damp on walls after rain

[germyrabbit]

we seem to get damp on the front corners of the rooms (at the front) upstairs. Walls get black and wet especially after rain yet is fine during the summer. what can we do? would a specialist cost really lots of money?

does anybody drape wet washing aroiund the house or over radiators?

How often do you open the upstairs windows?

How old is the house, and do you know if it has cavity wall insulation?

Tape a piece of clear plastic tightly to the wall. If water appears under the plastic (on the wall) then the wall is damp. If it appears on top of the plastic (on the room side) then it is condensation.

i will try the plastic test but fear it will be damp on the walls

sorry didn't answer other q!

we do put washing on radiator sometimes and have started to leave windows open.

house is 60s and we recently had cavity wall insulation put it but doesn't seem to have made any differnce

I had this, in a really old rented cottage.

It was the walls absorbing moisture from surrounding air. Then releasing as they became saturated.

I'm in a fantastic characterless new build now and I bloody love it.

Things that made a difference was being really careful about moisture in the house. So, absolutely no drying washing indoors, extractor fan on in kitchen and bathroom, no long steamy baths or showers, boil pasta with the lid on. Keep the place warm and aired as much as possible. Landlord got me a dehumidifier and that worked wonders.

My bones ache just thinking about the place though. You have my sympathies.

I honestly think it will be condensation due to excessive humidity caused by draped washing and insufficient ventilation.

You can have a look at the gutters during heavy rain to see if they are leaking or overspilling, either due to rust-holes, incorrect slope, or blocked with leaves.

How thick is the loft insulation?

it's thick, not too old, i really hope it is just condensation and we did have lots of condensation on the windows this morning

i've peeled a big bit of wallpaper off the corner, and when i wipe the wall it's black, could that be just condensation too?

Cavity wall insulation can sometimes make the matter worse, you can seal the outside walls very easily and cheaply using a product called "Thompsons Waterseal". This product is very good and a simple DIY job, apply the clear sealant when the walls are dry (ideally in the summer) for a good effective seal against rain. also ventilate the house as much as possible and check the walls for rising damp (max 1 metre from ground level).

condensation, damp and mould in UK houses is usually caused by washing being draped around the house and hung over radiators. Black mildew on wallpaper, and behind furniture such as wardobes and bedheads that are against a wall, are typical signs.

It is possible that yours might be caused by bad gutters, but unlikely.

if it is just that, what can i do about the black spots that keep appearing? i tried a damp seal paint on it last year but it's still coming back

thixotropic had the right things.

you need to reduce the amount of water vapour being put into the house; and ventilate it to get out what's in there.

Do your windows have a trickle vent position? They need to be opened every day, especially the upstairs ones, as water vapour is lighter than air and rises through the house.

Do you have an extractor fan in your bathrom? Does it work properly? Do you use it?

Do you own a tumble-drier? Do you have anywhere you can use a washing-line?

My chimney brickwork is porous the aforementioned spray fixes the problem if reapplied regularly.

Simples, except for the hight of the chimney.

yes will have to get into the habit of opening the windows, have a condenser dryer it's just easier to put few bits on radiator!

any suggestions for getting the black out of the wallpaper? or anything that would work for preventing this from happening again? (apart from the damp seal paint which was useless)

We have this.. it's not a proper fix but dettol mould spray the green one works amazingly. Just spray it on and leave it and when you go back later the black will have vanished.

ooh thanks fairy! will get one

bleach solution in water will kill mildew/black mould. Once it is dead it cleans off easier. But until you cure the damp it will keep coming back.

It might be a problem with the roof. We had persistent damp for years and when we got a new roof the damp went away in weeks and hasn't come back since

we have this too, in just one corner of one bedroom. In our case its just condensation - there is a dormer window and the ceiling is very cold to touch, then the warm moist air in the room condenses when it hits the ceiling. It does clean away with bleach but its a total pain.