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Rising Damp
Rising damp is normally treated using a water based material which is injected at low pressure into a mortar joint. This prevents movement by capillary action through the pores of this joint, thus providing an effective damp proof course. It is usually necessary to renew the internal wall plaster which will have become contaminated by salts rising from the ground, typically nitrates and chlorides. It is not necessary to renew the wall plaster at the same time, and it is often better to leave it for some time if that is possible. |
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Penetrating Damp
Penetrating damp
is treated above ground, by firstly removing the source of water, probably a faulty gutter or down pipe, or perhaps bad pointing or a chimney defect. Once this has been done, defective internal plaster can be renewed. |
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Dampness problems do not arise over-night, and can not be cured instantly. The source of the moisture needs to be correctly identified, removed or excluded, and the fabric of the building given time to dry before any remedial replastering and redecorating.
Click here to view the plastering specification.
The Building Research Establishment suggests that walls dry out at the rate of one month per inch of wall thickness. A typical Victorian solid wall is nine inches thick, plus the wall plaster and any external render. |
