Damp on Floor in Bay Window

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25 Jul 2014
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Oxfordshire
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United Kingdom
Hi,

I really need some advice before a plough on and cause a lot of disruption in my house.

We moved in a month ago under the knowledge (from a survey) that there were potential rising damp problems. When we got in, the only evidence we could find were two isolated patches in the ground floor bay window where the laminate flooring had warped and felt slightly damp. The patches are seperated by about 1m and are around 100mm square. They areo nly very slightly damp (more cold feeling than anything).

We engaged a damp specialist who came around and drilled holes, inserted probes etc and reported no signs of rising damp anywhere in the house. But still we have these two patches.

As well as the survey ruling out damp I have also ruled out a leak. The room is heated by electric underfloor heating mats so there are no pipes in that area and if it was a leak I would expect to see more moisture and spread of the problem. :confused:

Looking outside there is an air brick directly between the two patches which has been filled with foam by the previous owners. Could this be the cause? OR...have the previous owners filled it to stop water penetration...?? If this is the cause would I really see two isolated patches that were so bad and no evidence of damp elsewhere...??

My next step would be to pull the floor up but I really want to avoid this as the laminate is in excellent condition and looks pretty much new (apart from the two spots) and the underfloor heating will no-doubt cause some hassle. Apart from anything else we have two young children that need to cross the lounge to go upstairs and I really don't want to create any unsafe conditions.

Any help/advise/theories would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers,
 
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do you have damp patches during the hot weather? I reckon as patches are beside the door I would like to rule out the rain water slipping through the door.
if not I would try to check if there are any pips going - is a kitchen or a bathroom close by?
 
Hi, thanks for the reply.

The patches are in a bay window. Not near a door, kitchen or bathroom. I thought it could be coming in through the windows so stood soaking them with a hose to see what happened but noticed no change......really stumped.
 
Pics of the patches and their location would help but to me it sounds like the filled air brick is the likely cause. Are they cavity walls and could it be wall ties which have been covered in (expanding?) foam causing a bridge between wall skins? Two 100mm square patches isn't really what you would expect from a serious damp problem.
 
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