Rising Damp – Damp Proofing Nottingham & The East Midlands
Rising damp is the effect of water from the ground, rising through the fabric of a structure by capillary action. It is important to distinguish between penetrating damp that enters a building through any other route and can move about in various ways but is not rising damp. Only rising damp can be cured by the installation of a chemical damp proof course. Rising damp can be misdiagnosed and it is important that investigations into dampness are undertaken by a trained and competent surveyor who can recognise and understand the problem. All our surveyors are CSRT qualified.
Decaying skirting boards, crumbling or salt stained plaster, discolouration and staining, decayed timber floors, peeling paint and wallpaper are all common when walls are affected by rising damp. These defects are not always evident, and the use of electronic moisture metres has to be used to provide accurate assessment of the extent of the rising damp in a building.
Water rising from the ground often introduces contaminating hygroscopic salts into the walls and plaster coats. This contamination will often result in a need for the plaster to be removed and replaced using specially formulate salt resistant plaster.