The damp continues...

[Brad93]

Foamed the gaps round all the windows and stuck new trims on, the silicone any open edges to seal rain out.

No damp now in spare room (yet to be plastered) now.

Still got damp/condensation problem in our bedroom.

Any thoughts. Could it be from the flat roof or dodgy old pebble dash?

The window frame is full of water, there’s water running down the wall in the mornings. Lost for ideas now.

 

[rtbcomp]

What type of construction are the walls (I assume they're outside walls where the problem is).

 

[Brad93]

@roofman what can I do about that lead flashing that appears to be silicone’d onto the wall

 

[Brad93]

What type of construction are the walls (I assume they're outside walls where the problem is).

Yes outside wall with extension, flat roof.
Crappy cinder block, no cavity, house built 1926 from the finger writing I’ve found in render on the gable in loft.

 

[gaz1]

@roofman what can I do about that lead flashing that appears to be silicone’d onto the wall

you cant tell from those pics

however if silicone on the lead is done correctly it should be fine as its flexible enough with some movement other way is to cement the lead up

brad cant really tell from those photos however other pics of your house might show some light to your problems

query is the water inside of the frame or inbetween the window glass it apears inside of the frame

remember that room can be drying out now that you have found the problem and cured it which might take a while to do so

as other walls in the house with damp running on it theres no point going here it is when not explaining where it is and if theres anything else around it causing the issue we can only clutch at strays saying it could be all the time

 

[rtcosic]

The room is occupied. Have you ruled out condensation? Is the room well ventilated? Is the room heated all night when occupied?

You say it is an old single leaf extension so walls will be very cold.

We have modern insulated cavity and decent double glazing, but if the mechanical ventilation system fails then the windows in our bedroom are running with condensation and there is standing water on the window frame. We don't have any water ingress or 'damp'.

Apologies in advance if I'm teaching my grandmother to suck eggs here, but I have given up explaining to my sister-in-law why her modern house has 'damp' in winter and ours does not.

She keeps windows closed throughout the winter, has closed all the window ventilation slots, doesn't use her cooker hood, drapes clothes over radiators etc etc!

We lose nearly 1 litre of water per person per day into the atmosphere. She adds several more litres from cooking and drying clothes.

 

[Brad93]

you cant tell from those pics

however if silicone on the lead is done correctly it should be fine as its flexible enough with some movement other way is to cement the lead up

brad cant really tell from those photos however other pics of your house might show some light to your problems

query is the water inside of the frame or inbetween the window glass it apears inside of the frame

remember that room can be drying out now that you have found the problem and cured it which might take a while to do so

as other walls in the house with damp running on it theres no point going here it is when not explaining where it is and if theres anything else around it causing the issue we can only clutch at strays saying it could be all the time

Just in this room where we have the damp mate. No where else.

 

[Rocketman]

Personally I would use insulated plaster board to create the effect of a cavity wall on 1920's solid walls. That in itself will help to stop a lot of warm air hitting cold walls and drop the heating bill massively.

You need ventilation in a room though especially if several people are spending a lot of time in there as others have suggested. Open trickle vents on windows as and when needed. I have them open in bathrooms, kitchen and lounge all the time.

Another thing is if the window is really exposed to driving cold it may well benefit from a triple glazed panel. This again will reduce the warm hit cold surface and reduce condensation.

In my parents house with solid brick walls that saw the worst of cold they were treated to internal insulation and it worked pretty well in those rooms. Mold was virtually eliminated.

 

[Brad93]

I think the best thing to do will be have a walk round with the camera first thing tomorrow morning.

Yes the afflicted room is our bedroom.

Heating goes off at 9PM but it’s never a warm room anyway (think we need new radiators or a good bleed).
It’s about 15ftx8ft.

Unfortunately no trickle vents on windows and dare not leave window open over night due to flat room and area we live in.

The room next door now has no issues. Since I filled the gap with foam there is no damp on the reveals.

The glazing units do get water inside so they’re obviously blown. But the frame gets full of water, even on the small fanlight window, when you open that water comes dripping out of the PVC frame from the small hole in picture.

We’ve moved everything away from the walls. Scrubbed the mold off two weeks ago. Ran dehumidifier for 3 days took 15L of water out.
Too expensive to run continuously.

 

[Brad93]

Personally I would use insulated plaster board to create the effect of a cavity wall on 1920's solid walls. That in itself will help to stop a lot of warm air hitting cold walls and drop the heating bill massively.

You need ventilation in a room though especially if several people are spending a lot of time in there as others have suggested. Open trickle vents on windows as and when needed. I have them open in bathrooms, kitchen and lounge all the time.

Another thing is if the window is really exposed to driving cold it may well benefit from a triple glazed panel. This again will reduce the warm hit cold surface and reduce condensation.

In my parents house with solid brick walls that saw the worst of cold they were treated to internal insulation and it worked pretty well in those rooms. Mold was virtually eliminated.

Is there not an issue of damp then being between the wall and the insulated plaster board?

 

[Seadog]

Just in this room where we have the damp

Stop breathing

 

[gaz1]

the window seals look shot and need replacing

pic 2,3 and 4 show this this is to seal your window to the frame take a good look at your hinges as these can provide the answer to not shutting properly

unless you provide further pics of that room cant advise enough

take some photos outside stood on the roof where window is and off angle to it

also the roof above can be leaking onto the frame

another point is theres no water escape for any excessive water within the window frame new frames have a drill hole through them but this also depends on your window sill type thats fitted it appears like theres a gap under frame but they might not be

Yes outside wall with extension, flat roof.
Crappy cinder block, no cavity, house built 1926 from the finger writing I’ve found in render on the gable in loft.

you have to cause damage to see what the problem is if thats the wall where the window is id be going through the side where the window is

it could have that insulation blown in crap that could be the main cause of your problem outside leaking and then bridging the gap due to the insulation and then pooring down your walls

 

[Gareth J]

I once rented a room in an old ~20s house like that. My bedroom had 3external walls and it was horrible. Uninsulated aluminium window frame too. Heating it was futile and, in the winter, the walls would rain.

Think I'd be looking into creating a small cavity and lining it. The wall dampness shouldn't be so bad once insulated as the cavity will be much less humid and you can allow some airflow (into the loft?) to keep it cool/dry.

 

[aguycalledsteve]

I had a similar issue in a bedroom I let to a lodger. They would spend all night (and most of the day too) with the door closed and the windows closed. Funnily enough the damp & condensation issue stopped when they moved out.

 

[Rocketman]

Is there not an issue of damp then being between the wall and the insulated plaster board?

That is dependent on the problem. If the walls experience water ingress yes it will cause a problem. If the walls problem is from warm air hitting the cold walls no it won't.

So old stone wall houses with lime mortar worked on breathing so you probably wouldn't do it with them unless you put ventilation into a cavity behind the plasterboard.

You may want to consult the manufacturer outlining method of build of your walls and ask if it is suitable on the external exposed walls to have the insulated plasterboard.

 

[roofman]

you cant tell from those pics

however if silicone on the lead is done correctly it should be fine as its flexible enough with some movement other way is to cement the lead up

brad cant really tell from those photos however other pics of your house might show some light to your problems

query is the water inside of the frame or inbetween the window glass it apears inside of the frame

remember that room can be drying out now that you have found the problem and cured it which might take a while to do so

as other walls in the house with damp running on it theres no point going here it is when not explaining where it is and if theres anything else around it causing the issue we can only clutch at strays saying it could be all the time

If i see my lads using Silicone on my jobs i send them home..horrid stuff.

 

[addjunkie]

In my last house, all the upvc window frames had drain holes in the bottom, not sure if this was to allow condensation or or leakage, oddly the frames are hollow with no insulation.

If you want to introduce an air flow those window latches are designed to latch about 5mm open.

If you dont sleep in the room, do the walls still get damp. If they dont or are not as bad your issue is condensation.

Id also be looking at your gutters, and the felt below youre bottom rows of roof tiles.

A product called leadmate is better than silicone for sealing a gap above flashing.

I used insulated plasterboard in my place, that was very damp, and no issues now.

 

[brightspark]

If its the coldest room in the house that's where all the condensation will collect. if its heated to a reasonable amount and you fit a 4 inch humidistat fan in it for ventilation and leave door open it should clear it

 

[TechnicAl]

My lads house had similar issues until we installed the vents....disappeared straight away....you need air circulation

 

[KaneH]

If you’re planning on being there a while I’d be looking at strapping and lining with insulated plasterboard as mentioned above. You’ll need to retrofit some brick/weep vents however to avoid interstitial condensation in the cavity. It would also be worth fitting a vent/fan to deal with humidity in the room once the lining has been installed