Soil under suspended floor in kitchen/diner

[Jlpalmer98]

Hi,

I’ve recently bought an old Victorian terraced house ( built in 1890 ). The property was recently updated 4 years ago by the previous owners, having most of the house re done such as new joist and chipboard flooring but under the suspended floor is just general rubbish clearly left by previous builders but also just filled with a lot of loose soil that is abit damp to touch. The side of the house is fitted with 7 air bricks that are all clear.

Is it normal for there to be loose damp soil under the suspended floor?

 

[Ollyfp]

Yep, soil under the floor is normal for a budget build of that age. Your floors are suspended, so the soil shouldn't be touching the timbers. If it is, just clear some out. Your air bricks allow the air to pass under the floor, which should keep it nice and dry.
Most people opt to rip out the timber floors and replace them with an insulated slab when the wood shows signs of rot.
That's my take anyway!
Olly

 

[JohnD]

The rubble in your first pic looks distinctly wet, not just damp. The jumble of pipes probably includes a leak. When you open it up to access the pipes, dig and rake out as much of the rubbish as you can. With luck the joists will be isolated from the damp by bits of slate or something. Rake out the rubbish so that if cannot bridge this slate and allow damp to reach the timber.

Clean out the airbricks so you get flow through the void.

 

[Jlpalmer98]

The rubble in your first pic looks distinctly wet, not just damp. The jumble of pipes probably includes a leak. When you open it up to access the pipes, dig and rake out as much of the rubbish as you can. With luck the joists will be isolated from the damp by bits of slate or something. Rake out the rubbish so that if cannot bridge this slate and allow damp to reach the timber.

Clean out the airbricks so you get flow through the void

Thanks for your replies and yeah the joists are sat on slate, I’ve checked the pipes and no sign of a leak but my render is blown on the external wall which I believe rainwater may be getting in?

 

[Ollyfp]

Thanks for your replies and yeah the joists are sat on slate, I’ve checked the pipes and no sign of a leak but my render is blown on the external wall which I believe rainwater may be getting in?

With all the rain we've had lately, our properties are really being tested in terms of their resistance to damp, both penetrating and rising!
Hydrostatic pressure can cause an issue with older properties without a good DPC and/or DPM. The water in the land will push up where there is no barrier.
Sometimes people render outside walls in an attempt to stop the damp getting in, but ironically, this can actually prevent the single-skin brick wall from drying out.

 

[Ollyfp]

The rubble in your first pic looks distinctly wet, not just damp. The jumble of pipes probably includes a leak. When you open it up to access the pipes, dig and rake out as much of the rubbish as you can. With luck the joists will be isolated from the damp by bits of slate or something. Rake out the rubbish so that if cannot bridge this slate and allow damp to reach the timber.

Clean out the airbricks so you get flow through the void.

Good stuff John. Tradies leaving rubbish under the floor is a real bugbear of mine. I just think it's lazy and unprofessional. I do a litter pick in our area of rural Norfolk and I'm constantly picking up high-energy drink cans. Makes my blood boil! Grrr! Lol

 

[Jlpalmer98]

With all the rain we've had lately, our properties are really being tested in terms of their resistance to damp, both penetrating and rising!
Hydrostatic pressure can cause an issue with older properties without a good DPC and/or DPM. The water in the land will push up where there is no barrier.
Sometimes people render outside walls in an attempt to stop the damp getting in, but ironically, this can actually prevent the single-skin brick wall from drying out.

Yeah the previous owners had a chemical damp injected to all of the walls downstairs and there are no signs of rising damp but yeah the rain is getting in from the blown render. Thanks

 

[Ollyfp]

Yeah the previous owners had a chemical damp injected to all of the walls downstairs and there are no signs of rising damp but yeah the rain is getting in from the blown render. Thanks

But why did the render blow? Perhaps this occurred before the injected dpc? Anyway, it appears that the previous owners took measures to address damp issues. You could add french drains along the outer walls to keep standing water away. I'm sure you'll get it sorted!

 

[JohnD]

Silicone injections do not repair building defects or leaks.

 

[Ollyfp]

Silicone injections do not repair building defects or leaks.

Or lips John! Lol