DIY Doctor UK DIY Forums

Hi, we're in a 1920s mid-terrace and the whole ground floor has damp in one place or another. It's taken an age to get to what we think is the problem (in the early days we had 3 different 'experts' tell us 3 different things). We are fairly sure it's rising damp and will be treating the 3 different areas (living room, kitchen, dining room & hallway) in stages, as it's impossible to do in one go unless we move all our furniture into storage. It looks like the kitchen may happen first as we really need a new one but something stuck in my mind when someone came to price up the living room - he said that we wouldn't be able to decorate for at least 8 weeks after the work was done. The work being chemical DPC and re-plastering.

Now, this might be a stupid question but surely we wouldn't have to wait 8 weeks after this work to have the new kitchen fitted? It's a very small galley-style kitchen, approx 3.5m x 1.9m so most of the treated walls will be hidden by new units, appliances etc. Some of the treated areas will probably be tiled and some painted - can we at least tile where needed? Is it also fine to leave walls behind the washer/dryer and fridge/freezer as bare plaster?

Really appreciate any help on this - I very much know my own limitations!

Hi bigglesworth,
This time of year probably 8 weeks is about right, you do not want damp walls behind your units. You could accelerate drying by using a dehumidifier.
Regards S

Really appreciate the reply, thanks! Would it make any difference if I take it back to bare brick and then have it dry-lined? Just thinking that's a lot less moisture being added to the walls. Cheers

Hi bigglesworth,
Your brickwork will be damp for most of its thickness. Dry lining will only trap moisture so the plasterboard will get damp and mould will grow. Let it dry out - it will never be perfectly dry so you will have to make a compromise.
Regards S