Builders Question Advise

[RobbieGong]

My daughter is in the upstairs back room (small room) which has the outside wall.

She says that the wall is very very cold of a night lately and one of the pillows she had down the side of the bed against the wall was actually wet with water moisture.

I said to the wife I'd ask what it means / what to be done.

In my limited knowledge I said I think the wall needs re-pointing.

It is a 1930's house, so single brick wall I'm sure.

[scotty38]

I'm guessing if it's brick there will be a cavity. Sounds on the face of it to be condensation. Ventilation and heat are your friends here, maybe even a dehumidifier before doing anything too drastic.

[struth]

Get a builders report on state of wall. And roof and guttering above. If gutters are blocked or have holes in water can rundown wall and get under the rough cast etc. Sometimes fixing the gutters etc and drying it room can cure it

[scotty38]

I was, of course, making a basic assumption there were no obvious gutter/roof leaks etc. How much ventilation does the room get ordinarily?

[Lawrence001]

I'm guessing if it's brick there will be a cavity. Sounds on the face of it to be condensation. Ventilation and heat are your friends here, maybe even a dehumidifier before doing anything too drastic.I was surprised to see the 30s house we bought a few years ago was single wall, I thought they were double walled since Victorian times.

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[struth]

I was, of course, making a basic assumption there were no obvious gutter/roof leaks etc. How much ventilation does the room get ordinarily?Yup could be condensation too. Single brick walls without cavity are inclined to go this way.
celotex made external boarding to fix these issues. Not cheap but should dolce it if that's the problem

[Truckletheuncivil]

We had this problem in a 1930s house which had solid walls. One wall was always cold and wet. After trying all sorts to cure it we ended up fitting a device in the loft which blew air from the loft down into the house. This worked so well that there was no condensation on any window in the house. We have since moved so I can't check what it's called but it was fitted by a company called Peter Fox

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[Stryder5]

Internal insulating wall lining easiest to fit quick and not expensive. You can then investigate other options if needed.

Gary

[Puffin]

When I converted half of my double garage (single skin) into my "cave" I coated all the internal walls with Synthaprufe before adding all the insulation. Have had no damp or condensation at all. In fact the other half of the garage which was alway wet inside in winter is now bone dry....not sure how that works, but heyho. It could be all the fibreglass insulation over the ceiling of the cave which is at rafter height. Coating was a filthy and arduous job, but worth it.

[struth]

We had this problem in a 1930s house which had solid walls. One wall was always cold and wet. After trying all sorts to cure it we ended up fitting a device in the loft which blew air from the loft down into the house. This worked so well that there was no condensation on any window in the house. We have since moved so I can't check what it's called but it was fitted by a company called Peter Fox

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Was that a positive input ventilation unit ?

[scotty38]

It’s just me but I don’t like the idea of coating any porous material like brick and diminishing its natural ability to breathe. If water is coming through then that needs tackling rather than putting up a barrier and have it go somewhere else. I accept that may be easier said than done in some cases.

[Lawrence001]

It’s just me but I don’t like the idea of coating any porous material like brick and diminishing its natural ability to breathe. If water is coming through then that needs tackling rather than putting up a barrier and have it go somewhere else. I accept that may be easier said than done in some cases.Totally agree, combined with the prevalence of double glazing these days it will lead to condensation problems and potentially health issues in houses. The one time I had new double glazing fitted I paid extra for the trickle vents. Every other house I've lived in did not have them and I'm really surprised they are not fitted as standard. I always leave one small top window locked slightly open instead. Means it's a bit colder in winter but better than having water puddles on windowsills and mouldy room corners. And, most worryingly, mould spores in the children's bedrooms.

Less concerned about garages though.

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[Truckletheuncivil]

Was that a positive input ventilation unit ?That's what it was - couldn't remember the name

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[Pigmy Pony]

what I have done on a couple of old terraced houses with issues like this was to batten the damp wall (with DPC behind the battens to keep them from getting damp) then plasterboarding onto the battens, creating a cavity. Makes the room a couple of inches smaller though. It's a job easily done by anyone who can swing a hammer, just leaving a bit of plaster skimming, which may cost a couple of hundred, or £1500 if you live in London.

A lot of younger people and kids spend much of their time in their rooms, breathing, with doors and windows closed. But the moisture is less likely to condense on the above mentioned wall.

A small dehumidifier running when room is unoccupied would help too.

Obviously other potential culprits like roofing, guttering and pointing need to be checked out too.