MONEY/MORTGAGE SAVING CASE HISTORIES

With the money markets being really tight nowadays lenders are releasing mortgage monies for house purchases, re-mortgaging and equity release only after borrowers satisfy strict criteria and jump through several hoops to obtain a mortgage.
 
The Valuation/Building Survey carried out for the lender invariably notes dampness and timber decay and will put a retention on the mortgage or even hold back all of the money until damp & timber reports are obtained and the work carried out. Unfortunately this has lead to the rise some unscrupulous damp-proofing and timber treatment companies ‘diagnosing’ rising damp and woodworm after carrying out free damp and timber surveys.
 
We can help you avoid these unnecessary damp and timber treatments and if you in the process of obtaining a buying a house or obtaining a mortgage we can carry out independent, impartial damp and timber surveys by qualified surveyors who are not intent on selling chemical damp-proofing or timber treatments. These comprehensive damp and timber reports will satisfy your lenders demands so that your mortgage is processed successfully without the need for any damp-proofing or timber treatments.
 
Below are some of the cases that we have helped recently:
 
Eastbourne Gardens, East Sheen, South London.SW14 7NH – February 2012
 
This is a semi detached house built around 1930 with a perfectly good physical damp-proof course but a free damp survey by a Battersea based damp-proofing and timber treatment company detected rising damp in all the external walls and chemical damp-proofing works were recommended at a cost of approximately £3,500.00.
 
We found that the only damp was due to the original damp-proof course having previously been bridged by raised ground levels which had allowed moisture at the base of the wall. This allowed water to sit on top of the slate damp course where it was then drawn up the wall by capillary action to appear as ‘rising damp’ internally.
 
At the time of our damp survey the house owner had already reduced the ground level so that there was 150mm clearance between the ground and the damp-proof course and the walls had started to dry but there was still some residual moisture in sections which needed to be replaced at a cost of around £400.00 saving our client over £3,000.00.
 
Wightman Road, Haringey, London N8 0NB – February 2012
 
This property was being sold through Paul Simon Estate Agents in Green Lane, Haringey and our client was in the process of getting a mortgage when damp was flagged up by the surveyor so a free survey was obtained from a Hertfordshire based damp-proofing and timber treatment company. They diagnosed rising damp due to the lack of an effective modern damp-proof course and therefore recommended the installation of a new damp-proof course and associated replaster at a cost of around £7,000.00
 
The house had stood empty for around six months and we found that most of the dampness which would be easily alleviated once it was occupied and heated and ventilated normally
The only other damp that we found was due to raised ground levels which had bridged the original slate damp-proof course allowing low-level moisture ingress which travels through the wall by capillary action to appear as ‘rising damp’ internally. We recommended the installation of a drainage channel at the base of the affected walls which could be done at less than a quarter of the price of chemical damp-proofing.
 
Dry Rot-Gowlett Road, Peckham,South London SE15 4HY – January 2012
 
Our client was buying this house in Gowlett Road, which is just the wrong side of East Dulwich Road to be in SE22, and even though it was a bit dilapidated sold very quickly as the property market in this part of South East London is still very strong. The building surveyor who attended the property must have read Great Expectations the night before as his comments about dry rot were much the same as Miss Havisham’s when she said that ‘dry rot and wet rot and all the silent rots that rot in neglected roof and cellar…. addressed themselves faintly to my sense of smell’ and said there was dry rot in the cellar and because of this valued the house at £0 and in the ‘amount in words’ box had put ZERO stating that ‘upon receipt of a dry rot report and estimated costs for repair a realistic valuation can be given’.
 
Perhaps the surveyor should have read Edgar Alan Poe’s ‘The Fall of the House of Usher’ where he said ‘there was much that reminded me of the specious totality of old woodwork which has rotted for long years in some old neglected vault, with no disturbance of breath of the external air. Beyond this indication of extensive decay, however, the fabric gave little token of instability’.
 
Although we found that although the house was in a poor state of repair with moisture ingress and lack of ventilation etc causing wet rot in cellar timbers which is much easier to control and their was no need for the drastic treatments and could easily be remedied by removing the source of moisture and improving the ventilation to the cellar as well as removing decayed timbers.
 
The lender was happy with our rport and a mortage was approved with only a relatively small retention until the damp and timber repairs were carried out.
 
Russell Grove, Westbury Park, Bristol BS6 7UD – January 2012
 
This house was being sold as the previous elderly owners had died and being old they neglected the house and at the time of the mortgage survey being carried out was a bit run down. The surveyor stated that “the property appears to be in a poor condition and a you are advised to instruct a specialist damp-proofing and timber contractor to inspect the whole property and report on internal dampness and the condition of all timbers including the sub-floor” and placed a 100% retention on the mortgage and this prompted the Building Society to state “I would draw your attention to section 15, General Remarks and especially the paragraph relating to the damp and rot. Unfortunately until a specialist report has been completed on the property to establish the full extent of the problems and the cost for repair, the Society is unable to progress your application any further.”
 
We inspected the property and found that there was dampness in most of the external walls which had been caused by bridging of the original physical damp-proof course with a block paving drive and also block drains leading low-level moisture ingress and ‘rising damp’ internally. The raised ground had also block air bricks leading to a build up of water vapour under the floor and dampness and wet rot in sub-floor timbers. We provided a report stating that provided these defects were repaired and the fabric of the property was well maintained there was very little risk of dampness and decay re-occurring and there was no need for any chemical damp-proofing or timber treatments.
 
The Building Society accepted our findings and granted the mortgage with a more acceptable retention figure of £5,000 until the damp and timber repairs and other works were carried out.
 
Maple Street, Sheerness, Isle of Sheppey, KENT ME12 1XH – December 2011
 
Our client was in the process of buying this terraced house in Sheerness and the mortgage survey picked up dampness and possible timber decay and recommended further investigation and a Gillingham based damp-proofing company carried out a free damp and timber survey then recommended the installation of a chemical damp-proof course and water-proof plastering at a cost of £4,500.The Building Society duly placed a retention on the mortgage until these damp-proofing works were carried out.
 
We found that there was only minor dampness which had been caused by bridging of the original slate damp-proof course which could be remedied by reducing ground levels externally to prevent further bridging and low-level moisture ingress.
 
These works have been priced at around £500.00 by a local builder so our client avoided having any damp-proofing works done and saved himself approximately £4,000, the retention was also lifted by the Building Society.
 
Church Lane, Wernffrwd, Swansea, West Glamorgan SA4 3TT – November 2011
 
This is a stone built property was built approximately 150 years ago, directly opposite St David’s Chapel near the marsh road, was built without a physical damp-proof course and a chemical damp-proof course together with waterproof plastering was retro-fitted during previous renovation works.
 
The damp-proofing hadn’t been totally successful, which is not surprising as injected damp-proof courses never work in stone walls and damp-proofing firms tend to rely on their waterproof render to hold back any dampness, and our client had tried to claim on the guarantee that had been issued by a local contractor. Unfortunately the contractor had died and the company had ceased trading and there was no GPI or CGS or other meaningful insured guarantee so our client then obtained quotes from various Swansea based damp-proofing companies who recommended damp-proofing to the whole of the cottage as well as chopping off all the plaster and doing the whole job again at a cost of roughly £10,000.00.
 
We found that the only reason for some of the dampness to re-appear was where the render had been finished flush with concrete flooring which allowed moisture to be drawn from below the floor to appear as rising damp in the plaster. We recommended that plaster should be chopped off at the base of the wall to prevent any capillary action which was causing the damp and the gap could then be covered with a skirting board.
 
Another contributory factor was the external render which was preventing moisture from evaporating. We suggested removing render at the base of the external walls to allow the masonry to breathe which would reduce dampness internally.
 
These works were undertaking for less than £1,000.00 so our client saved around £9,000 and solved the damp problem without resorting to unnecessary, expensive and disruptive chemical damp-proofing.
 
Crystal Palace Road, Dulwich, London SE22 9JJ – November 2011
 
This property was being sold through Acorn Estate Agents in Lordship Lane, Dulwich and our client had an offer accepted subject to survey.
 
The house had stood empty for a while and was starting to fall into disrepair so our client had a full building survey and the surveyor’s report highlighted the usual defects such as damp and timber decay and recommended damp-proofing and timber treatments costing around £6,000 even though the property was built with a slate damp-course and a chemical damp-roof course, together with associated water-proof rendering, had been installed within the last ten years.
 
We tested the damp walls with a Protimeter and high readings were recorded on the plaster but as these meters cannot be relied upon to be accurate on plaster we also took readings from the skirting fitted to the walls and these were well within acceptable limits. But to satisfy the bank that there was no damp in the wall we also took samples of brickwork and plaster and used a Speedy Carbide meter on site to determine the true moisture content. Samples are put in a sealed container and calcium carbide is added which reacts with moisture in the plaster or brick dust and produces acetylene gas in proportion to the amount f water in the sample and this is read directly from a gauge. The average moisture content from the samples was less than 5% which is considered dry for building materials and the bank were satisfied with our report and a mortgage was granted without any retention.
 
Tyler Street, Greenwich, London SE10 9EY – October 2011
 
Our client was selling this mid-terrace house which had been built with a slate damp-proof course which was still effective and a chemical damp-proof course together with associated waterproof plastering had also been installed.
 
The mortgage survey picked up dampness and a free survey was carried out by a Plumstead based damp-proofing company who also said that rising damp was present and damp-proofing works costing around £2,500.00 were required.
 
We tested the damp walls with a Protimeter and high readings were recorded on the plaster but as these meters are not accurate on plaster we also took readings from the skirting fitted to the walls and these were well within acceptable limits. In order to prove that there was no dampness in the wall we also took samples of the brickwork and plaster and dried them in a moisture balance (Adams AMB 50) which weighs samples before and after drying with a halogen heater to give a precise moisture content. The average moisture content by drying was found to be less than 4% and this satisfied both the buyer and his lender that no damp-proofing works were required and the sale went through soon after.
 
East End Lane, Adderbury, Banbury, Oxfordshire, OX17 3NW – October 2011
 
This is a stone built mid-terrace house cottage close to Adderbury Lakes off the Aynho Road and as the date of construction was around 1750 would not have had a damp-proof course fitted when built.
 
Our client had bought the property recently and a condition of the mortgage offer was to have a damp and timber report carried out with any necessary damp-proofing and timber treatments works being carried out within six months. A succession of damp-proofing firms from Oxford, Banbury and Bicester provided free damp and timber surveys and they all came to the same conclusion that the only remedy was the installation of an injected damp-proof course with waterproof plastering and chemical timber treatments at costs varying from five to six thousand pounds which would be unsuitable.
 
Trying to inject a chemical damp-proof course stone walls is a waste of time and money as they rarely work and the application of a dense waterproof render as part of the ‘damp-proofing system’ offered by most damp-proofing companies tends to make things worse as instead of allowing the walls to breathe naturally the render stops moisture from evaporating and just causes any dampness to rise higher up the wall and emerge above the damp-proof plaster.
 
We recommended the lowering of ground levels to prevent moisture ingress at the base of affected walls and the installation of extra air bricks to promote better sub-floor ventilation which helps to remove moisture from floor voids which otherwise could condense on exposed masonry and travel up the wall by capillary action to appear as rising damp internally. The improved sub-floor ventilation would also dry out floor timbers to a level at which decay or infestation was unsustainable and therefore chemical timber treatments were also not justifiable.
 
The mortgage provider was happy with our explanation of why an injected damp-proof course would not work and accepted our report along with our recommendations of a more holistic, environmentally friendly approach to the control of rising damp. The works were carried out by a local builder at a cost of around £500.00 saving our client around £5,000.00.
 
Shrewsbury Street, Glossop, Derbyshire, SK13 7AN – October 2011
 
This is a stone built end of terrace house which was bought by auction through Edward Mellor Estate Agents in Stockport.
The house had been neglected and was starting to fall into disrepair so the lender requested various reports before a mortgage was granted. One of these was a damp and timber report which was first undertaken by a damp-proofing and timber treatments company from Buxton. They recommended the installation of a chemical damp-proof course, water-proof plastering and timber treatment throughout the house at a cost of over £8,000.00 and a retention was put on the mortgage until these works were completed.
 
Injected damp-proof course are rarely effective in stone walls as the damp-proofing usually runs away in the rubble infill and most damp-proofing firms will rely on a waterproof render to hold back the damp. We found that most of the damp was due to low-level moisture ingress at the base of the walls which no amount of damp-proofing would stop and we recommended the installation of a drainage channel at the base of walls to allow rainwater to drain away before it can be absorbed into walls. Internally, instead of using a waterproof render we specified the use of Walltransform, a dual purpose damp-proofing and insulating plaster, which allows walls to breathe and also prevents heat loss. Chemical timber treatment was also avoided by the installation of extra air bricks which will reduce the moisture content of floor timbers to a level at which fungal decay and woodworm infestation are not sustainable.
 
The Building Society accepted our report and the retention was lifted on the undertaking that works recommended by us were carried out within 6 months. Our client estimated that these works would cost him around £2,000.00, a saving of over £6,000.00 on the original estimate.
 
Drummond Terrace, North Shields, Tyne & Wear NE30 2AF – September 2011
 
Dampness was detected during a mortgage survey and a Newcastle based damp-proofing company undertook a free survey for the buyers and said that damp-proofing and plastering was need on all ground floor walls and provided a quote for £4,000.00 for the job
The houses in this part of North Shields were built around 1920 and have an asphalt damp-proof course fitted during the construction process. Asphalt used to be delivered on site in blocks weighing around half a hundredweight ( roughly 25kg ) and then heated and poured onto brick walls, which had been built up to damp-course height, between wooden battens fitted at the front and rear of the wall. The asphalt used to be then floated with a trowel to the top of the battens and then pointed with mortar once the wall was finished to prevent it from being squeezed out and discolouring the brickwork. Asphalt forms and excellent damp-proof course as it is impermeable and virtually indestructible when in the wall and being flexible will not fracture if there is any movement or settlement of brickwork.
 
We only found a slight area of damp on the front bay where the asphalt damp-proof course had been partially bridged by a concrete hardstanding at the base of the wall which was allowing water to pond above the damp-proof course which was then absorbed into the brickwork. The offending section of concrete was removed by the homeowner at virtually no cost and the buyer and his Building Society were satisfied with our findings that no further damp-proofing works were required.
 
Normandy Road, St Albans, Hertfordshire AL3 5PT – August 2011
 
‘Rising damp’ was noted on the Building Society survey and the Estate Agent arranged a free survey through a Watford based damp-proofing and timber treatments company who recommended the installation of a chemical damp-proof course together with associated water-proof rendering at a cost of around £3,500.
 
We found that the slate damp-proof course which was fitted when the house was built was still effective in stopping rising dampness from the ground and the only damp that we found was where the damp-course had been bridged where the path on an adjoining property had bridged the damp course allowing moisture ingress at the base of the wall which migrated through the brickwork to appear as ‘rising damp’ internally. No damp-proofing works were required and we recommended the installation of a drainage channel along the affected section of wall to remove the moisture reservoir effect and allow rainwater to drain away before it could be absorbed into the brickwork. These works were undertaking by a local builder who charged les than £500 for the work saving our client around £3,000.00.
 
Meadfield Road, Langley, Slough, Berkshire SL3 8HW – July 2011
 
A free survey was obtained from a Slough based damp-proofing and timber treatment company through the selling agents, Frost Partnership, who are based just round the corner from the house. The free damp survey, required as part of the mortgage deal, said that there was no physical damp-proof course and recommended an injected damp-proof course plus water proof rendering to all the external walls plus woodworm treatment just to be on the safe side-Total cost £2,800.00.
 
Our survey found that there was damp on the outside walls of the house which was built in late 19th century but it should have had a physical damp-course but this was not visible. Ground levels had been raised which covered the damp course but we dug down a foot or so to locate the it and this was made of bitumen which would have been pored onto the bricks during construction. Bitumen damp-proof courses are still effective in controlling rising damp from the ground so no damp-proofing works were required and we recommended that the ground levels should be lowered so that there was a gap of around 150mm ( six inches) between the ground and the damp proof course. Internally only minor repairs were required to the plaster and our client’s. The Building Society were happy with our report and lifted the retention from the mortgage. The client did the work himself so after paying £250 for a mini damp and timber survey he saved himself over £2,500.00 and avoid all the mess and disruption of chemical damp-proofing and associated plastering works.
 
Leatherhead Road, Malden Rushett, Chessington,SURREY KT9 2NQ – June 2011
 
The mortgage survey picked up dampness and possible timber decay as part of their inspection on this brick built cottage built around 1890 and recommended a further inspection by a damp and timber specialist. The estate agent arranged a free survey from an Epsom based damp-proofing and timber treatment company. They agreed with the surveyor and said that an injected damp-proof course costing £1,200.00 and timber treatment costing £800.00 were both required to in order to give a 20 year guarantee.
 
Our survey found that there was virtually no damp and that there was a still functioning slate damp-proof course at the base of all the walls. The only minor dampness we found was on the flank wall where the damp course was partially bridged where a concrete path had been laid, we also lifted floorboards to check timbers abutting ‘damp’ walls and found that there was no fungal decay or woodworm infestation and no timber treatments were required. The damp was easily fixed by excavating a drainage channel along the wall and then fitting a damp-proof membrane along the exposed brickwork before back-filling the excavation with shingle. The Building Society were happy with our report and granted a mortgage without any stipulation for damp-proofing or timber treatments.
 
The Green, West Cornforth, Ferryhill, Durham DL17 9JQ – June 2011
 
Our client was just in the process of buying this stone built cottage which is just off the A1 and overlooks the green in West Cornforth just down from the Square & Compass pub. The mortgage survey picked up dampness in most of the outside walls and a free survey/quote was obtained from a Sunderland based damp-proofing & timber treatment company. They recommended the installation of a chemical damp-proof course and water-proof plastering costing roughly £4,500.00. Injected damp-proof courses may be partially successful in brickwork but trying to inject a damp-proof course into a stone wall is a waste of time and money as it never works with the damp-proofing fluid just flooding the rubble infill and not having damp-proofing effect. A lot of damp-proofing companies will tell you that stone walls can be injected with a damp-proof course successfully but that is never the case and they just rely on a dense waterproof render to hold back any dampness and then claim that the damp-proofing has worked.
 
We found that most of the damp was due to low-level moisture ingress, due to water ponding at the base of external walls, which travelled through the wall by capillary action to appear as ‘rising damp’ internally and this was easily remedied by the installation of drainage channels which allowed rainwater to drain away effectively and remove the ‘moisture reservoir’ condition that had created the rising damp. The cost of these works was around £1,200.00 and we were able to issue a guarantee against the recurrence of rising damp which our client used to satisfy the mortgage requirements of his bank.
 
Natal Road, Streatham, South London SW16 6JA – June 2011
 
This house had just been bought and the Bank required a damp survey within six months of completion so that£3,000 retention could be released. The estate agent obtained a free survey from a Battersea based damp-proofing and timber treatment company who recommended damp-proofing and water-proof plastering works costing nearly £2,700.00. Our survey found that the house was built with a still functioning slate damp-proof course and the cause for the dampness was due to partial bridging of the damp-proof course and blocking of air bricks. Water penetrating at the base of the wall above the original damp-proof course can travel up the wall by capillary action to appear as ‘rising damp’ internally but usually no damp-proofing works are required and we recommended that the ground levels should be reduced 150mm below the slate damp-proof course and also that air bricks were unblocked. This work was undertaken by a local builder at a cost of around £500 and we then re-inspected the property and provided a guarantee against the recurrence of rising damp which enabled our client to get their retention released.
 
Wellington Road, Norwich NR2 3HT – May 2011
 
This house was going through the sale process when the surveyor identified dampness in some walls and asked for further investigation into possible rising dampness and timber decay. The buyer of the house requested a free survey from a Norwich based damp and timber treatment company and they said that damp-proofing was needed to all ground floor walls was needed as well as the removal of all wall plaster which was to be replaced with a waterproof sand/cement render. The total cost of this damp-proofing and plastering works was over £6,000.
Our survey found that there was some minor dampness on the front and rear walls which had been caused by low-level moisture ingress and also the lack of effective sub-floor ventilation. We recommended the lowering of external ground levels to prevent penetrating dampness and the installation of extra air bricks to improve the flow of air under the floor, which dries out timbers and also removes moisture from exposed sub-floor walls.
 
Our report satisfied our client’s lender and his mortgage was granted without any conditions for damp-proofing or timber treatment and there was no retention on the mortgage.
 
Aspley Lane, Aspley, Nottingham NG8 5RS – May 2011
 
This was another last-minute condition by the Building Society on a repossessed house which had fallen into disrepair and the survey stated
‘We noted high moisture meter readings to ground floor areas. It would be prudent to obtain the advice of a Property Care Association timber/damp-proofing firm on the extent of rising damp and condition of sub-floor and adjacent timbers.’
 
The property was built in the 1930’s and had a perfectly good damp course but had been occupied by low-life tenants who cultivated cannabis in every room of the house. This involved the use of lots of water and high temperature to promote growth of the plant and had resulted in chronic condensation dampness on walls and rot in the floors.
 
No damp-proofing or timber treatments were required and rapid drying with heavy duty dehumidifiers was all that was required apart from minor timber repairs.
 
Our report satisfied our client’s lender and his mortgage was granted without any conditions for damp-proofing or timber treatment and there was no retention on the mortgage
 
Chester Road, Dartmouth Park LONDON N19 5DF – May 2011
 
This was another mortgage survey on a converted basement and ground floor maisonette just up from the Star pub and close to both Archway and Tufnell Park tube stations
 
Dampness had been noted on basement walls and woodworm and fungal decay were also highlighted in the Building Society report. A free survey was carried out by a Cricklewood based damp-proofing firm who recommended the installation of a new damp-proof course and timber treatment at a cost of over £4,500.00.
 
Our survey found that there was no significant damp and no damp-proofing was required and that the decay was not active and timber treatment was not required. There had been some old woodworm in flooring and some large holes in some floorboards which the surveyor had mistaken for decay due to wet rot but was in fact due to the owners’ dog scratching and biting through the boards.
 
Treatment had previously been carried out a few years ago but the treatment firm had gone out of business but we were able to supply our client with an adopted guarantee against the recurrence of rising damp, woodworm or dry rot and this satisfied the Building Society and his mortgage was granted without any retention.
 
Barons Keep, Gliddon Road, Barons Court , LONDON W14 9AU – April 2011
 
Our client rang up in a bit of a panic as she was selling this 2 bedroom flat in an art-deco 1930’s block of flats just off Talgarth Road in West London.
 
The buyer had just had a survey done and was concerned about the dampness and decay after reading the section under the heading of ‘Dampness, rot & infestation’ which stated
 
‘Penetrating dampness is affecting isolated areas of the wall in the reception room, I suspect this is due to water penetration from the external metal staircase. Penetrating dampness is affecting the internal partition between the kitchen and bathroom. I suspect this is due to defective plumbing. Concealed timbers may be defective and floorboards in the affected are should be opened up and fully investigated.You now need to instruct a contactor to carry out an investigation to identify the full extent of the problem and the necessary repairs required, together with an estimate for the cost.’
 
We explained that surveyors often include these caveats in their survey reports and there shouldn’t be too much to worry about but she still asked us to carry out a damp and timber survey. I met the Estate Agent, Faron Sutoria ,at the property who told me that the block used to have some famous residents when it was first built and that Norman Wisdom, Hattie Jacques and Norman le Mesurier had all lived there at various times. I checked all the walls and timbers and the property was virtually bone dry with only a slight bit of damp on the kitchen side of the partition wall with the bathroom where the shower had been leaking. The leak had been repaired but the wall was still drying out and there was no risk of any fungal decay of surrounding timbers and no damp-proofing or timber treatment works were required.
 
The vendor was under a bit of pressure to get the report to the buyer so we emailed it to her the same day and the buyer was happy with our findings and proceeded to exchange on the property that day.
 
Marshfield Road, Fishponds, Bristol BS16 4BG –March 2011
 
This is a 3 bedroom semi-detached house on the Hillfields Park Housing Estate which was built in the 1930’s as Bristol expanded to accommodate workers from the nearby Elisha Smith Robinson paper and printing company and all the houses on the estate were built with a bitumen damp-proof course. The usual scenario panned out with this one. House was up for sale, price agreed and then the Building Society sent their surveyor in who recommended that a damp and timber survey be undertaken. Taylor’s Estate Agents on Fishponds Road arranged for a Bristol based damp-proofing company to carry out a free survey and they came back with an estimate for over £5,000. We were then asked to provide a second opinion and not surprisingly we found that there was no rising damp and that the existing physical damp-proof course was still effective in controlling rising dampness. Our client saved around £4,750.00 and the mortgage was granted without any retention being required.
 
Montgomery Road, Chiswick, West London W4 5LZ –March 2011
 
This is a three bedroom terraced house on the Acton Green Estate which is bordered by Bollo Lane, Acton Lane and the North London Link overground rail line. Originally this estate was deemed to be in Acton and was home to several laundries which led to it being named ‘Soap Suds Island’. Most of the laundries have now gone and there is now only one surviving in Antrobus Road.
 
These houses were built for laundry and other industrial workers of the time and were of quite poor stock but ever since Acton Green was annexed to Chiswick the area has become gentrified and the indigenous working class people of the area are getting forced out by escalating house prices. Another downside is that all the pubs are being changed to gastropubs and it is hard to go anywhere for a quiet pint apart from The Stag on Acton Lane.
 
The house we worked on was believed to be suffering from rising damp and our client, who was re-mortgaging the house, had a quote from an Ealing based damp-proofing company which recommended the installation of a chemical damp-proof course together with associated water-proof plastering. We found that the house had a perfectly good slate damp course and most of the damp was due to the lack of effective sub-floor ventilation which caused a build up water vapour under the floor and this condensed on the exposed brickwork then travelling up the wall by capillary action to appear as ‘rising damp’ internally. We fitted extra air bricks to provide a more robust flow of air under the floor and we have since been back to the property and found that the walls have dried out and the moisture content of sub-floor timber has also been reduced which lessens the risk of any fungal decay or woodworm infestation.
 
The cost of our works was less than a quarter of the price quoted for an injected damp-proof course and waterproof rendering and we were able to provide a long term guarantee for the Building Society.
 
Langham Road, Teddington TW11 9HG –October 2010
 
Our client was selling this house and the buyer’s surveyor had diagnosed ‘rising dampness’ when using a moisture meter in all the external walls and damp-proofing works at a cost of £3,800 were then recommended after a free damp survey by a Twickenham based damp-proofing specialist. Moisture meters are not calibrated for use on plaster so we took samples from the wall to determine the actual moisture content and after drying in a moisture balance (Adams AMB 50) the dampness level was found to be less than 4% which is considered dry for building materials and we were able to satisfy the buyer and the lenders that no damp-proofing works were required.
 
Brunel Street,Pillgwenlly, Newport NP20 2JT –September 2010
 
Newport never seemed to get finished before the Ryder Cup came to town and missed out on a lot of golf tourism as most spectators stayed in Cardiff or Bristol which is a shame as Newport is seen by a lot of people as being a bit rough especially down in Pill. However it does have some good things going for it, one being Diverse Music which is an excellent record shop stocking loads of new vinyl LP’s.
Anyway this property, near the famous Transporter Bridge over the River Usk, and was rented out and the tenants complained of dampness and mould in the kitchen and bathroom areas. Damp-proofing and replastering works at a cost of over £5,000 were recommended by a Cardiff based damp-proofing company when most of the dampness was due to chronic condensation, which was confirmed with hygrometer readings and dew point calculations. We installed a Drimaster PIV (Positive Input Ventilation) unit, supplied by Nuaire-Caerphilly, in the loft and an extract fan in the kitchen at a total cost of less than a thousand pounds. The condensation dampness was eliminated and the mould growth never returned after treatment with a fungicidal wash.
 
Maidcroft Road, Cowley,Oxford OX4 3EW –June 2010
 
This property was built around 1930 a had physical damp-proof course installed at the time of construction and was still effective in preventing any rising damp but a Reading based damp-proofing and timber treatment firm diagnosed ‘rising dampness due to the failure of the existing damp-proof course’ and recommended damp-proofing together with associated replastering at a cost of over £4,000. We found that the dampness was due to low level moisture ingress caused by slightly raised ground level at the front of the house which was rectified by the installation of a drainage channel at the base of the wall. The cost of this work was less than £500.00 and as well as saving over £3,500 there was no mess and upheaval internally.
 
Westfields Avenue, Barnes, London SW13 0AY –February 2009
 
Our client was in the process of buying this 2 bedroom terraced house in this popular area of South West London which is famous for, among other things, the Bulls Head pub which is one of London’s top jazz venues where I often go to watch the brilliant but ever-so miserable Alan Price. A large mortgage was needed and the mortgage surveyor picked up a number of damp and timber defects and a free damp/timber survey was obtained via the Estate Agent with a Wandsworth based damp-proofing and timber treatment company which came back not surprisingly recommendations for damp-proofing and timber treatment throughout at a cost of around £3,500.
 
Our client was familiar with this free damp survey ( which is really a free damp-proofing estimate) approach and therefore commissioned us to check the alleged dampness and timber defects. We found that there was slight dampness caused by the damp course being bridged at the front of the property which could be alleviated by reducing the ground level and that there was no active woodworm or decay and no treatments were required. We were running a special offer at the time and the damp and timber survey just cost £200 and the client was able to get his mortgage without having the previously recommended remedial works carried out.
 
Brooklands Terrace, Cwmcarn, Newport, Gwent NP11 7EA–February 2009
 
This property had been repossessed and had been empty for a few months before it was sold and surveys were carried out .Dampness was picked up in the survey and a local damp-proofing firm carried out a free survey and recommended that a new damp course together with associated re-plastering works be installed to all the ground floor walls and on the strength of this a £5,000 retention was put on the mortgage.
 
Our client thought that these works were expensive, disruptive and also avoidable so asked us for a second opinion. We found that the property had been damp-proofed only a couple of years before and that the damp-course was working satisfactorily. The only damp found was due to surface condensation which would dissipate when the property was occupied and was properly heated and ventilated.
 
The Building Society accepted our survey as proof of the integrity of the house in respect of dampness and the retention was lifted and a full mortgage granted.