Damp proofing in Sittingbourne? Get an independent survey first

Why the survey comes before damp proofing in Sittingbourne

A free damp survey in Sittingbourne is usually a sales visit with a meter. The meter reads high on a wall that is wet for any reason, and on salts in old plaster even when the wall is dry, so a high reading proves very little. An independent survey finds the cause, and only the cause tells you whether damp proofing is the remedy at all.

The Sittingbourne quote we see most often is chemical injection on a Victorian terrace with a metre of sand and cement replastering, often with a waterproof additive. On stock brick, that combination seals the inside face of a wall that may already have been sealed outside by cement pointing. The wall stays wet, salts collect at the edge of the new plaster and the damp line moves up.

Injection, tanking, membranes: what they are for

Injection is for rising damp: groundwater drawn up a wall that has no working course. Tanking and cavity drain membranes are for walls below ground that hold back soil and water, such as cellars and basements. Salt resistant replastering is for walls where years of damp have left salts in the old plaster. Ventilation is for condensation. A quote that applies one of them to the wrong problem will fail however well it is installed.

In Sittingbourne the commonest mismatch we see is injection and a cement based replaster on a wall whose real trouble is outside: open joints, raised ground or a leaking downpipe. Fix those and the wall often dries without anything being injected at all.

Sittingbourne walls, and what they actually need

Yellow stock brick in lime needs to breathe. That means lime or breathable plaster inside, lime pointing outside, ground and paths kept below the course, and downpipes discharging into drains rather than at the wall. The newer homes need their ventilation working and their junctions detailed properly.

Sittingbourne lies on brickearth and London Clay sloping gently down to the Swale, with Milton Creek cutting into the town from the north. The creek side and the marsh edges are low and wet, with a high water table and tidal influence. Clay drains slowly, so gardens stay wet in winter and water lingers at the base of walls. To the south, the land rises onto the chalk of the Downs at Borden and Tunstall, where drainage is much better.

• Raking out cement pointing and repointing stock brick in lime
• Replacing sand and cement or gypsum plaster on solid walls with lime or a breathable lightweight plaster
• Lowering yards and paths and improving drainage on clay
• Fixing conservatory and extension junctions on newer homes

Brickearth, brick and the right mortar

Sittingbourne's yellow stocks were made from local brickearth with chalk and ash mixed in, fired in clamps, and laid in lime. They are relatively soft and porous by modern standards, which is fine as long as the mortar is softer still and the wall can dry. A hard cement repoint reverses that relationship, and moisture leaves through the face of the brick, which then spalls in frost.

The repair is to rake out the cement carefully, so as not to damage the arrises of the brick, and repoint in a lime mortar. Inside, sand and cement or gypsum plaster should be replaced with lime or a breathable lightweight plaster. Combined with dealing with raised ground and leaking downpipes, that resolves most low level damp in the town's terraces without any injected course.

Damp proofing done properly, in the right order

• Find the cause: measure, look outside, rule the alternatives in or out
• Fix the cheap external faults first and give the wall time to respond
• Only then, if a yellow stock brick or brick wall is still wet at low level with no working course, consider a new damp proof course
• Replaster with materials that suit the wall: lime on old solid walls, never cement on soft brick or stone
• Ventilate and heat so the wall can dry, and check it again after a season
• Keep the paperwork: diagnosis, specification, guarantee and the readings after

Questions to put to anyone quoting

• Why is this wall wet, and what is the evidence?
• Have you checked the ground level, gutters and pointing outside, and what did you find?
• Would the damp stop if those were fixed, and how do you know it would not?
• Why this height of replastering, and why this material?
• What exactly does the guarantee cover if the damp comes back in this Sittingbourne house?
• Can I have the survey in writing before I decide?

When a damp proof course is the right answer

We are not against damp proofing. We are against it being the default. When a Sittingbourne wall has no working course, sits on damp ground and stays wet after the outside has been put right, a damp proof course and suitable replastering is the right job, and the report will say that and specify it.

Our survey fees are published on the prices page and fixed before we visit. Set against a damp proofing job on a Sittingbourne house, which typically runs to several times that once plaster removal and making good are included, the survey is small. When it shows that a wall needs a gutter repair rather than an injected course, it pays for itself several times over.

Sittingbourne is a popular place to buy, with fast trains to London and a wide range of homes. Homebuyer reports on the Victorian terraces regularly mention damp, and often it is salts, cement or ground level rather than a failed course. An independent survey before exchange tells you which, and whether the repair is a weekend with a shovel or a proper job.

The report is yours to use as you like: to compare quotes, to put to a seller or landlord, or simply to know. We take no commission and recommend no contractor, so you choose who does any work in Sittingbourne, and we will read their quote against the report if you ask.

For the full picture of what a survey here involves, see damp surveys in Sittingbourne.

Around Sittingbourne

Town centre and Murston

Victorian and Edwardian stock brick terraces. Cement repointing, raised yards and rear additions account for most surveys.

Milton Regis and the creek

The old town, with timber framed and weatherboarded buildings on low ground. Breathable repairs and groundwater are the main themes.

Kemsley, Iwade and the newer estates

Housing from the last forty years. Mould, ventilation and junction details at extensions and conservatories make up most of the work.

Damp proofing questions in Sittingbourne

Nearby

• Damp proofing in Faversham
• Damp proofing in Gillingham
• Damp proofing in Chatham

Book a survey before you pay for damp proofing

An independent survey before you pay for damp proofing in Sittingbourne. Fixed fee, same day reply, written report within 24 hours.

Book a Survey or call 07386 225526