Survey has identified rising damp

[dream75]

A house we are looking to buy has had a survey stating that there is rising damp. Have had a quote for £1200 to fix. Has anyone else had rising damp treated?

It's not impossible, but is unlikely. Damp is usually caused by building defects (earth heaped up against walls, plumbing leaks, spilling gutters) or by condensation.

One thing you can be sure of is that squirting chemicals into the brickwork will not repair a building defect and will not cure condensation.

(Another thing is that if you invite into your home a person who sells chemical injections, he will tell you that you need chemical injections).

If you post some photographs you might get some opinions, but usually an experienced local builder who has worked on houses built in your area, in the same way, on the same ground, will be familiar with the cause.

Do you think the person writing the report was a Chartered Surveyor, and did he use the term rising damp?

I ask because opinions differ

Can I just ask if rising damp is visible? Only reason I ask is that our house supposedly has it up to a metre high on the ground floor but can't see any wet patches or anything! We've been here nearly 2 yrs and have taken some plasterboard off and dh hasn't mentioned any wetness.

when there are patches of damp in a house, sometimes you can see black mould (suggests condensation) and sometimes fluff or crystals of mineral salts (suggests wet walls). Sometimes you see brown patches (suggests leaks). Sometimes you can smell wet ground, or drains, or wet plaster, or wet concrete. Sometimes you can see woodlice.

And sometimes you can't.

Thanks for your replies. I never noticed any signs of damp but the walls are wallpapered and painted a dark red (yes we will redecorate if we buy it). It's a lot of money to pay out and I just want to make sure it's necessary.

We haven't done ours OP.

Loads to be done with the house before worry about that.