Rising Damp - Injecting DPC Cream Into Cavity Wall

[DMC.611]

Hi,

New to the forum and looking for some advice and information

We have just bought our first house and there is rising damp in majority of the rooms (living and dining room, kitchen and bathroom) This has been confirmed by 3 different companies.

I was given quotes ranging from £3000 - £7000 to sort the damp and then plaster entire wall(s)

I've been doing some research and would like to inject the walls using Dryzone Cream.

I've already hacked down to the brick but I am not sure how to drill the holes into my cavity walls. Do I drill inside out (through the cavity) then inject? Or should I only drill the cavity wall and inject?

Any help would be kindly appreciated!!

Thanks again

 

[JohnD]

If you invite into your home somebody who sells damp-proofing, you should expect them to tell you that you need damp-proofing.

You would do much better to find and rectify the source of the water, whether it is high paving outside, spilling gutters, or a leaking pipe. None of these will be repaired by squirting chemicals at the bricks.

 

[^woody^]

You should not be getting rising damp in a cavity wall.

You might get damp due to a blocked cavity though, and injection will not solve that, rather the cavity will need to be cleared.

But much more common is condensation damp because of a blocked cavity.

Has the cavity been investigated?

 

[DMC.611]

If you invite into your home somebody who sells damp-proofing, you should expect them to tell you that you need damp-proofing.

You would do much better to find and rectify the source of the water, whether it is high paving outside, spilling gutters, or a leaking pipe. None of these will be repaired by squirting chemicals at the bricks.

I understand that a damp proofer is going to want to sell me all their services...

I am concerned that the party wall in the house had tide marks right across it. It varied in height. The damp was around 2 feet in the middle of the house (around the chimney breast) Then it drops to around a foot spreading to the corners. You can feel damp around majority of the house, dining room, kitchen and bathroom. Wall paper peeling off easy and black mould under it (including damp internal walls)

I have spoken to the neighbours and apparently the stack was leaking and over a period of 7-8 months the owner of my house ignored it. They ended up paying to get the stack/roof fixed as it was causing a lot of damp in their bedroom. Would the stack be the cause of this problem then?

The neighbours also mentioned that no one lived in this house for about 16-18 months. The heating obviously was never put on during this time.

Any idea if I should just hack back all plaster and dot & dab or re-plaster? Really don't want to get all the work done, move in then end up having damp in all rooms again because we didn't inject walls... Thanks

 

[DMC.611]

You should not be getting rising damp in a cavity wall.

You might get damp due to a blocked cavity though, and injection will not solve that, rather the cavity will need to be cleared.

But much more common is condensation damp because of a blocked cavity.

Has the cavity been investigated?

Ill be honest, im assuming its a cavity wall. Have not checked though as I am not living there at the moment due to all the work being done. If you read above maybe this will give you some idea.

 

[JohnD]

how old is the house?

are the floors wooden or concrete?

is there a water meter?

are the chimneys ventilated top and bottom, having either open fireplaces or airbricks in the rooms?

Post some photos
- of the brickwork, close enough to see the pattern
- of the bottoms of the outside walls, near a doorway, that might give an idea of the ground level now, and if it has raised since the house was built
- of the wet patches

 

[DMC.611]

how old is the house?

are the floors wooden or concrete?

is there a water meter?

are the chimneys ventilated top and bottom, having either open fireplaces or airbricks in the rooms?

Post some photos
- of the brickwork, close enough to see the pattern
- of the bottoms of the outside walls, near a doorway, that might give an idea of the ground level now, and if it has raised since the house was built
- of the wet patches

Edit ** House was built around 1930's **

The floors are concrete and the chimney is ventilated top and bottom.

The water meter is located. But why the question lol?

I can post pictures tomorrow (hopefully) ... I wont be able to show you the tide marks in the living room though as I have already hacked back the plaster to a 1.5m

Cheers for the reply John... Appreciate it (as I am new to all this and do not want to be spending hundreds on products that will not solve anything.

 

[JohnD]

turn all the taps off. Look at the water meter with a torch. There is a bubble in the middle of the window. Is it turning?

The bubble stops when no water is passing through. If it does not stop you have a leak.

How old is the house?

Are the concrete floors original, or were they put in after the original wooden floors went wrong?

 

[DMC.611]

turn all the taps off. Look at the water meter with a torch. There is a bubble in the middle of the window. Is it turning?

The bubble stops when no water is passing through. If it does not stop you have a leak.

How old is the house?

Are the concrete floors original, or were they put in after the original wooden floors went wrong?

I know there are definitely no leaks as I have had the water off for 2 weeks now and the reading has not changed. The house was built 1930's and to my knowledge the concrete floors are original.

Im happy to do the work myself. And im happy to pay a couple of hundred pound for peace of mind... But is it necessary? Like I said previously, has the leaking stack caused all the damp issues due to no heating or ventilation over a 18 month period. When I viewed the house in the summer I am certain I didn't see the damp!!

 

[KenGMac]

Can I ask a question?
You state that you have just purchased this property.

Was it Surveyed prior to purchase? did the pre-purchase Survey note the presence of rising damp?

If the pre-Purchase Surveyor did tests for, as they do, and did not detect the presence of rising damp,? or did the Pre-Purchase Surveyor miss the rising damp problem you may have a claim against the Surveyors that told you the Property did not have rising damp

Just thought?

Ken.

 

[^woody^]

I tend to find it very odd when just one house in a semi, or one house in a whole street of similar houses built at the same time, by the same people, with the same materials in the same way, is claimed to have rising damp.

It seems that the chimney is the source of the damp, those are tell tale signs of moisture coming down the stack and spreading sideways along the wall (along the top of the DPC normally). This in turn tends to cause condensation damp around the property as the moisture evaporates from the wall and settles elsewhere.

 

[foxhole]

Would be 3-7k down the drain, you have penetrating damp as already mentioned, is the roof and chimney have been repaired correctly it will take several months for damp to dry out.
http://www.architectsjournal.co.uk/...th-says-former-rics-chief/5204095.fullarticle

 

[DMC.611]

I tend to find it very odd when just one house in a semi, or one house in a whole street of similar houses built at the same time, by the same people, with the same materials in the same way, is claimed to have rising damp.

It seems that the chimney is the source of the damp, those are tell tale signs of moisture coming down the stack and spreading sideways along the wall (along the top of the DPC normally). This in turn tends to cause condensation damp around the property as the moisture evaporates from the wall and settles elsewhere.

Me and my old man had this discussion earlier actually woody!!

We have definitely came to the conclusion that the stack is the problem. Or was the problem... its been fixed now and ive been up in the attack to ensure no water is leaking through.

Would explain all the damp downstairs as no one was living there for a good 16-18 months. No ventilation and no heating to dry it up!!

Would there be any point in me ordering a few tubes of dryzone cream and inject myself for peace of mind??

cheers

 

[DMC.611]

Would be 3-7k down the drain, you have penetrating damp as already mentioned, is the roof and chimney have been repaired correctly it will take several months for damp to dry out.
http://www.architectsjournal.co.uk/...th-says-former-rics-chief/5204095.fullarticle

Theres no way im spending that much money on it mate... I was going to as me and the mrs wanted to sort the issue asap to move in for Christmas. Now we have talked about it and don't want to rush to get things done, I have actually thought about where the damp is and what the best action is to combat it!!

As said above... me and the old man believe its the old stack letting in water. The upstairs ceiling was damp too (directly under the stack). now the rood has been repaired and I have dried the ceiling/room the damp has not got worse!!

 

[^woody^]

Would there be any point

None