Hi @PigletJohn damp issue, please help!

54 replies

Saz909 · 17/04/2023 11:54

Hi @PigletJohn I'm wondering if you (or anyone else with the knowledge!) can help with my damp issue.

We live in a converted barn (converted roughly 1980) and for the most part it is very solid - no leaks etc. However, we have one patch of damp in our downstairs room which has been there since we moved in 7 years ago. When we moved in, the original wooden windows were rotten so we thought this could be cause and there were replaced. To be honest I'm not sure how much worse the damp has got during those 7 years as I don't have pictures to compare, but as you can see the plasterboard behind the skirting is now rotten.

The affected section of wall is adjoining our neighbours property but the front of their house is elevated over 1 meter above ours and is set back too (so the affected wall of our house is effectively next to a void which can't be seen or accessed. As soon as the wall of our house meets the start of the house next door, there is no damp.

I went and had a look at next door's bottom bricks in the affected area (about 1m above our floor) and there seems to be mortar missing, so water is possible going straight down into the void where the bottom or our wall is - do you think this could be repointed to solve the problem? Or would the moisture then be trapped and make it worse?

Sorry for rambling I am not sure if any of this makes sense but hopefully someone can help!

Pics attached are of said damp and neighbours wall.

Thank you!

OP posts:

WeAreTheHeroes · 22/04/2023 14:00

What's in the loft space above your children's rooms?

PigletJohn · 22/04/2023 14:14

HappiDaze · 22/04/2023 00:32

Here are photos. DD room before I pulled off the plaster. I thought maybe it was coming in from the window frame but the plaster stayed hard around the frame

I would love some advice please from @PigletJohn @C4tastrophe @Diyextension and anyone else

You should start your own thread as yours will get confused with the one here.

There is a lot of water. The stain just below the ceiling suggests a leak above. Is it a loft? Or a bathroom? Water runs downward, so the source will be above.

Water can run down sloping roof timbers and drip off the bottom, the leak may be above and inwards from the wet patch. Lift any wet insulation.

Look for signs of a roof leak, or pipes. Photograph the outside, showing the gutter, downpipes and roof.

Please reply on your new thread.

PigletJohn · 22/04/2023 14:18

Hallmark1234 · 21/04/2023 22:50

I'm glad you've found the source of the problem, but gutters have a tendency to keep getting blocked.

We have this issue with our neighbour, who is higher up than us, which means our garage is partly below the ground level of their side path. Their gutter gets blocked quite regularly and overflows, causing all the water from their roof to flow into our garage wall, rather than a much smaller amount that falls onto the path.

What we have done is tank the interior wall of the garage, which has completely stopped the water and damp ingress, so even if they clear the gutters, you might be better to tank your interior wall as a back up, for when the gutters invariably block again!

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwjxkbnS97v-AhVTkFwKHfCGDroQFnoECA0QAw&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.permagard.co.uk%2Fadvice%2Fwall-tanking-guide&usg=AOvVaw1sdP6HtuJe5LbsZ8bEhuId

Rather than tank the inside of a wet wall, it is better to prevent the water getting in. If it is a neighbour's gutter, then while you prosecute them for nuisance and damages, fix waterproof cladding to your wall, spaced off on battens for ventilation so it can dry out.

HappiDaze · 23/04/2023 01:37

@PigletJohn yes I did think I should start my own thread. I'll do that as yes it will get confusing for the OP.

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