Penetrating Damp and Rising Damp Treatment, Wales, UK

Project Background

A property in Wales had been suffering a combination of rising damp and penetrating damp problems due to its age, construction, exposed location and the fact that the building next door had been torn down leaving a completely exposed gable end with no weatherproofing.

The internal walls were constructed of timber and stud lathe so it was essential to protect them from the damp penetrating through the exterior walls in order to prevent fungal decay.

The solid concrete floor in the property was damp due to moisture rising from the ground and consequently the carpets in the house were damp.

A particular problem on this project was the fact that it was not possible to gain permission to access the land adjacent to the damp-affected building. This made it impossible to carry out external repairs to the exposed gable.

The Solution

Specialist contractors, Conifer Property Services were called in to offer a solution. They chose to apply Oldroyd Xp Plaster Membrane to the affected walls followed by plasterboard fixed to the membrane using the “dot & dab” method. A key reason for choosing this method is that it was possible to pass the Oldroyd Xp membrane around corners and behind stud walls to offer complete protection. Once the plasterboard had been fixed to the Oldroyd Xp membrane the walls were finished using a plaster skim.

To address the issue of damp rising through the solid concrete floor Oldroyd Xs membrane was laid over the floor and tied into the Oldroyd Xp membrane on the walls using Oldroyd overseal tape.

The Result

A key advantage of using the Oldroyd membrane system was that the house was ready for carpeting and decorating as soon as Conifer property services had finished their work as it was only necessary to wait for the plaster skim coat to dry. The homeowners were extremely pleased with the result and commented that their “house is now warm and dry after years of smelling musty and feeling cold and clammy”.