How would you describe this?

iwantone · Jul 20, 2014

Have been told by housing inspector that this is not dampness but condensation. We've lived in this house for 15 years and have had this problem in most of the rooms. In my living room they even told me that there were too many people (2 adults, 3 kids) that we were breathing too much:jaw:

One of you guys help out?

mikeh501 · Jul 20, 2014

Open your windows lol

iwantone · Jul 20, 2014

Another pic.

iwantone · Jul 20, 2014

mikeh501 said:
Open your windows lol

Windows are open every day, rain, hail or shine

boguing · Jul 20, 2014

Can you show me a picture of the outside wall at that height and above?

jamesmartin · Jul 20, 2014

iwantone said:
Another pic.

what corner is that a pic of ,looks like a derelict house we used to go in as kids,cobwebs as well

Pikey · Jul 20, 2014

I'm assuming that this is a council or Housing Association property?? It's a stock answer to all damp problems . Hull City council built the Bransholme maisonettes in the 70's, & within 5 years they were fooked with water running down the walls from failed roof and wall joints (prefabricated Concrete Panels fixed together and the seams filled with Bituminous mastic. When ever anyone complained they were told it was condensation.

jamesmartin · Jul 20, 2014

it may well have some condensation problems but due to the big damp issue,

blimp · Jul 20, 2014

That black mould is from dampness. Somewhere you have water coming in. What kind of house is it...

iwantone · Jul 20, 2014

Boguing, this is the outside wall.

JM, we were moving furniture and hadn't vacuumed yet

Pikey, the local housing association are normally very good but, this is one thing that there is no movement on...

Pikey · Jul 20, 2014

iwantone said:
Pikey, the local housing association are normally very good but, this is one thing that there is no movement on...

Cos it's usually very expensive to sort out damp problems.. If it's part of a complex or estate, get the other residents to complain. also If they're telling you the house is overcrowded then they need to rehouse you

Get inspector back and demand a written report. Also get a Damp meter (they is only a few quid) and test it urself.

Pikey · Jul 20, 2014

Just looking at ya pic. I'd say either Gatepost fixings are loose/allowing water ingress. or water is getting behind the cladding and soaking down behind the rendering.

blimp · Jul 20, 2014

iwantone said:
Boguing, this is the outside wall.

JM, we were moving furniture and hadn't vacuumed yet

What's that wood I see there. Something you put on to cover up bad plastering, or cracks????. If it is you still be getting water ingestion from it. A trip down to B+Q to buy some good quality water sealer might not be a bad idea. If it's to help, you'll need about three coats, never mind what it says on the can. If you wall's a bit porous the first coat will be soaked up by the dust in the plaster, so ergo you'll be needing more to go round.

blimp · Jul 20, 2014

Another thing. If the ground level outside is higher than the floors inside and you have a dodgy foundation that will surly cause water to seep in. Also check your gutters when it rains. If they're a bit blocked and the water is flowing over the back of them and down the wall anywhere then that'll give major grief...

Pikey · Jul 20, 2014

blimp said:
iwantone said:

Boguing, this is the outside wall.

JM, we were moving furniture and hadn't vacuumed yet

What's that wood I see there. Something you put on to cover up bad plastering, or cracks????. If it is you still be getting water ingestion from it. A trip down to B+Q to buy some good quality water sealer might not be a bad idea. If it's to help, you'll need about three coats, never mind what it says on the can. If you wall's a bit porous the first coat will be soaked up by the dust in the plaster, so ergo you'll be needing more to go round.

Click to expand...

It's not his house. It's a Housing Asociation property.
Timber seems to be 1st floor cladding Probably timberframed top half. brick bottom half.

Waterseal is a right bodgers job. As it won't stop water ingress but will stop the wall breathing & prevent normal vapour transmission Which will in turn make any condensation, worst than it already is.

iwantone · Jul 20, 2014

Thanks for input peeps. They have agreed to replace the black wooden cladding along with the guttering and down pipes. Also after asking for a few years they have agreed to replace the rendering as it's another disaster (pics available on request). This has taken about 5/6 years of asking as it's actually fallen off the wall in places leaving the brick work open to the elements and this has started to crumble away too.

I knew that the outside would need repairing and this is being done soon but, the inside has always been a problem even where rendering etc is good.

boguing · Jul 21, 2014

Sorry, didn't spt your update.

The outside wall pic contains everything that I didn't want to see.

Flat roof with hidden edge. Render. Gatepost. All potential sources of leaks but all perfect for hiding the underlying problem.

Removing the cladding will reveal the edge of the roof and its' condition. You should also see whether anything is soaking down into the render.

The gatepost fixing etc. won't be causing the upper level problem, but may well be causing that near the floor.

A secondary problem with an outside wall soaked from outside is that it will be cold and will attract condensation, so there is a degree of truth in the initial diagnosis. To explain further - imagine sealing the room and running an externally-drained dehumidifier in there for a few weeks. The walls would be bone dry. On the inside surface.

That's obviously not the solution to your problem. The outside is leaking like a sieve and needs fixing. Properly. If it were mine I'd be replacing the roof surface and then working downwards.

fanatic · Jul 21, 2014

stock housing association answer to damp

classic kev · Jul 22, 2014

Looking at the pictures the primary issue looks like condensation. It is possible there are other underlying contributory factors but without seeing it up close wouldn't want to suggest any particular course of action.

The speckled mould pattern is the key indicator. It would perhaps be sensible to wash down the affected areas, you can buy fungicidal solutions to deal with the mould or you can use a diluted bleach solution but be careful if using bleach for obvious reasons.

If it is a condensation issue, wash off the affected areas and monitor. Condensation is unlikely at this time of year because of generally higher surface temperatures (above dew point) and higher air temperatures inside and out with a smaller difference inside to outside. Typically the condensation season is between October and early April or thereabout. If the mould doesn't come back before the summer is over but then re-appears sometime in the winter then it is almost definitely a condensation problem probably exacerbated by cold bridges.

gstuart · Jul 22, 2014

just out of curiosity u dont use a tumble drier with no external vent do u

as the others guys have said as well get the inspector back for a full report

How would you describe this?

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