Outside Wall Problem

[Bubbauk]

Hey everyone, my mum lives in an old flat roofed house, I think they were put up during the war time as temporary accomodation but then they just kept using them, only picture I have to show the type of house is this one

http://img339.imageshack.us/img339/2972/73541526.jpg

It is an end terrace and she has always had problems with mould spots on the wall upstairs towards the ceiling, she was told this was not damp but it was condensation and she needed her roof redone, she paid I think £1500-£2000 to get this done about 5 years ago but it never solved the problem.

She didnt have anymore money to look into the problem any further so she has just been cleaning with bleach and repainting but obviously this is just hiding the problem.

Recently a small section of the exterior render (unsure of exact finish on the brick) has fallen off and exposed some of the red brick, when I tap some of the wall on the outside it sounds hollow so I am wondering if this could be the problem?

Sorry about the long post but we have had a few people look at the problem over the years and no one seems to have any idea what is up.

Any help about this would be appreciated.

David.

 

[r896neo]

It is caused by condensation and there are 2 ways to help reduce it.

1. Adding insulation which hopefully was what happened when she had her roof re-done.

2. Increasing ventilation, fitting trickle vents to windows or a hit and miss vent and air brick to outside.

3. Remove sources of moisture. This can mean fitting extractor fans in nearby bathrooms, making sure not to dry clothes indoors, for exapmle over radiators.

The hollow sound you mention is blown render meaning it has detached from the walls in places and will eventually just fall off, this is not a major issue if the house has a cavity wall but if it has a solid wall or unusual construction this needs addressing asap because the render is a large part of the weather protection of these type of houses.

In short if the walls are cavity walls the condensation issue and the blown render are unrelated and the render can be fixed when funds are available. If however it's a solid wall the render could be contributing by causing damp therefore incresing moisture levels.

 

[Bubbauk]

Hey

Not sure what exactly she had done on the roof of the house who knows if they even did anything?

All upstairs bedrooms are fitted with vents in the wall and also the kitchen larder has one.

Bathroom has an extractor fan but kitchen does not.

I am not sure if the walls are cav ity or just solid. I was told they are prefab houses, I notice you are from Belfast, do you know the houses at fernagh? near whiteabbey hospital? If I stand at the front door, the thickness between the outside wall and the inside is I would estimate to be about a foot and a half, I did not have a tape measure on me when I was there earlier but it was fairly large.

Thanks again for the reply. I might look into fitting an extractor in the kitchen for her and also try and fix her heating as the radiator in the kitchen is not working.

 

[r896neo]

The fact that it's a post war pre-fab its difficult to know how it was constructed as they built a few varieties. You'd really need to know for sure the method of construction before taking any remedial work.

Have a look in the loft at the wall/ ceiling junction for any clues or maybe ask a neighbour if they know for sure?

 

[r896neo]

sorry double post

 

[Bubbauk]

Hey, thanks agin for the reply.

The house does not have a loft as it is a flat roof house. I think if i remove the extrator in the bathroom I should be able to tell, we shall see. I will let you know how I get on

If anyone has any other ideas it would be great.

 

[r896neo]

Asking a neighbour, especially a diyer or someone who has had an extension etc done??

Removing the extractor would tell you but you'd have to remove the sleeve too which may be a lot of hassle as it's probably in with foam/mortar and render on the outside.