damp chimney breast

[nellyb]

We have an open fire in our front room and there is a lot of damp around the chimney breast. It is actually damp rather than any staining coming through from the chimney.

The chimney breast is on an outside wall and the pointing seems fine on the wall.

Do any of your roofing experts have any suggestion as to what might be causing this problem? I can't get up on the roof/chimney to see what it might be so any help or suggestions would be appreciated.

 

[Nige F]

I`m guessing a bungalow could be a flashing problem.......biggest problem is finding a good roofer/builder........ask @ local citizen`s advice or council trusted trades type scheme

 

[nellyb]

No, it's not a bungalow, it's a victorian semi. The problem is in the downsairs living room. For various reasons, I can;t see if there is a similar problem upstairs.

 

[Nige F]

where on the breast in relation to the fire opening ...wouldn`t think it was from the roof in a 2 storey house

 

[^woody^]

Defective flashing or tiles would typically give staining to the upper room. It would be very bad leak if the lower floor got wet too

Other possibilities are either penetratioin through the brickwork (use Thompsons sealant), or defective flauncing and or pot causing rain to go down the flue, the type of fuel used, a partially blocked or dirty flue.

A better description of the damp and location would help