Client: Domestic
Our client, a homeowner in Cheswardine, asked Timberwise to survey their 17th Century home. This was to assess both an ongoing damp issue and a suspected case of woodworm damage. The property was a mid-terrace house of solid brick construction, and was both occupied and furnished at the time of our inspection. The weather was sunny and dry.
Challenges
As the property was furnished at the time of our visit, this can cause access concerns to some areas within. Fixtures such as floor coverings, furniture, and tiled walls can all impact the tools we use to build a picture of damp within a property. This is a regular occurrence for our surveyors, especially in occupied properties, and they are well-backed by over 50 years of industry experience to ensure they can build a full picture of work required despite these obstructions. Our survey was not restricted to any specific rooms within the property, and so our surveyor was able to build a full picture of the property’s current condition.
Observations
A brief exterior examination of the property did detect some defects. Primarily, the roof had several slipped or missing tiles. Faults such as this will allow rainwater to ingress into the roof void, often known as penetrating damp. If left unchecked, this can cause other issues such as fungal rot to develop in the roof’s timber framework or ceiling joists.
Another concern was identified in the walls of the property: Only a few air bricks were present, which suggested that there might be inadequate sub-floor ventilation to the timber floors within the property. This also increases the risk of fungal decay developing, as there is a reduced air flow to the cellar beneath the front reception room. Any moisture within the cellar would be trapped, creating the perfect breeding ground for fungal rot to thrive.
Finally, it was not possible to establish if there was a damp proof course (DPC) present within the walls of the property. In older properties, this is usually a visible horizontal row of slate and/or bitumen. However, some older buildings were built without a DPC, instead relying on passive ventilation or porous building materials such as lime mortar to control moisture within a property.
Inside the property, our surveyor used a conductivity meter to plot moisture ingress within the interior walls. This tool only gives an indication of damp in masonry or plaster (but gives a true reading of moisture levels within timber). However, it does help a surveyor to paint a picture of where damp is developing within a wall, even if there aren’t any physical signs such as failing plaster or tidemarks.
After plotting the walls, our surveyor found risen moisture levels within the skirting boards and lower portion of the walls. A further inspection found that bridging plaster between the walls and floor was causing rising damp to develop. Defective flooring in the entrance hallway was found to be the main contributing source of damp, believed to be due to the absence of a DPC and the lack of sub-floor ventilation identified earlier in our assessment.
Closing out the inspection, our surveyor also discovered flight holes within a ceiling beam in the front reception room. This is evidence of woodworm, a general term for a collection of wood-boring beetles and their larvae which live in and feed off timber. Slight infestations of both common furniture beetle (Anobium punctatum) & death watch beetle (Xestobium rufovillosum) were identified within the beam, and no further infestations were found anywhere else in the property.
Solutions
To remedy the concerns within the property, our surveyor designed a treatment plan that would both eliminate the incumbent woodworm and treat the rising damp concerns within the property.
To remedy the damp issues, our surveyor recommended the removal of all affected plaster. This would eliminate the issue of damp bridging between the floor and walls, and remove with it any historic salts that would constantly draw moisture back into the walls if left alone.
Once the plaster was removed, our technicians would then install our DryTek Damp Proof Course system. This involves drilling into the mortar beds at regular intervals and injecting a gel between the brickwork. This gel then hardens, creating a waterproof barrier just above floor level. This barrier prevents damp from rising up the wall. Once the DPC is installed, our technicians would then replaster the walls with a salt retardant specification, ensuring new salts cannot build up in the plaster and draw in further moisture.
To control condensation within the cellar, our surveyor recommended installing a mechanical ventilation system. These systems are often used in areas where moisture activity is high, such as kitchens or bathrooms. With the passive ventilation provided by the current air bricks, this would allow moist air to circulate and escape from the cellar, and ensure that both the room and the floorboards in the front reception room were protected from the risk of future fungal decay.
Finally, as the woodworm infestations were relatively controlled, our surveyor recommended treating the ceiling timbers with an insecticidal fluid. This fluid would not permeate into the painted wooden beams, but it would ensure that any wood-boring beetles that surfaced from the timbers within the next few years would die upon their exit.
Results
Our client was pleased with the ideal solution provided by our surveyor. They were also pleased that the solutions provided would retain as much original material as possible within the property without the need to replace any of the timbers or masonry. Our surveyor expertly advised the client, pulling from more than 50 years of industry experience.
Do You Want Help with a Rising Damp Solution?
Our dedicated and experienced team in Shrewsbury are ready to talk to you about your options for property preservation. Don’t hesitate to call us on 01743 493 243 or you can request a survey online.
