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Penetrating damp, or rain penetration as it can be referred to happens when water finds its way inside a property from the outside. This might be through walls, windows or doors although roof defects can also be a cause. Penetrating damp is more likely to occur in older properties as well as those by the sea or open to the elements.

It’s important to identify penetrating damp and any defects swiftly as it can lead to bigger problems such as a dry rot infestation. Damp can also cause respiratory problems particularly in the young and the elderly. Here are ten ways to identify if your property has penetrating damp:

• 1. Musty smells with black mould or mildew on walls or skirting boards.
• 2. Damp patches or water drips on walls, ceilings and floors, especially those that worsen in heavy rain. This includes on the upper floors (rising damp only affects lower levels).
• 3. Cold rooms.
• 4. Blistered, disintegrating or stained plaster.
• 5. Rotting floors or skirting boards – a sign of wet rot.
• 6. Faulty joints between windows and walls and badly fitted door frames.
• 7. Defective plumbing issues or burst water pipes.
• 
• 8. Brickwork, render or pointing decay; especially in older properties.
• 
• 9. Broken guttering or leaky rainwater pipes.
• 10. A leaking roof or broken roof tiles.

When you identify penetrating damp in your property and the causes too, you will ensure the problem can be treated effectively and in the right way. Damp issues are normally eliminated, with a barrier between the damp and the wall, although damp specialists Frank Schrijver has a chemical-free eco-friendly solution using natural ventilation – the Schrijver System.

Guaranteed for life, it’s the greener option to traditional methods.

No additional decorating is required as all the work is undertaken outdoors. A series of small, handmade elements are fixed to the outside wall of your property – just above skirting board level. Essentially the system works as dry air flows constantly from the outside into the handmade elements through an opening. This causes moisture from the wall interior to be deposited within the element, therefore, taking it outside. This results in lower humidity levels and continuous protection.

For further information about damp, or a no obligation quote, contact Frank Schrijver on 01689 800101</span.

Certainly, the simplest way to find out whether you’ve got rising damp is to use your hands. Feel the wall. If the wallpaper has a ‘crunching’ sound, this will be the sound of the salts that have seeped up from the ground. If you’re looking at the actual exposed brickwork, check to see if the wall is wet and if any salts are forming there. If rising damp is an issue, it has the potential to have a disastrous effect on your property. Certainly, the longer that you leave rising damp untreated, the costlier it could potentially be both from a financial and building work perspective.

If you’ve noticed a tideline mark on your walls that looks like it’s rising up from the ground level, whether inside or outside, it’s a probable indication that you’ve got a problem with rising damp at your property. It may be however that you’ve spotted a powdery substance on your walls. Another sign could be on your skirting boards. Maybe you’ve noticed that they’re starting to deteriorate. There may be patches of mould growing. All of these could be signs of an issue with moisture that’s getting into your walls from the ground upwards.

So what is rising damp?

In its simplest terms, rising damp is where groundwater manages to seep upwards into the concrete, up into the walls and floors. Bricks and mortar are particularly porous, so basically they draw water up just like a sponge. With the moisture that comes from the groundwater, this also brings salts and other impurities. And certainly, all of these can have a major detrimental effect if not treated.

A traditional solution for rising damp is to fit chemical damp proofing – more as a preventative, proactive approach. This normally involves holes being drilled into walls, with a silicone damp proofing solution injected into the holes, followed by re-plastering and not to mention hacking at the existing plaster work. All with the hope that it will reduce the amount of liquid flowing through to your walls or floors.

An original damp course, or alternatively fitting a horizontal slate damp proof course, can be a preventative option to combatting rising damp. The horizontal slate damp proof course is actually a process that’s been happening since the Roman times. However, it doesn’t have a massively long life span and can struggle when it comes to the wall expanding and contracting due to moisture collection. And certainly, if the course hasn’t been fitted or positioned properly, it’s more liable to fail. Plus, if you don’t have a guarantee in place, you’re likely to have to arrange costly upkeep to maintain the damp course.

Rising Damp Solution

If you’re looking for a tried and tested alternative to create a horizontal barrier that’s great for the environment as well as your home, the Schrijver system allows your brickwork to become ventilated, so that moisture is able to evaporate naturally. By not using any chemical solutions, the Schrijver system is an eco-friendly permanent option that is guaranteed for life. By removing any moisture naturally, it gives you a lot greener and more cost-effective option. And not only that, the installation won’t have any impact on the interior of your home either.?

During the autumn and winter months, hanging your laundry outside isn’t always practical.

It doesn’t get light until later in the morning and the sun goes down much earlier. On the shortest winter’s day the sun rises after 8am and sets before 4pm. That’s less than 8 hours of daylight.

On a working day this means hanging out your washing and retrieving it in the dark. What’s more, autumn and winter days are also much colder and wetter. These aren’t exactly the right conditions for having that shirt ready for work tomorrow.

So, what’s the alternative?

Drying your Clothes Indoors

If you can’t accomplish it outdoors then you’ll have to dry your clothes indoors.

At first it might seem like a good idea. You can’t dry them outside, so dry them inside. It’s drier, it’s warmer and it’s cheaper and more environmentally-friendly than switching on the tumble drier.

But think again.

Wet clothes in the home can increase the damp in your property by around 30%. By increasing the moisture levels in your home you’ll be adding to your damp problem.

You could also be creating the perfect environment for black mould. It is well known that the spores of stachybotrys chartarum can be a serious health hazard, particularly for children, pregnant women and the elderly.

As well as posing a health risk, you’ll have increased condensation in your home. You’ll have damp patches on your walls, condensation on your windows and black mould on your window frames.

And yet, despite all these negatives, over 80% of people in the UK still dry their clothes indoors. A single load of clothes can contain as much as 2 litres of water, so that’s a lot of damp!

Reducing the Moisture in Your Home

If you absolutely must dry your clothes indoors, there are a number of things you can do to mitigate the risks of having condensation.

• Open a window. This is the easiest thing you can do to let out the extra moisture. Open a single window in the room where you are drying your clothes and let the natural ventilation do its job.
• Buy yourself a dehumidifier. These can be relatively cheap compared to a tumble dryer and will draw the water droplets from the air. You will still have to empty the water collector.
• Get a tumble dryer. It will cost you a lot more than simply opening a window and is more expensive than a dehumidifier but at least you’ll be sending all that extra moisture outside. And your clothers will be drier quicker too.
• Install extractor fans. Whilst relatively cheap to buy, an extractor fan kit will need to be fitted by an expert. Usually installed in the kitchen, bathroom or a cloakroom (downstairs toilet), turn on your extractor fan whilst you’re drying your load.

So, with all these potential options, there should be something you can do to avoid drying your clothes at home in a manner that will cause damp in your home.

If you are still having damp problems then it might well be worth giving us a call so that one of our experts can conduct a damp survey.

At Frank Schrijver we are damp experts and the Schrijver system of damp control is a green alternative to chemical-heavy methods of damp proofing.

Give us a call on 01689 800101 or drop us an email at info@damp.co.uk

So you’ve identified that you have damp in your property. Perhaps you’ve found damp patches on a wall inside your home. Or maybe you’ve got blistering paint. Damp tends to happen when water from the outside manages to get into a building structure, but there are several ways you can actually treat damp to get rid of this problem. And certainly, if you leave damp without any treatment, there’s a high chance that you can lead to a rapid damage to the appearance and structure of your home in addition to any health hazards that may also be experienced.

The traditional route of damp proofing could be seen as an answer to your problem. It acts as a long-term barrier as a preventative before damp truly takes hold. Most properties have a damp proof course built into the walls just above ground level – in order to prevent damp from happening. Back in 1875 the Public Health Act was set up to make sure that all properties had some form of damp course built in, however, you might be aware that subsidence can happen and soon your walls can deteriorate if damp gets to them.

Retrospective fitting of a damp proof course is often done during rebuilding. However, it can cause major structural problems, particularly if the building is historic. It’s also unsuitable for walls that are randomly coursed. Not only that, it can cause deterioration of masonry underneath the damp course.

Damp proofing isn’t a permanent cure however. So you’re likely to have to find alternative solutions for the regular upkeep of your walls, which can be costly – in addition to finding the time to maintain.

If you were to choose a chemical option, this would involve injecting chemical solutions into the holes at the bottom of the wall in the hope of creating a waterproof barrier. Yet again, this may not be suitable for older buildings. If you’re thinking of using this method, you’ll find that injecting holes won’t be possible in granite or flint. It can also be difficult to create a substantial barrier in rubble walls with voids.

You could also opt for a tanking solution for penetrating damp. This is where a liquid chemical coating can be added to the wet walls. Or alternatively, a chemical injection where a concentrated solution is injected into holes in the affected wall. You would still need to re-plaster once the damp proofing has been completed.

But there are alternatives that can successfully treat the symptoms and the causes of damp without the need for chemicals. And more cost-effective too. The Schrijver System brings you a totally green alternative. With a lower installation cost and no need for redecoration, it also comes with a lifetime guarantee for total reassurance. No harsh chemicals are needed.

In a nutshell, it uses natural ventilation or airflow to prevent any damp from happening in your home. By simply inserting small hand-made elements into your outside walls just above skirting board level, dry air is able to easily flow from the outside into the elements. By doing this, it creates a drop in temperature so that any moisture is collected by the element. So you can be safe in the knowledge that you’ll have dry wall protection without having a detrimental effect on the environment or the health of anyone in your home.