Hi, just some advice please -
I have a business / property (Cambridgeshire) bought recently which is essentially 3 properties, which 40 years ago from looking at plans I have been given, had the floors concreted internally and really knocked around with major structural work to change it to a business.
The problem is many of the walls of the original properties show evidence of damp, by which I mean damp patches, wallpaper peeling, the salts leeching through the brick / paint work. Some of the walls have got vinyl paint on them, some vinyl wallpaper (masks the problem well!) and in some areas cladding (expect mold behind it all). Visible signs 0.3 - 1m above ground level. When I say many walls I mean 10's of meters of wall in a very large plot size, so it's not just localised to one area of the property.
There are not many air bricks around the building, and I'm not sure exactly what it going on under the floors (dpm, cement on floorboards, any air circulation) and I suspect the damp has been getting worse for years and the previous owner just had periodic repairs instead of tackling the root cause (complete failure of damp course?). One suggestion made to me was the fact that all the vinyl paint and paper were stopping the walls from breathing?
Its at a point where in one of the rooms the plaster / wall is crumbling behind the wallpaper. I have a damp meter and it is showing a number or walls where the walls are very very damp. The only walls not damp is the extensions off the back, every wall I believe of the origional houses are showing damp signs.
I'm not expecting it to be cheap to repair, but can anyone give any guidance on what the problem could be or who to call to do a proper survey. Its not a DIY Job given the extent of the damp, but any comments would be appreciated!
I have a business / property (Cambridgeshire) bought recently which is essentially 3 properties, which 40 years ago from looking at plans I have been given, had the floors concreted internally and really knocked around with major structural work to change it to a business.
The problem is many of the walls of the original properties show evidence of damp, by which I mean damp patches, wallpaper peeling, the salts leeching through the brick / paint work. Some of the walls have got vinyl paint on them, some vinyl wallpaper (masks the problem well!) and in some areas cladding (expect mold behind it all). Visible signs 0.3 - 1m above ground level. When I say many walls I mean 10's of meters of wall in a very large plot size, so it's not just localised to one area of the property.
There are not many air bricks around the building, and I'm not sure exactly what it going on under the floors (dpm, cement on floorboards, any air circulation) and I suspect the damp has been getting worse for years and the previous owner just had periodic repairs instead of tackling the root cause (complete failure of damp course?). One suggestion made to me was the fact that all the vinyl paint and paper were stopping the walls from breathing?
Its at a point where in one of the rooms the plaster / wall is crumbling behind the wallpaper. I have a damp meter and it is showing a number or walls where the walls are very very damp. The only walls not damp is the extensions off the back, every wall I believe of the origional houses are showing damp signs.
I'm not expecting it to be cheap to repair, but can anyone give any guidance on what the problem could be or who to call to do a proper survey. Its not a DIY Job given the extent of the damp, but any comments would be appreciated!
