Chemical treating/sealing of wall to prevent damp getting in

[phil1963]

As per previous topics, I have a damp patch eight feet up an external wall which I feel has been caused by war and tear (house built in 1884 and NOT cavity-walled) to the pointing. A gent from a local damp proofing company popped round this evening to view it and like builders before who have attended reckoned that the pointing is in good condition and is not the problem. His company specialises in scrapping off the plaster on the INSIDE of the wall, treating/sealing the bricks with a chemical compound from the inside to make them watertight (or create an inpenetrable barrier) and then re-plastering the wall again. This appears to me to allow the bricks to keep their soak and dry cycle still whilst stopping any more rain/damp penetrating my bleedin kitchen. Any opinions?

 

[amwc]

did they say it was rising damp or penetrating damp?

 

[JohnD]

or condensation

kitchen.

do you have, and use, an extractor fan? Do you do steamy cooking or washing up? Do you use an unvented tumble-drier? Do you drape wet washing on a rack or radiator?

 

[dave1953]

or condensation

kitchen.

do you have, and use, an extractor fan? Do you do steamy cooking or washing up? Do you use an unvented tumble-drier? Do you drape wet washing on a rack or radiator?

Could be on the right track, a Hygrometer survey by a CRST qualified person will determine if it is condensation and thats a good place to start.
Anyone put a Protimeter [ damp meter ] on the walls to determine height and density of dampness? A survey [ normally free of charge ] will determine rising or penetrating damp.

 

[anobium]

If its 8 ft up the wall its not rising damp, the problem is probably an external defect, check the bricks, sometimes these can be porous and cause internal damp.

 

[^woody^]

The OP is not going to get rising damp eight foot up the wall

If the patch is a patch in isolation away from corners or ceilings, then it is more likely to be penetrating from the external face.

If the patch gets more pronounced after rain, then it is more likely penetrating

A condensation patch in a property of this age, would not suddenly appear, but would exist from the start or appear soon after a change in heating system or of windows or other such significant internal change.

Penetration does not have to be from right on the other side of the wall, but can be getting in above or to the side and be tracking internally to exit on the inner face

And small crevice, blown bit of pointing or brick, or slight crack will let water in, and the old clay or lime mortar is a good conduit

 

[phil1963]

Gents,
Thanks for the replies. been away for a while today, so I'll answer further now. There is no extractor fan in the kitchen and the air brick, which is on a different wall is mostly covered by some cupboards put up by the previous owners I should add! I rarely cook in the kitchen (I eat out or at work) and when I do, I open the two large windows. My washing is normally hung outside to dry, but in the winter it is hung on a rack to dry, but never by a radiator.
I have checked the oustide wall and there is a groove of worn/eroded pointing about two inches long, but it is about twelve feet up so I can't get a good look but from some of your comments and the age of my Victorian abode it seems as if the remaining lime mortar close to the groove may not still be watertight ... I am learning every day! Thanks for your respective bits of advice.