Damp.

[CoolaSchmoola]

We recently bought a house, no mention of damp in the survey, so it was a bit of a shock to see light bubbling under the paper on the wall between the lounge and kitchen when we moved in. It felt dry to the touch though.

Not as much of a shock as I got when I stripped part of that wall last night.

The section with bubbling appears to be slightly affected, but there is what I can only describe as an inch wide strip of filler (badly applied) about a foot up the wall. It only runs part way along. Under the next strip of paper it is properly damp to the touch and crumbly. It also goes higher than the strip.

It looks to lay person me that they have previously had a bit of a bodge it repair (becoming apparent her 'handy' husband wasn't so handy on closer inspection of certain things!) to part of the wall but haven't gone the length.

No other walls are affected (as far as we can see) the other internal walls in that room are sound. This wall backs onto the kitchen wall which holds the kitchen radiator - and some pipes so wondering (hoping) it's a leak. Got a nasty feeling it's rising damp though.

Going to contact a damp specialist today, but do I need to do anything else? We're on a pretty tight budget with every room to do so hoping that this isn't going to eat too much of it or I shall have to wait for my kitchen - and after ten years of crap Army kitchens I really don't want to lol!

[AliceWChild]

What age of house is it? We've got all sorts of crappy things like that which is one reason I'll never get sucked into an old house again. Several patches of ours are to do with leaks we can explain though, so it could be a leak rather than damp.

[CoolaSchmoola]

1947 so not old old, but definitely older.

Pulled the carpet up this morning and the gripper rods are damp, but only where they are nailed to the floor. Got a horrible feeling that when the carpet was fitted something went pop as they nailed.

[Sausagedog27]

You need to get an independent specialist to identify the cause of the damp- many will just plug a particular product without fully exploring all the causes. Leaking pipes, ground levels, ventilation etc can all be an issue. Often, once the source is stopped, you might just need to let the wall dry out and replaster.

Good luck op.

[wonkylegs]

Unlikely to be rising damp in a late 1940's house as construction had changed. This problem usually affects older properties with solid wall construction and no dpm, so if it was Victorian or Edwardian it would bs more likely.
Injectable Damp proof course (mostly offered by damp proofing 'specialists') will be expensive and is unlikely to solve your problem but doesn't mean you won't get one recommended - there are a lot of 'specialists' like this and the damp proofing industry is well known for this con.
A little more investigation will probably help and may save you money, can you lift a few floor boards and see if you can trace the source of the damp. It may only be a slow leak in a pipe that's been going on so long there is now a problem. If you find pipes in a damp area but can't see the source of the water, try wrapping the pipe in a cloth and periodically checking on it. This should leave a damp patch even if the leak isn't obvious.
Check on the otherside of the wall and also sources of water above or below.

[MinimalistMommi]

Surprised this didn't come up in survey? I thought surveyors were all over damp even if they just suspect it and aren't sure?

[CoolaSchmoola]

I'm really hoping it's a pipe that's leaking as there are a couple behind that wall. The radiator in the kitchen is the only new one in the whole house so I'm hoping that it was replaced due to something leaking. Can't easily check the other side of the wall as it's tiled, and the floor is tile over solid floor so no boards to lift.

Have decided to get a couple of surveys/quotes to try to make sure we get what we need, although it's hard when you don't really have any knowledge.

Thanks for the replies, they've been very helpful.

[HaveToWearHeels]

I thought rising damp would only be on external walls not internal. Hopefully just something leaking, like others have said do investigating yourself. My husband had damp in his old house in the kitchen paid a huge amount for damp proof course and replastering, it all came back and turned out he just needed an air brick, cost £30.