Although the damage caused by damp can be serious, the cause of damp, unless the property has simply been built in the wrong place, is usually relatively obvious and straightforward to put right.

'Penetrating damp' describes damp that comes in through the walls and is usually caused by faults in guttering or fascias, which can be fixed pretty easily. If it’s very close to ground level, the damp proof course (DPC) may be damaged, or even non-existent in an older house. But before getting a new DPC put in, look around the outside of the property to see if earth or badly constructed building work has come up from ground level and is allowing moisture to get at the brickwork above the DPC.

Condensation is moisture in the air inside the house, which can’t get out and leads to mouldy patches on walls and ceilings. This can be fixed by improving the ventilation. With both condensation and penetrating damp, once the cause is isolated, a dehumidifier will help dry the affected areas out before fixing the damage and redecorating.

Rising damp can occur due to a failed damp proof course or the lack of one installed in early construction. Rising damp can be identified with a moisture meter or signs may appear visually such as damp patches or hygroscopic salts on wall surfaces.

Upon installing a chemical damp proof course, specialist replastering of the wall is essential to ensure there is no hydroscopic salts are present. Treatment involves removal of the skirting boards and wall plaster on the walls. Usually the plaster is removed to a height of approximately one metre, however depending on the salts within the masonry and several other factors, the height of the necessary replastering may be increased and will be individually specified once our surveyor has carried out an inspection of your property.

The purpose of specialised replastering is designed to provide a salt retardant, waterproof render to combat the effects of the ground salts in the masonry and provide a dry internal finish which would be smoothed over by our technicians with a top coat skim to create a smooth finish ready for decoration.