Soaked Kitchen Wall and a Great Deal of Damp - Help and Advice Needed Damp can be a major issue in the home. Find answers to questions or post your own here.

[lolole16]

Hi all,

I have already posted on this forum before as the property we have just bought has a great deal of damp issues. Unfortunately we didn't get a homebuyers survey so have only ourselves to blame.

The damp readings a recent builder took suggested moisture to most rooms down stairs. This builder charged us £2000 for a DPC, some of this was from the external walls in. However there are still issues and I am extremely concerned and in need of advice....

We have just ripped out the kitchen and our (new) builder exposed all the brickwork in the kitchen. He said that the external kitchen wall was 'soaked'. He then went to take up floor boards in a cupboard under the stairs adjacent to the external wall and the floor he exposed collapsed: both the joists and floorboards in this area were rotten. He has replaced these for us. He has told us that the rendering on the outside will probably need replacing as the water is seeping in from somewhere.

The problem is I don't know whether this is rising damp or penetrating damp and if it is penetrating damp where is it coming from and who would I employ to find the cause? Also if the kitchen brickwork was soaked Is it ok to plaster board over and continue fitting new kitchen? Also a damp meter reading on hallway wall (external wall) also indicated it was soaked. Why is it this external wall is so damp??

Concerned and confused. Any advice from helpful tradesman would be welcomed. Thanks

[welsh brickie]

with it being a suspended wood floor, poor ventilation is the usual cause of rot, airbricks need to be free and clear of debris, and more installed where needed.

[lolole16]

Ok thanks Welsh brickie! We have had air bricks fitted but our new builder thinks the path at the side of the house needs digging up as its too high. What does that mean? Is it something to do with bridging the damp course?
Also what tradesman would I employ to assess where the water is coming in from with regards to the moisture on the external wall? Our original damp survey found moisture as high as the picture rails to the entire end wall of the property. clearly penetrating damp coming from somewhere. Would it be a plumber?
Thanks for your help.

[Perry525]

The first thing to do is, to ascertain where the water is coming from.
If the water is rising from the ground, soil outside, it will rise no more than four feet.
If the water is rain coming through the wall, it will appear anywhere from roof to the top of the damp proof course. This usually happens when a wall is exposed to the prevailing wind and rain is being blown through the wall, through the many holes left by the brick layer, or if rendered through a crack.

If the water is from a leaking roof, pipe or gutter, it will appear as a wet patch close to the point of origin.

From your description of the damage to the joists, I would guess that your home is old, possibly pre war?

[lolole16]

Yes that's right, it was build in the 1930's. The rendering to the side of the house is a mess, I think this may be the problem, guess it will be quite expensive to fix. The Kitchen is going ahead as planned, units being fitted next week but I will check with builder the height to which the damp was.
I can't see any leaking from the gutters so I dont think this is the problem.

Damp patches are also appearing on the bay window in front room and plaster by bay window had bubbled completely and needed to be re plastered (higher than 4 meters so guess not r.damp). Guess this could be caused by cracked rendering, or maybe a leaking gutter. Who knows?! I think I need to get all manner of tradesman out to help me find the cause of the problem!!