Hi....I'm in the process of buying a Victorian conv flat. I had a basic home buyers survey done & they highlighted the recording of moisture on the external wall and in some areas of the internal wall in the front room. Is damp proofing an expensive job? Is this something I might be able to do myself? Since this is a leasehold, do the freeholder/management agent/Insurance cover such cost?
Many Thanks
I'm in the process of buying a Victorian conv flat. I had a basic home buyers survey done & they highlighted the recording of moisture on the external wall and in some areas of the internal wall in the front room. Is damp proofing an expensive job? Is this something I might be able to do myself? Since this is a leasehold, do the freeholder/management agent/Insurance cover such cost?
Is it a top flat? Is there cast iron guttering which has developed leaky cracks? The underlying problem might be more expensive to repair than just waterproofing. You might also want to check if the damp walls have caused any timber to rot.
Ewan
Thank you. No, it is a lower ground floor Victorian conv flat. I spoke to the surveyor & he was vague. He told me that it was a very basic survey and did not get the chance to find the root of the problem, however he reconks the problem might be either condensation or damp on the inside wall. And probably damp on the external wall. He also said I could inject damp proofing and they might on an avg cost me £1500. Is that correct? And at a another point he suggested to lay floor boards on the present concrete floor.... well this has left me more confused then ever. The estate agent has convinced me to go ahead with the purchase as this kind of work will only cost me £1000, is he right? Please help.
Thanks
First of all what is the fabric of the building?
Assuming that the walls are brick and have not had any sort of any damp proofing even when they laid the concrete floor:
Victorian buildings did not have modern damp proofing. They relied on suitable sites such as building on hills in well rained areas. And the quality stuff would have been built on a pier a yard high.
However; cheaper terraces would have had to put up with the complete lack of engineering skills and laws that may have been involved in your home.
If the floor was put in without a membrane you are on a loser. Try putting tar on it and up the side of the walls. It will then require covering with either boards or render.
If you want to try putting chemical damp-proofing in you can do it very cheaply these days. You can buy an SDS drill for about £30. The material isn't all that much and the injector can be hired. The only expert help you need is in selecting the course or courses to inject.
There is plenty of information on this sort of thing already on this site.
You could use floorboards that have foam on one side. (Or you could once. I'm not sure what the safety laws are nowadays.) This is a very good heat retainer and sound proofer too.
Its a gamble. It could be as little as digging some earhh aay from an outside wall, to a complete removal of everythung below ground level, installation of proper DMP and fllors, injection of all walls and a complete replacement of rotten internal woodwork.
Or as in my case, ultimately the whole ***ing house. :-) I hasten to add that in my case, I still got 9 years of use out of it, and the cost of replacement plus the residual value it had when I ripped it apart, is still lower than the lowest valuation it has had placed on it.
If he couldnt tell you in writing in the survey he doesnt know.
so he doesnt know.
it is true you could, but that is not a likely solution. First you need to know if you have a damp problem or not. Cheapo surveys are notorious in this area.
why?
the estate agebt profits from house sales. Do you therefore believe what they tell you? At this point it sounds like you have no reliable info rgarding damp at all.
Regards, NT
Unless you're head over heels in love with the flat, I'd give it a miss. It could be very expensive to put right and the root of the problem might be in another flat which may not be suffering the symptoms and will not want to contribute to the cost.
| >The estate agent has convinced me to go ahead | Unless you're head over heels in love with the flat, I'd give it | a miss. It could be very expensive to put right and the root of | the problem might be in another flat which may not be suffering | the symptoms and will not want to contribute to the cost.
Unless the OP happens to have the estate agent's statement that it WILL only cost £1000 to put right *in writing* :-) and can sue the agent into the ground ...
Owain
Fat chance!
With respect to the answers you've already received, you are probably in exactly the same situation as when you first posted.
Go the the BWPDA website and find a consultant in your area. Ask them how much it will cost for a survey and invite them around. A small flat won't cost that much to survey and report upon and you'll have an exact appraisal of any problems.
Your alternative is to try yellow pages and look for an independent surveyor who is a qualified CSRT (Cedrtified Surveyor in Remedial Treatment) and ask him. There are probably less than a thousand inthe whole UK so this may be difficult.
If you're unable to get an independent survey, you're in the hands of the DPC companies. There business is not to give free surveys, it's to sell remedial treatment.
Either of the first two are the sensible options. The third - well, you takes your chance...
Patrick
Well, pretty much all Victorian properties come with a "damp" problem. Unless there is mould on the walls, rotting joists, puddles on the floor or the wallpaper hangs off, I wouldn't worry about it!
You say it is lower ground floor. If any of the walls are actually underground, they may need to be tanked. If they are above ground, you can inject a DPC, but don't bother unless there is an actual problem. Check the exterior walls to ensure they don't need pointing.
To stop condensation, first ensure you don't use flueless gas heating. Then ensure you don't dry clothes indoors, except in an actually vented to outside or condensing tumble dryer. Ensure you actually heat the house rather than keeping it at 10C as some sort of test of manhood. If that lot doesn't fix it, insulate the walls with Celotex.
If you want it really dry, buy a new house.
Christian.
In article , BobTheBuilder writes
Look through the archives, and visit Jeff Howell's "On the Level" site.
"Rising damp" is a myth, and the causes of dampness lie elsewhere.
John
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