Identifying The Signs Of Rising Damp
If you are a property owner in London, you may have heard the term rising damp and wondered just what it’s referring to, with the sense that it’s nothing good! Rising damp is a type of moisture problem that can slowly destroy buildings, harming their structural integrity along with the health of the people occupying them! If your house smells musty, the paint is peeling, and the walls have grown discoloured, then you have a rising damp problem. It’s always best to know your enemy, so let’s take a closer look at rising damp and find out what signs to watch for!
First off, let’s define rising damp in more detail. It’s a natural phenomenon in which moisture is drawn up from the ground through the porous materials that make up your home, like wood, stone, plaster, bricks, and mortar. This is caused by something called capillary action, much like how a dry sponge left sitting in a shallow pool of water will soak it up and become wet- that is what’s happening to the walls and structures of your home! The water is drawn up into the walls, which causes ugly stains, damage to the structure, and the insidious growth of hazardous mould!
It’s typically older homes that rising damp attacks the most because their original damp proofing measures have deteriorated over the years, or they never had any to begin with! Newer homes are also susceptible to rising damp if the proper precautions weren’t taken during construction.
If you can Identify the signs of rising damp and address them early so you can take action, it is sure to save you a lot of money, anxiety, and time. The following are some of the common signs to be aware of:
The Paint And Wallpaper Is Peeling – Being constantly damp causes adhesives to weaken, which makes your paint and wallpaper crack, bubble, and peel.
The Walls Have Tide Marks – Just like the tide marks on a pier at the shoreline, horizontal lines of discolouration staining the walls show you how high the rising damp tide has risen! These unsightly tide marks can reach as high as one meter above floor level. These are a result of water condensation evaporating from the wall, leaving behind powdery white salt deposits that are called efflorescence.
The Plaster Is Crumbling – The rising damp infiltrating causes wet walls in the house that can make the plaster soft and crumbly, so much so that it will eventually simply fall off if left untreated.
A Foul, Musty Odour – When your home’s interior is consistently damp, it will begin to exhibit a persistent foul, musty odour. This is chiefly caused by mould and mildew growing unseen in damp cracks, crevices and corners. If the situation grows worse, the mould will begin to spread to outer surfaces like floors and ceilings, where it will release allergenic spores that are very hazardous to human health! If you see mould, call us and we will perform a free mould survey to assess the situation and provide solutions!
Now that you know the signs of rising damp, you can call us at Damp Proofing Ltd on 020 7593 8030 during office hours or fill in the online form so we can come visit your home and help make things nice and dry again for you!