated in regard to damp. This ignorance is the reason for the irrational fear which leads to misguided speculation as to a cause.
A fearful mind-set is often exploited by unregulated ‘so-called’ damp proofing companies.
Damp can be invasive and destructive, it’s true; however, the solution is always reasonably simplistic.
Forget everything you think you know about damp. It’s probably wrong.
Surveyors, damp-proofing companies, so-called builders, online advice from experts on forums; 99% of the time you’re being told rubbish by idiots with either an ulterior motive (obtaining your money) or an innate desire to air their entirely incorrect opinions.Damp specialists (including the legitimate ones) operate on the fringes of the building trade.
Barring the major players (who are little more than criminals), those who specialise in damp are in a minority.
The building game can be demanding. Damp can be an easy option. A business which preys upon an indefinite supply of willing customers. These customers who mostly haven’t got a clue as to why their property is damp. With little or no expertise, many firms operate by pushing a ‘chemical injection DPC’ or a magical ‘vent’ which removes moisture from the atmosphere. The reality is, most of these cures will prove completely ineffective.
Let’s start with the fundamentals.
Damp in its many forms, is caused by a repeated or consistent factor or factors. ‘Damp’ is the name give to the wet patch on a wall, or mould and mildew growth on the back of a wardrobe. It’s a verb with a generic meaning. Damp is not a malevolent cancerous life-form capable of existence beyond its causational elements.
Where damp exits, there is always a cause. A property requires frequent heating (in cold weather), sufficient ventilation, adequate insulation, a functional DPC and in some instances DPM (for concrete floors).The DPC cannot be bridged through raised exterior ground-level.
So what other factors may be responsible for damp ?
If all the fundamental elements mentioned above are in order, then there only four other possible reasons: porosity of brickwork including missing/cracked render, especially on parapet walls; loose, missing cracked or displaced roof tiles/slates, leaking drainage from bathroom kitchen etc. a leaking pipe, or underground drainage including gully’s,
But wait…damp experts never mention missing roof-tiles or a defective gully !
No, you’re quite right they don’t and they probably never will. Why not? because to fix a roof or dig up underground drainage, you have to know what you’re doing. Most ‘Damp experts’ are trained to hold a clipboard and inject tubes of silicone into you’re cavity walls. Secondly, it’s tremendously hard physically to dig out drainage and its quite scary getting on a roof. Wouldn’t you prefer to spend a couple of hours drilling holes round the perimeter of a property for considerable financial gain, than spend a couple of days digging out and re-building a collapsing manhole which is leaking it’s toilet waste contents through the underside of the downstairs bathroom.
But I don’t know anything about building !
Well, not to worry. That’s not the point. The point is you should be aware of what fundamental elements are responsible for the causation of damp and not either being talked into buying a ‘magic bullet’ solution. Equally important is not making wild assumptions which fall beyond the parameters of the possible causes listed above. Common incorrect assumptions as to why a property is damp can range from “there’s gaps in the windows” to “there’s hair-line cracks in the render”. These things or anything similar will not be a reason why your property is damp. As an example, you could quite happily chisel a 500mm x 500mm through the middle of your front room 9″ flank-wall and as a result, amazingly this would alleviate internal atmospheric moisture content. It would be unsightly and not a course of action I would recommend, but I guarantee, absolutely no damp would occur as a result.
It’s all down to percentages:
This sounds more confusing than it should be. As a rule of thumb, you will generally get one or two specific causes of damp within a property. Percentage wise this could be 70% ingress via bridged DPC, 20% through porosity of face brickwork, and a 10% contributory factor from damp laundry regularly place on the radiators. Its sounds bizarre but this 10% can exacerbate issues to a considerable degree. How would you make such calculations ? well, with the use of a protimeter. You don’t have a protimeter ? well, again don’t worry too much. It’s not so much the exact percentage as that’s important, but more having an awareness that one cause in the property is predominate over an additional or contributory issue.
Is it an ingress ?
An ingress is damp visible within a property which has originated from an external source, ie. from a porous wall. A breach of DPC will result in an ingress; lack of ventilation and the resultant condensation/mould are not an ingress.
The protimeter.
A much maligned and misunderstood instrument. A great many people mistakenly believe the protimeter has attributes more commonly associated with the ‘divining-rod’ or Scientology E-reader. Surprisingly, it’s a versatile, effective and quite honestly vital tool for those who require further verification of identified damp problems. A good one costs around £300, an adequate one around £50. Anything cheaper will probably be a cheap damp meter commonly used for caravans and checking the moisture content on logs.
Keep it simple:
Because it is simple. Ok, there is science behind it, but you have to think practical and physical to understand the solution required. If an exterior gully (drain) used for your washing machine and sink, is loosing copious amounts of water through cracks; that water will be saturating your kitchen flank-wall and soaking through to the kitchen floor. The plaster that’s ‘blown’ on the kitchen wall that some expert has told you is down to ventilation is a direct result of the cracked gully.