CAUSES OF RISING DAMP

CAUSES OF  RISING DAMP

Most buildings have some form of barrier installed at the lower of the wall to prevent water rising up in this way. It is called a damp proof course (DPC). These can be made of non absorbant, water-resistant materials such as slate bitumen and plastic and plastic depending on the period of the property was built. Sometimes these physical DPCs may fail over time, in older houses they may not exist at all. If you don’t have a DPC or there is evidence that it has failed then there is nothing to prevent the water from travelling up your wall.

Sometimes the DPC can remain intact but the DPC can be bridged. This is where the damp from the grounds are able to travel up past the DPC because of a construction fault.

EXAMPLES OF THIS INCLUDES

*Debris in the wall cavity or subfloor void.

*Internal or external renders/plasters overlapping the DPC

* External ground levels being raised above the DPC

* Inappropriate insulation material in the cavity

*Solid floors

*Intersecting masonry structures/abutting garden walls.