Damp smell in Victorian terrace. Also has blocked chimney.

[Coxey]

Hello - I’m hoping for some advice on my recently purchased Victorian end terrace.

The living room at the front of the house starts to smell fusty quite quickly unless the door to the hallway and a window are left open. The survey didn’t suggest any damp issues so I assume it is an air flow problem.

I discovered that the previous owners had blocked the chimney with a piece of plywood and sealed around it with expanding foam so there was no air flow.

The window board is a thin piece of ply, which I’ve removed - it reveals that the bay window has plasterboard around 30mm from the brickwork, with insulation pushed all the way to subfloor and blocking the air vents.

What would be a good way to tackle this? I’ve drilled through the board in the chimney and can feel the air, and removed the insulation from in front of one of the three air bricks and can feel the air coming up from there.

I’m happy to remove the plasterboard if needed and do it again with insulated board, leaving a cavity if that’s a good way to go; and to unblock the chimney - I have thought of boarding it again but including a hit and miss vent.

I’d appreciate any helpful suggestions.

Thank you!

 

[JohnD]

Disused chimneys need to be ventilated top and bottom or they get internal condensation. There will be a flue from each fireplace. If permanently disused, the top of the stack can be removed, below the roofline, and left open with the roof extended over the gap. This removes rain penetration and the need to future repointing, flashing etc.

You quite likely have other damp problems

The incoming water main under the floor is quite likely leaking

The DPC may have been bridged by plinth, bituminous paint, render, raised paving or flowerbeds

The drains and gullies are probably cracked and leaking.

Bay windows are probably letting rain in

Please photograph the bottoms of the walls inside and out. Include all drains, gullies, downpipes, external taps and other plumbing. Mark the position of the DPC with chalk in your pics.

Disused fireplaces may have been bricked up full of damp builders rubble (old hearths do not have a DPM so are damp)

Take up some floorboards for a look and a sniff.

If you have recently bought it and the floors have been hidden under laminate it may be hiding problems the vendor did not want you to see.

Do not allow anyone who sells silicone injections or ceramic tubes into your house. I can sell you some magic beans which will be cheaper and equally effective.

 

[Coxey]

Thanks John for a quick response. I’ll try to get the photos tomorrow when it’s light again. The flooring is the floorboards, so definitely no laminate down. There doesn’t seem to be any damp smell coming up from the bay window cavity - it just smells like earth if that makes sense. I’ll be taking some boards up soon when I replace the radiator so I’ll be able to have a good look then. The fireplace wasn’t bricked up, they just put a board inside and fixed it with expanding foam :/