Damp Proof Courses - Old Houses

[Robert85]

Hello,

I have just stumbled across this forum and I thought I would post... (apologies if this is in the wrong place)

I am currently living in a house that has been built in a variety of different ways and part of the house strech's back 400 years with some large additions mostly before 1900. As a result the house does not have a damp proof course.

Some of the walls are over 1m thick in places and the center of the wall tends to be filled with rubble. The house is traditionally rendered and traditional methods have been used where possible although it hasn't always been practical and not all owners have been as sensitive to the house's needs and because of the changes in materials used on the interior over the years the natural airing of the house in places has been lost, that combined with modern usage (increased use of showers/baths/cookers etc) and moving away from open fires the air flow through the house that would naturally dry the property is significantly reduced.

As a result rising damp is a problem on the East North and West sides due to lack of sun and shade by trees (increasing the moisture)

With respect to the construction traditional damp proof methods would be impractical due to the size and construction of the walls.

I am wondering if anyone else has experienced a similar problem? How to overcome it? Other methods of reducing the amount of rising damp?

It was suggested that a gravel strip is installed around the house to drain away any water standing against the house. Whilst Surface water is not a problem the area is traditionally peat and holds a lot of water. Has anyone used or is living in a house has a gravel strip for this purpose? Is it effective?

Any help or direction would be greatly appreciated,

Thanks
Robert

 

[masona]

I am currently living in a house that has been built in a variety of different ways and part of the house strech's back 400 years with some large additions mostly before 1900. As a result the house does not have a damp proof course.

They are thousands of properties without damp course and don't have any problem.

Have a good read here for better understanding as rising damp doesn't exist so far.

http://www.oldhouse.info/ohdamp.htm

//www.diynot.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=34549

http://www.konrad-fischer-info.de/2auffen.htm

http://www.bricksandbrass.co.uk/diyelem/extwalls/damp/dpdpc.htm

 

[str]

If your house has stood for the best part of 400 years, I don't think you have a problem.

The whole issue with damp is the cause - this is what you need to resolve and a dpc will not remove the cause.

remember with the cause of damp, it isnt always from the ground up but can be above your head - leaking guttering, etc

 

[Robert85]

Thanks Masona/str for your replies,

I don't feel as though I have been clear, I am not trying to suggest that my house is likely to fall down, or that the house always has had rising damp or even if rising damp does exist. what I am trying to say is the house does have a damp problem in the walls and I am looking for the best most cost effective solution to this problem whilst not reverting to how the house originally worked.

The house has been used for a number of different things over the years and at one point it became derelict where only two rooms were habitable out of the many it has. It was bought and went through major renovation around 1960ish concrete floors were put in in rooms where the floors had decayed, windows repaired/replaced, open fires closed in, new walls put up to increase the number of rooms and reduce the size. The roof was fixed (it had several holes) All undertaken with modern methods at the time and to remove prevent the ingress of water.

In years since, double glazing has gone in (in some rooms), better seals are now in place and additional bathrooms and kitchens installed, heating and cooking has switched from solid fuel to oil, gas (bottled) and electric.

As a result how the house would naturally/originally air and dry (by drawing air through the gaps in windows, doors, floors and walls to some extent)has been removed. As a result in some rooms there are damp problems in the lower sections of the walls not normally going above 500mm although in one kitchen it is up to about 1m.

Single glazing has been an issue and as a rule any window replaced will now be double glazed (reducing the amount of condensation). A dehumidifier is in use to try and reduce the moisture content in the air and central heating is being installed on a Air source heat pump system to heat the house.

The guttering is maintained byanually and any leaks are sealed when spotted, large bushes/vegetation have been removed from the sides of the house to try and stop any water being sat against the walls.

I do however still have damp in the lower sections of some walls and was wondering what would be the best method to removing/solving this problem?

An option would be to recycle the air in the house drawing it out using a heat exchange to dry the air before sending it back into the house, but I would sooner consider any alternative less expensive or intrusive options.

Thanks
Robert

 

[masona]

I don't feel as though I have been clear,

Yes you have

I am not trying to suggest that my house is likely to fall down

Far from it

what I am trying to say is the house does have a damp problem in the walls and I am looking for the best most cost effective solution to this problem whilst not reverting to how the house originally worked.

More ventilation

In years since, double glazing has gone in (in some rooms), better seals are now in place

In theory it's the opposite as moisture can't get out

Single glazing has been an issue and as a rule any window replaced will now be double glazed (reducing the amount of condensation).

It will increase the condensation So make sure you have trickle vents

A dehumidifier is in use to try and reduce the moisture content in the air

Up to a point it does but the next problem is the dehumidifer producing more warm moisture back into the room

The guttering is maintained byanually and any leaks are sealed when spotted, large bushes/vegetation have been removed from the sides of the house to try and stop any water being sat against the walls.

Okay, you could also improve by digging a channel and put in pea shingles to collect rain water to the drainage downwards

I do however still have damp in the lower sections of some walls and was wondering what would be the best method to removing/solving this problem?

More ventilation

An option would be to recycle the air in the house drawing it out using a heat exchange to dry the air before sending it back into the house, but I would sooner consider any alternative less expensive or intrusive options.

I have no idea if they are any good so can't comment.

From the old house link I've gave you,
Condensation has been a problem in some twentieth century homes because the amount of washing, bathing, showering and cooking in modern households produces a lot of water vapour in the air.

This vapour turns back into water when it hits a cold surface, such as a window pane. If it finds a cold surface deep inside the construction of a wall then it deposits the water there, this can give rise to hidden decay.

The way to remove steam or water vapour is by keeping rooms well-ventilated and surfaces just warm enough to prevent the vapour condensing into drops of water.

 

[PerryOne]

This problem is quite common.
When homes had open fires and badly fitting doors and windows the drafts used to help keep them dry during the winter and during the summer the problem disappeared.

My own home is built into a slope and when we moved here water ran down the hill through the utility room walls and floors and out under the garden door. The whole place was damp.

The first thing we did was dig a trench across the garden further up the hill to divert the surface water into our stream.

Then we dug a trench six foot deep and twenty odd feet long across the back, and continued it down both sides of our home to ground level in the front and back filled it with clean rocks and stones -a French drain named after the Ohio farmer who re-erected the idea from the Romans, this has worked for us and our home is now dry.
The key difference is that our water is able to drain away to the river lower down the hill where as you may not have a way to lose the excess water in which case it will be a waste of time.

We also re jigged all the guttering and down pipes to bring the rain off the roofs to the front garden, so that it didn't add to our problem.

We used two dehumidifiers to help speed the drying process and left them on 24 hours a day, at the end of three years after collecting several litres of water a day for the period they stopped collecting water and now sit switched on and ready to go, with nothing to do.

Because we did not wish to add to the problem, ie: our own input of water vapour, breathing, sweating, washing etc; we also hold the indoor temperature steady, as each time you turn down your heating or turn it off, the moisture in the air drops out onto/into the nearest cold surface. Keeping both the air and the walls warm keeps the moisture in the air.
I hope this helps.
Perry

 

[Robert85]

Thank you for your comments and advice ti is very much appreciated!

Robert