Wet chipboard

[Gerry1888]

i recently found and fixed a leaking toilet cistern inlet. It was dripping onto a chipboard floor inside a boxed in section behind the toilet. It was probably dripping for a year. The floor began to dry out but one side stayed wet. I put a fan heater up to the hole where the toilet pipe goes into the box and dried the floor. I have made sure there is no water from above dripping down by putting a Tupperware dish down. Water seeps into the chipboard from somewhere occult. No central heating pipes nearby, sanitary pipes sound with no drips. Could the chipboard have become saturated deep within and becoming wet again from within as it evaporates? At a loss because there is no longer any leak and half the floor of the boxed area has dried naturally since I fixed the inlet.

 

[KenGMac]

Gerry1888, good evening.

As I see it, you found a leak, fixed it, now part of the floor has dried out, but an area of chipboard is still wet?

Question when did you fix the leak? it can take some time for the Chipboard to fully dry out, a lot depends on ventilation and humidity in the Property

Is there a water stain that may appear wet?

You mention that the leak has possibly been on-going for a year? that is a lot of water, Chipboard does not like water for that period of time? is the Chipboard soft, try poking a screwdriver into it?

Ken.

 

[Gerry1888]

No it’s solid. I hooked my hand underneath where the soil pipe goes down and I found polystyrene under the chipboard. I had dried the whole area out but the water appeared again but seemingly from below, with no obvious source it could come from.

 

[conny]

If the polystyrene is a block, and close to the underside of the chipboard, the water may have pooled on top of the styrene further away and be running back as the water in that area evaporates.

 

[KenGMac]

Gerry 1888, good evening again.

Question? do you have a "Combi Heating system" if so are you having to re-charge the Central Heating system on a regular basis?

Following on from conny above, I take it the problem is on the ground floor?

Ken

 

[Gerry1888]

Thanks guys - the boiler was losing pressure but is ok now and has been for weeks after having the expansion vessel pressurised. The pipes for the towel rail come down the wall and out to the rad a fair distance from the site.

Yes ground floor and old barn conversion so big thick stone walls with a black membrane visible

 

[KenGMac]

Gerry1888, good evening again.

OK, as I see it, there is a solid [probably] stone floor with a plastic DPM over this is a layer of Polystyrene, then the flooring chipboard?

Typical of 1960s build??

What has possibly happened is that the leak from the cistern has leaked, the escaping water has probably run under the chipboard to pond either on top of the Polystyrene or on the top of the plastic DPM.

Now, a couple of questions?
1/. Have you noticed, over a long period of time that there is more condensation in the entire property?
2/. Is the house more difficult to get up to temperature and warm?
3/. Have you noticed a damp smell in the house?

Why? because if there is a lot of water [as described above] then that can? cause increased levels of condensation.

It is possible to get a thermal image Survey [at a cost] undertaken to see if there is a large pond of water trapped under the chipboard?

One final consideration? what we are discussing may well be covered under your Home Insurance Policy? why bring this up? well if there is a lot of trapped water, it can be costly to rip up areas of floor and replace it?

Ken.

 

[Gerry1888]

Thanks Ken. The humidity in the house is 40% to 50% and it isn’t hard to heat but it is a largish house over 2000 square feet. It s small downstairs bathroom. The weird thing is that in the wee box behind the toilet half the floor is dry and the other damp, in more or less a straight line between them. There was a damp smell in the toilet but that disappeared when I fixed the leak and dried it out initially using the warm air fan heater I deployed.

 

[^woody^]

Condensation wont saturate chipboard - well it could in very extreme cases but in those cases you will actually see it. Evaporation wont at all.

You have a leak or contact with something damp

 

[Gerry1888]

 

[Gerry1888]

 

[Gerry1888]

In the picture above the wetness appears to come from below as a Tupperware dish in top stays dry

 

[gasbanni]

I suspect those solvent weld waste pipes are leaking ! Run the water in to the basin or bath or whatever they drain leave it running for for five minutes and see what happens run cold for five mins then the hot for 5mind ........hot can leak but cold doesna!

 

[Gerry1888]

I will but the wouldn’t explain why when dried the water appeared from the front as well as the back would it? Cheers.

 

[Gerry1888]

The pipe isn’t leaking. Could I claim Home insurance for this as Ken suggested?