Damp proof remedy - advice really appreciated!

[felixculpa81]

Hello!

I small amounts of rising damp in the living room, and after much struggle trying to get quotes, and doing reading around the subject - i have decided to opt for DIY.

I know that the reason for the problem is that the path outside is too high up (the DPC is just 2cm off the ground). It is going to be a while before i have the time to smash the path out, so this will have to wait.

Yet my friend has generously offered to come and plaster the inside of the room next week...

I am hoping it will work if he knocks off the existing plaster - up to 1.5m, then fix up plaster membrane (the type with the air pockets) up to a metre height (or a metre and a half?) and then install plasterboard over the top for skimming, possibly some kind of special plaster which should also help resist damp.

Once the opportunity (and help) arises, i plan to smash out the path which is the root cause.

Does this sound like a good way to go about things?

>>I should also highlight that it is just a few patches of very small isolated damp, and the house does not have central heating currently - but i have been very careful with my reading and i am certain it is rising damp and not condensation.<<

Please - any advice is really appreciated, thanks in advance.

 

[^woody^]

So, is the cause rising damp or is it a breach of the DPC due to the external ground level?

You will have to rectify the cause before replastering - but is replastering necessary?

You could coat the wall with a clear water repellent if the problem is just rain splash and leave the path

 

[felixculpa81]

hello!

Yes - i believe that the problem is the height of the path according to the DPC, see a photo of it here:

http://s113.photobucket.com/albums/n226/felixculpa81/?action=view&current=3cm.jpg

Yes replastering is definately a necessity (it looks awful at present) - and i would love to be able to get it done next week - as my friend has some time off and has offered to do it - it's rare he will have this chance.


So can you recommend a product i could paint on the outside bricks that this would solve the damp coming through?

I would love to be able to do that instead because it sounds so much simpler!

You don't think it will cause any problems with the wall not being able to "breathe" - i don't want to end up driving more moisture into the house.

I am also slightly worried that if i paint on the moisture sealing product on the outside wall - should i still take some sort of precautions on the inside as well just in case?

Thank you so much for your advice..

 

[Softus]

Your bodge will fail and will take more effort than the fixing the root cause.

possibly some kind of special plaster which should also help resist damp.

Where do you think the moisture will go if the plaster "resists" it?

Does this sound like a good way to go about things?

If you want to waste your time and not fix the problem, then it's perfect.

 

[chessspy]

All very true softus, however sometimes we do what we can and at others what we must.
If the area is plastered without the outside cause being dealt with then it is not ideal, however if the inside plaster gets a bit damp now and again it won't hurt so much.
Yes the path should come up first really, and the bricks look a bit perrished, and certainly could do with waterproofing but it is summer or so they tell us, and the weather should be drier, etc....

 

[Softus]

All very true softus, however sometimes we do what we can and at others what we must.

I agree.

If the area is plastered without the outside cause being dealt with then it is not ideal, however if the inside plaster gets a bit damp now and again it won't hurt so much.

I disagree. Any damp that reaches the plaster from outside, especially from below, will ruin it. This is why the affected plaster always has to be hacked off and replaced.

...it is summer or so they tell us, and the weather should be drier, etc....

That won't make any difference if path splashing is the problem, because it'll still rain.

 

[felixculpa81]

ok,

So is taking out the path the only option, or will a paint on product on the outside wall be effective in your professional opinion?

Many thanks for the help.

 

[chessspy]

OK, softus, I guess you're right on this one.

 

[felixculpa81]

so softus,

You have explained that i am wrong

what is the action to take?

thanks in advance.

 

[Shytalkz]

I could hear your teeth grinding as you typed and posted that, Chess

 

[Shytalkz]

If you get the wall plastered and leave outside high, it's very likely that you're only going to have to revisit this in the future and do the same thing all over again. Treating the symptom, without remedying the cause, in other words.

The right answer is to reduce the levels and hopefully let the wall dry out, then replaster or batten and dry line, if it needs it. Lower the levels and you may well find that you don't have to do anything inside at all, once the plaster's dried out.

If you're still having problems with damp after lowering the levels, then it will be some other cause that needs looking at, but until you start eliminating possible causes, you won't know which one it is.

If you go for sealing the wall and it's not the high ground level that's causing it, then moisture won't be able to get out that way, meaning eventually it will find its way inwards and possibly exacerbate levels of dampness, making it necessary to replaster/line.

 

[anobium]

Here we go again, advice being freely given by one and all without knowing all the facts.
Why on earth do people who doubt that rising damp exists have the gall to advise people that external path levels are critical and recommend that they are lowered at great expense.
The so called theory of external levels being 150mm below dpc level is that rain cannot splash back over the dpc.
It may sound a silly question but what the hell happens to driving rain at upper levels?
In any event if the cavities are clear the moisture will not gravitate to the internal leaf.
In this case I would advise the op to knock off the internal plaster remove a few bricks from the internal course and clean out the cavities and then replaster.
Under no circumstance would I lower the external ground level if it is below the dpc .
Rant over

 

[noseall]

the 150mm rule applies at all levels - whereby a horizontal (or sloping) surface meets a vertical one

 

[Softus]

Here we go again, advice being freely given by one and all without knowing all the facts.

That's just a crass stride in the direction of a hijack. If you want an argument then go and start your own topic and I'll see you in there. The gloves will be off, so to dull the pain your headguard will need to be packed with even more of your stupid prejudices.

Why on earth do people who doubt that rising damp exists have the gall to advise people that external path levels are critical and recommend that they are lowered at great expense.

Firstly, nobody has claimed [on this topic] that rising damp doesn't exist.

Secondly, the Original Poster stated that he knew that the high path was the cause of his problem.

Thirdly, if your set of moronic presumptions is aimed at me, then please note that I wrote "...if path splashing is the problem...", without any assumption that it is.

Go and read the topic properly for once.

The so called theory of external levels being 150mm below dpc level is that rain cannot splash back over the dpc.

Nonsense. The main problem with high ground is the attendant high water table. You are the one who's skating on thin factual ice here.

It may sound a silly question but what the hell happens to driving rain at upper levels?

You simply have no idea how silly that question sounds.

In any event if the cavities are clear the moisture will not gravitate to the internal leaf.

Is this a cavity wall? Has anyone said so? Have you asked? Is your advice being freely given without knowing all the facts? Are you a nothing more than a hypocrite?

In this case I would advise the op to knock off the internal plaster remove a few bricks from the internal course and clean out the cavities and then replaster.

Triffic. Let's hope that he finds a cavity, and lets hope that your clairvoyant diagnosis of cavity bridging is correct.

Under no circumstance would I lower the external ground level if it is below the dpc .
Rant over

Fortunately, for everyone, you're not being asked to do the work.

 

[Shytalkz]

Here we go again, advice being freely given by one and all without knowing all the facts....In any event if the cavities are clear the moisture will not gravitate to the internal leaf.
In this case I would advise the op to knock off the internal plaster remove a few bricks from the internal course and clean out the cavities and then replaster.

Just where does the OP say it's definitely a cavity wall? Can you really tell, for sure, from the photo???