Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
Help with Damp - Any Recommendations?
We reckon we may have some serious damp behind our kitchen cupboards but we're looking for some sort of damp surveyor who will be able to tell us yes or no. The problem is we can't see because there's a recess space between the cupboards and the wall (on the Ladder so it's the shared wall with the neighbours' kitchen wall).
Can you recomend anyone who can look into it, give us the relevant readings and, if needed, investigate further?
Tags for Forum Posts: damp-proofing
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Salsa on
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Could it be a condensation problem if it is in the kitchen.
This discussion may have some helpful tips for you
http://www.harringayonline.com/forum/topics/advice-on-damp-cold-room
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Permalink Reply by Justine on
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Be very careful with damp 'surveyors' who offer a free survey - they will often then try to sell you damproofing course installation which costs hundreds/thousands of pounds and isn't actually needed.
You probably do have condensation. Have a look at this site:
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Permalink Reply by pamish on
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That site refers us to one Martin Ball, who is southern based (the other guy is oop north).
Has anyone used him? Someday soon i have to either dig up my floor, or tank it. Need to get in someone who can give a sensible answer.
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Permalink Reply by Stuart on
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Thanks all for your suggestions. I'm going to give Martin a call to see if he'll do a survey. He seems to be one of very few independent damp surveyors out there. Will let you know how we get on.
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Did anyone end up using Martin Ball? Would be interested to know if he comes recommended.
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HI - I've always used Kenwood who do offer the survey for free without any obligation. And they really know their stuff...they pciked up that I needed a new bathroom extractor and I then got someone I know to install it for £30...
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Most of the houses in Harringay are built on waterlogged clay (the water table is about a foot below ground level) - lucky for those who live on higher ground. Also, most houses in the area are single skin (two bricks wide with no cavity) and don't have an effective damp proof membrane (turn of the century houses used slate which will have cracked and moved by now) so damp problems around here are frequent.
There is some debate about whether rising damp actually exists and to the degree most damp proof contracters would like you to believe (see http://www.heritage-house.org/damp.html - although beware as they are contractors too!) but I am inclined to agree with some of what they say. More impartial advice is available from English Heritage and MOD (strangely) who do seem to think rising damp is real.
I think generally (and all these solutions won't apply in this particular case), the first thing to do is to address penetrating damp caused by higher ground levels on the other side of the wall to where damp occurs (difficult if it is inside a neighbors property!), remove external concrete 'damp/weather barriers' (e.g. knee high render on end of terrace walls or at front of houses) which may divert damp inwards and finally (and perhaps most importantly) to make sure there are enough air bricks and ventilation to allow the house to breathe and regularly replace the air inside (a kick-ass extractor fan on the ground floor bathroom and/or kitchen helps too) - this removes the smell of damp which can be a particular problem in summer.
If anyone suggests (usually a contractor-come-surveyor) injecting the brick work and/or hacking out the internal render and replacing it up to a meter high, I think your wasting your money and may make the problem worse - walls need to breathe and impermeable render doesn't let them do that. I may be wrong, but based on experience of having this done, it did absolutely nothing to solve the problem in my house; the solutions described in the paragraph above did.
Another small point - never paint new plaster before it's taken a few weeks (yes a few weeks) to dry and always put on first coat using a 50/50 water and paint mix. If you paint over new plaster too soon with some types of paint, the water still present in the plaster can get stuck behind what is in effect an impermeable barrier and may result in what looks like penetrating/rising damp.
Hope this is helpful and I must stress I am by no means an expert, this is all based on experience of trying to deal with the problem in my own place. Frankly I don't care if the walls are 'technically' damp according to a damp meter in the hands of a contractor, if it doesn't look or feel wet or damaged and I can't smell it, I really don't care.
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P.s. Sounds like condensation, but if the cupboards are at floor level it may either be penetrating damp caused by differential floor levels between you and your neighbors house or rising damp (if it exists!). Sorry, can't recommend anyone.
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If you have problems with your (shared) party wall, you should first talk to your neighbour. Are they having similar problems ? Are they willing to investigate the problems with you ? (It will save you money) If the problem is only on your side of the wall, you should still ask for their agreement before doing any major works to the party wall.
We had damp problems in our living room when we moved into our Ladder terrace more than a year ago. We instructed a full structural and specialist damp survey prior to exchanging contracts. A damp contractor damp proofed the party wall and the damp patches on the wall have completely disappeared. I would however be very cautious with so-called damp specialists/contractors. Although we got the result we wanted, it was not a smooth process. I ended up spending lots of time researching and analysing our damp problems myself. So unfortunately I can’t recommend a specialist.
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