Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
advice on damp cold room
Hi,
We would really appreciate some advice from people who may have had similar issues with damp / condensation. We live on the ladders and our back 1st floor bedroom, which is north facing is incredibly cold with a damp / condensation issue on the chimney breast. The fireplace has a vent at the bottom and has cowls on the chimney pots. The window is a single glazed sash.
We have had numerous builders and damp specialists round who have given conflicting advice such as capping off the chimney, putting an additional air brick in the middle of the chimney breast etc. Has anyone had a similar issue and been able to sort it?? We are desperate to sort it out soon but unsure what to do - add air brick, get new double glazed window.....
Any advice would be very much appreciated.
Thanks :-)
We would really appreciate some advice from people who may have had similar issues with damp / condensation. We live on the ladders and our back 1st floor bedroom, which is north facing is incredibly cold with a damp / condensation issue on the chimney breast. The fireplace has a vent at the bottom and has cowls on the chimney pots. The window is a single glazed sash.
We have had numerous builders and damp specialists round who have given conflicting advice such as capping off the chimney, putting an additional air brick in the middle of the chimney breast etc. Has anyone had a similar issue and been able to sort it?? We are desperate to sort it out soon but unsure what to do - add air brick, get new double glazed window.....
Any advice would be very much appreciated.
Thanks :-)
Tags for Forum Posts: damp-proofing
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by ant on
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Condensation on the chimney breast sounds odd, our north facing single glazed sash windows have also made rooms really cold drafty, and with a condensation which drips down the frames causing water damage. The first thing i tried was really cheap secondary glazing film - http://www.wickes.co.uk/Secondary-Glazing-Film/invt/210014. For the price that made a huge difference, much less condensation and much less drafts. It didn't last so long though and started peeling off after a month or so now I've tried using perspex sheet held on with magnetic tape. Its more expensive but makes a big difference, much more effective than the glazing film, I'm now looking at doing it on all our north facing windows. Theres lots of that about if you google or look on ebay, eg http://www.magnetick.co.uk/gbu0-catshow/magnetic-secondary-glazing.....
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Permalink Reply by GillianM on
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We have a similar issue in our north facing ground floor room, on the whole wall that faces the street. Ventilation (airbrick and opening the window whenever you can) definitely helps, as does reducing the amount of steam in the house, anti-condensation paint and a dehumidifier. Double glazing made the room much warmer but didn't help the condensation. At the end of the day we haven't solved the problem though!
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Permalink Reply by sphamilton on
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A dehumidifier can be a useful interim solution - we currently use an Ebac 2650e (I think it came from Argos) to deal with a room where we dry clothes and where there's a chilly outside wall. The damp course has been replaced, but it's always going to be a bit prone to condensation.
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yes you will have to get used to running a dehumidifier almost non stop for starters you will then need to consider a heat source like an oil heater or similar (consider that oil heaters can be dangerous).
this has been the only solution that works reliably.
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Permalink Reply by pamish on
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electric oil-filled heaters ok. Paraffin heaters no - a gallon of paraffin generates 10 pints of water as water vapour ie condensation when it cools.
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We've got exactly the same problem in the same room...we've also had the same issues with differing advice. We're still not sure if its coming from outside or inside. Another suggestion has been dry lining which involves putting an extra layer of protection on the internal wall. Apparently there's some specialised board on the market for this. More advice was to paint a water seal on the outside wall although its not the best time of year to do this. If you find a definitive solution please let me know!
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Permalink Reply by Sophie Smith on
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Ah, so nice to hear from people in the same situation as me!
Basically I have damp coming from all directions in my flat in various rooms and I've also had conflicting advice. My advice would be:
- keep getting lots of advice and don't make any fast decisions
- wipe down using a cloth sprayed with a good anti-mould spray, then re-spray to coat the wall. Do this every few weeks. When the damp was at its worst my health suffered so I advise you keep doing this.
- don't assume DPC is the right solution, but don't discount it either
- accept you may need a multi-solution approach (I do)
- cook with pan lids on, don't dry washing in the house
- Remember water condenses on the coldest surface eg a window recess. You can use a foam/polystyrene-insulation wallpaper (Coatex is one brand name) like I do in my window recesses and back of fitted wardrobe against external wall. That keeps the external wall a bit warmer and stops water condensing on it.
- Robert Dyas has some nifty anti damp gadgets including dehumidifiers you refresh in the microwave, they aren't very expensive and good for wardrobes
- consider balancing your radiators better to maintain even temperature in the house
- not sure air brick does a lot of good unless there's quite a current of air against it on the outside so the air circulates better
Basically I've done the following:
- open windows and doors to get air circulating as much as possible over the summer, half an hour morning and night was my routine
- removed cupboard against damp wall to allow air to circulate better
- big expense has been installing Killtox fans which a colleague recommended, they come on automatically when the air humidity's above mould-forming levels. They were expensive. Jury's still out on whether they work as it's only been 10 days.
- capped the chimney
- replaced a leaking flat roof (cost shared with neighbour was about £900)
- sprayed outside brick wall with chemical damp proof treatment, £20 from Wickes
I've also looked into schrijver damp solutions but found the guy who did my survey a little rude about my flat. I thought it seemed a fairly decent solution though and they have a money-back guarentee if damp isn't better after a year.
I advise you try the cheapest solutions first and wait to see the effect. It's always worst in winter. Best of luck!
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Permalink Reply by Melvyn on
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I would just say that condensation is usually a problem when air flow is poor and when there's a disparity between cold outside and warm inside causing precipitation. So there are probably various remedies which explains your experts' advice. It's not necessarily conflicting at all. One of our bedroom windows is south facing and has recently had a rotten sill repaired as it takes all the weather thrown at it. Now condensation is collecting when it's cold outside and the central heating is on inside. One solution is to slightly open the window (without actually freezing to death). Maybe you should experiment with various remedies until you find what gets the balance right. Condensation leads to mould growth etc so you should deal with it. Maybe air flow in the chimney is warmer than the room, leading to the water condensing from the air? Maybe good curtains to block weather to window, something to keep air warm but not too much, and check to see temperatures inside and outside the chimney?
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Permalink Reply by woody on
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Hi Karen,
We have decided it may be a good idea for us to try a dehumidifier to see if it sorts the problem, before doing anything drastic to the building. If you have a spare min can you let me know what kind you have, how often you put it on and whether you have one in a problem room or a couple over the house?
Many thanks, woody
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I would check your pointing too. Most ladder houses are a double brick construction on external walls which you can have cavity filled which is another option to consider. DPCs are only effective for rising damp (from ground up) so that's not going to solve damp on the 1st floor. If the problem is throughout the house, I would suggest ventilation is the first thing to look at as additional air bricks are relatively inexpensive and if that hasn't solved it, work on the next most likely solution until the problem is either fixed or manageable.
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