Many thanks for your help so far (see previous entry). Hope I am not asking a daft question, but I have attached a photograph of my outside wall where I believe the damp is coming in from and then staining the inside downstairs kitchen wall (the pipes/plumbing in the room above is bone dry). The previous owners (about 10 years ago) painted the whole elevation, perhaps, as one of you said, to mask any problems. I have just noticed that a pattern on the brickwork is beginning to come though, and wonder of this is where the grouting/cement between the bricks has worn ............. can anyone tell from the attached photo if this wear and tear is enough to permit the elements in (if I'm not asking the impossible as the elevation has been painted!).
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