Damp patch on kitchen wall

[alfit]

Hi - I've just bought my first property and am new to house maintenance, so any advice would be very welcome! The surveyor's report flagged up one issue: two damp patches in the kitchen, which the surveyor thought were probably due to a plumbing leak. The walls are not noticeably damp or cold to the touch anywhere, but presumably the patches were found with a damp meter (and the surveyor, who has not been very helpful, hasn't pinpointed their precise location). The wall is an external wall with the kitchen sink on and has pipes running into it (I think: incoming cold water and waste water) so a plumbing leak seems plausible.

The wall is brick/block so I can't really do any more to investigate the problem without someone going into the wall. What should my next move be? Maybe I'm being stupid, but I'm not sure whether I want a builder or a plumber for this sort of job. And how can I avoid being ripped off? Obviously having just bought the house, money is a bit tight, but I don't want to let the problem fester and get more expensive. Is it going to be a tough one to fix?

 

[Bosswhite]

Where are the damp patches in relation to the pipes ?

 

[alfit]

I believe they are roughly two feet to the left of where the pipes go into the wall.

 

[Bosswhite]

Sounds like the damp isnt to do with the pipework, a picture of the location of the Damp patches would help.

 

[ree]

What material is the incoming water supply pipe - lead, hard metal, copper or plastic?

Pics of the external wall from outside, and pics of below the work top would help?

 

[mogget]

Those damp meters often register damp where there is none - unless there's other symptoms of damp there might be nothing wrong.

 

[ree]

I agree with mogget to an extent. Moisture meters do register moisture if its there but what kind of moisture is the question.

Condensation under work tops and sinks, and behind base units is often mistaken by the inexperienced MM user for rising or penetrating damp, or a leak of some kind.

But the OP has asked a question thats worth answering with reference to various possible contributing factors.

 

[alfit]

Sorry for slow reply - I had hoped to get to the house to answer a few of these questions but life intervened. I believe the pipes are copper for incoming and plastic for waste. I acknowledge your suggestions that the damp might be unrelated to the plumbing - obviously I'd be very happy if nothing needs doing. Is it worth me getting a damp meter to check myself? Can a effective one be obtained reasonably cheaply?

 

[alfit]

< accidental duplicate post - ignore >

 

[mogget]

The 'prong' type damp meters are only designed to measure damp in timber I believe. I would be looking for symptoms such as obvious wetness, white fluffy deposits on the surface of the wall (efflorescence), mould, peeling paint, 'tide marks', musty smell etc. Unfortunately there seems to be a lot of rip off merchants in the damp proofing business when most damp problems could be solved by adequate ventilation, and of course making sure nothing is leaking.

 

[ree]

OP, you've just been advised about moisture meters in inexperienced hands, but now you want to turn yourself into an inexperienced damp surveyor?

Unless there is a mortgage retention then ignore the damp patches until you re-fit the kitchen. Most every kitchen in the UK will have damp patches.

If you are serious about your new property, and want to learn about damp then use the Search facility at the top of this page to read up on the masses of info and pics related to damp in the Building and Flooring forums.

Perhaps, as requested, you will post relevant pics sometime?

 

[Bosswhite]

OP, you've just been advised about moisture meters in inexperienced hands, but now you want to turn yourself into an inexperienced damp surveyor?

Unless there is a mortgage retention then ignore the damp patches until you re-fit the kitchen. Most every kitchen in the UK will have damp patches.

If you are serious about your new property, and want to learn about damp then use the Search facility at the top of this page to read up on the masses of info and pics related to damp in the Building and Flooring forums.

Perhaps, as requested, you will post relevant pics sometime?

I disagree, being a decorator of many years, part of my equiptment contains a basic damp/moisture meter, at least when I see a suspect patch on a wall or woodwork this tells me either its damp or a bad stain so I can assess the situation from there,
instead of standing and looking at it and scratching my head as to what is the cause as the OP is doing at the moment.
I agree these meters are limited but do indicate whether that particular area contains moisture compared to surrounding areas

 

[ree]

mogget,
Pronged MM's are the D&T industry standard, they will show "damp" in many materials - not least, paper, plaster and sand and cement. And wood of course.

"most damp problems" cannot "be solved by adequate ventilation" & "making sure nothing is leaking"

Bosswhite,
You are a tradesperson experienced in using a MM for your own purpose, and thats how it should be with any tool. But your experience does not make you a Damp & Timber surveyor.

At times, a painstaking forensic investigation is needed to locate the, perhaps, multi-sources of damp, and a MM is only one of the tools used.

I wont rehearse my list of costly horror stories ref MM's in inexperienced hands but:
a RICS surveyor called for extensive remedial works for penetrating damp, when he had merely found an extensive pattern of wall paper condensation (a clothes dryer in the room).