Small damp patch how to get rid

[okthenwhat]

We have a small damp patch wherethe paint is bubbled/flaking. The surveyor noted the mortar needs repairing so hopefully fixing that will deal with the cause of the damp.

I'm very wary of any quick fixes with damp-proofing chemicals/damp course etc. The house was built in the 70s and has a cavity wall.

I'm getting a damp specialist to look at iy. Assuming fixing the mortar fixes the cause of water penetration, how do we deal with the damage to plaster and paint? Leave it for a few months to dry outthen sand and repaint?

I can guarantee that the damp "specialist" is going to recommend damp proof injections and tanking.

Where is the patch? Low/High? Near or below any plumbing? Are your gutters in good shape? Got any pics of the external?

You don’t need a damp specialist! 70s is modern construction. Save your money and they will talk you into spending money with them!

Fix the mortar. Look for gutters not coping and water spilling down the wall. Or water getting in via soffit boards being rotten. Make sure bricks are not blown. Look at roof tiles. Is water getting into loft? Go and look.

Damp shouldn’t get past a cavity though, so is it excess condensation? Or caused by an internal source?

Wait until the remedial work is done. Then remove plaster. Get a plasterer in to repair plaster when the wall is dry. It will dry out quickly if you heat the room. Then redecorate. Plaster will tell you when.

Low about 1-2 feet off the floor in the sitting room which is on the ground floor. It is a few feet from the chimney brest.

I need to double check the exact source but the surveyor said it was due to issues with mortar.

I'm going to cancel the damp people.

Thanks for the advice.

I had a look but the light was fading.

Water is getting im via the patch of dark coloured bricks at the bottom of the wall. The mortar is darker, moist and crumbling and a bit shallower than the rest of the wall.

Not sure where the water is coming from. I suspect it is the guttering above because there is a dodgy-looking joint above it.

I think waiting till it rains and seeing what the guttering does is a good idea unless anyone has any other ideas?

Some of the pics didn't load...

Get someone to fix the guttering or you can do it yourself if you don’t mind heights. You can buy stuff to paint in the joints to resell them. Messy but it works.
You could always paint the brickwork with Thompson’s water seal. It’s a clear product which will stop water penetration. Generally lasts for a couple of years and great for where bricks have become porous
It does work really well and it’s not expensive.
the plaster might be fine inside once it’s dried out properly. You need to allow a year really. I’ve got plaster in my kitchen that was very wet from
prev owners washing machine leaking and it’s dried out now 18 months later. Just needs sanding a little to remove loose paint and the black marks and that peel stop paint stuff and then emulsion

I'd get the gutter fixed before considering sealing the bricks, you don't want to seal the damp in. And once the gutter is fixed, it will probably dry out and not need anything more doing. Give it a few months to dry out after fixing the gutters this time of year before you do anything else if you can, including decorating.
When it's all dry, it may need repointing. But it may not. See what happens when it's all had time to dry out.
Our garage had had a leak for so long when we came here that the pointing had actually gone or could just be pulled out, so when the gutter was fixed and the wall had had some time to dry I repointed (and that was the end of the damp on the inside wall). But your pointing doesn't look bad like that on the photos.

Do not seal bricks. They breathe. That’s awful advice.

Im also wondering if water ponds by this section of wall. The bricks don’t look great. I would pour water from a hose into this area and see what happens. It’s hard standing directly again the wall and that’s not great either. A flower bed is much better. The hard standing looks black? Is it green with damp? I would be inclined to dig out the hard standing and allow the water to escape.

@TizerorFizz Yes not going to seal anything.

I'll try the hosepipe idea to check where water pools.