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I would have thought the pozzolanic materials in the hydraulic lime would make it start to go off if you mixed it with water. Therefore I'd be inclined to just mix it and use it straight away. I could be wrong, though. Lime is a subject that seems to have a lot of conflicting information.

You could use an acrylic filler for the small cracks. Sand/cement would be good for the larger cracks but might be worth adding some SBR to give some flexibility.

1. Should I drill the holes in the mortar course or in the bricks themselves (different sites give different advice)? Creams are always injected into the mortar course. DPC injection is generally injected into the brick. I am told that this is because it is difficult to get a good seal on...

Sorry, I presumed that is what he meant by "treating the walls." Given that we are talking about a cellar I would have thought that the most likely thing he wants to treat the walls against is damp.

As far as I am aware, the only way you could properly waterproof a cellar and keep the brickwork intact would be to use a resin injection system. However these tend to be very expensive and are typically only used on commercial projects. This is mainly because it is impossible to accurately...

Products like Raindance can be very effective if the damp is penetrating through the pores of the bricks/stone/mortar. However if the rain is penetrating through defective pointing, they won't help. As you say the building in question is constructed from soft red brick it is plausible that...

When these types of cavity drain systems are used over new concrete it is important to try and minimise seepage of water through the concrete. This is because the water will carry dissolved free lime from the concrete which can clog up the sump pumps.

There are a number of features of the installation that appear to be lacking. However, the glaring fault is that there is no membrane on the floor, no perimeter drainage, and no sump system. Sometimes cavity drainage membranes are used in this way (applied to walls only) in above-ground...

I have always found getting hold of a reliable source of sharp sand extremely difficult. Even from the same builder's merchant, the properties of the sand I buy can vary considerably from one month to the next. I know that there are supposed to be some British Standards on the grading of sharp...

Camden Council recently issued a document giving advice on building regs etc... and cellar conversions. It seems like quite a decent summary - see http://www.camden.gov.uk/ccm/content/environment/building-control/technical-guidance-sheets.en

I don't know the area myself so I couldn't suggest any specific companies. However choosing a member of the Property Care Association (formally BWPDA) is usually considered a good idea - see http://www.property-care.org/.

I'd always understood that the idea was to treat the brick and the joint. One way or another you want to form a complete barrier along the wall that is as close as possible to forming the type of complete barrier you would get with a physical DPC. One of the weaknesses of liquid DPC products is...

To be fair, it probably isn't necessary, but it is always seen as good practice. I suppose it might have a function in protecting the skirting boards from damp which could otherwide cause them to rot.

You appear to have a classic case of "bridging" of the damp proof course. It is normal practice to coat the bricks below the DPC level with a waterproof coating (bitumen, tanking slurry etc...). Normally this coating will continue up the wall a couple of inches above the DPC injection holes to...

Electrical moisture meters are often criticised because they are not calibrated for use on masonry and therefore cannot give accurate readings. However, this misses the point a little, as what a good surveyor is looking for is the pattern of the damp readings ratehr than absolute values. If...

You need to do a proper re-rendering specification using a 3:1 sand cement mix with a salt-proofing additive. Also I think "one-shot" product is one of the low strength damp-proofing creams that are said to be less effective, so you probably haven't blocked all of the damp coming from the ground...

What damp-proofing cream and replastering spec did you use?

The British Standard for damp-proofing, BS6576 stresses the importance of replastering as part of a rising damp treatment - so the builder can't really claim that it's nothing to do with him. Unfortunately Sovereign are in the habit of giving worthless "product guarantees" to any Tom Dick or...

It looks like the cellar wall already has some kind of paint or coating on it. This will make it difficult to apply a tanking slurry (like the Mapei product you have) without doing a lot of surface preparation - e.g. bush hammering, grit blasting. The easiser method is to use what is called a...

Probably there will be a bog standard clause in the survey along the lines of "the property does not have a damp-proof course and there is therefore a risk of rising damp." However as long as you can demonstrate to the buyer that the walls are dry there is probably no need to install a remedial dpc.