I've just treated two walls in my cellar with a product called Dryzone. It's
a resin system and it's a lot easier than renting a machine and pumping in
liquid. Basically you drill holes 100mm apart along the mortar line (which
is easier than into the brick) and then squeeze in this cream stuff with a
thing like a mastic gun. I only had one brick thickness in the party wall,
but if you have a cavity then obviously you need to do the outside as well.

http://www.safeguardchem.com

The downside is the gun and tubes are quite expensive but I thought it was
really good and seems to have worked.




"Geoff" wrote in message
om...
I'm handy with most jobs but haven't treated damp myself before.
Kitchen wall has rising damp.

I'm going to drill size 12 holes into the wall and inject a damp proof
treatment. It's a Victorian house and has double walls - do I keep
drilling though to the internal brick wall as well (obviously not all
the way through) Or do I just get to the gap and inject into there?

A friend had the work done (he's in Bedford) and couldn't believe it
when he paid hundreds of pounds and the bloke came around and drilled
the holes, put in the filler, and left almost as quickly as he
arrived. The holes drilled there were about 50cm apart. From what I've
read, that's too far apart. Has he been diddled, or is a little
knowledge worth that much these days?

I won't do the internal re-plastering though. The previous occupant
already made a hash of that. What sort of quote should I expect (in
London) for replastering - 1.5, high (to be safe) x 2 metres wide?
I'll take the existing plaster off myself (anything else I can do
before the plasterer arrives to make his life easier and mine
cheaper?)

Thanks.

Geoff.

I'm handy with most jobs but haven't treated damp myself before.
Kitchen wall has rising damp.

I'm going to drill size 12 holes into the wall and inject a damp proof
treatment. It's a Victorian house and has double walls - do I keep
drilling though to the internal brick wall as well (obviously not all
the way through) Or do I just get to the gap and inject into there?

A friend had the work done (he's in Bedford) and couldn't believe it
when he paid hundreds of pounds and the bloke came around and drilled
the holes, put in the filler, and left almost as quickly as he
arrived. The holes drilled there were about 50cm apart. From what I've
read, that's too far apart. Has he been diddled, or is a little
knowledge worth that much these days?

I won't do the internal re-plastering though. The previous occupant
already made a hash of that. What sort of quote should I expect (in
London) for replastering - 1.5, high (to be safe) x 2 metres wide?
I'll take the existing plaster off myself (anything else I can do
before the plasterer arrives to make his life easier and mine
cheaper?)

Thanks.

Geoff.

I'm handy with most jobs but haven't treated damp myself before.
Kitchen wall has rising damp.

Make sure you need to do this. You may find it just as effective to dig away
the earth from the wall and pour in some gravel. What are the exact symptoms
you are getting?

Christian.

On Tue, 16 Mar 2004 12:43:51 -0000, "Christian McArdle"
wrote:

I'm handy with most jobs but haven't treated damp myself before.
Kitchen wall has rising damp.

Make sure you need to do this. You may find it just as effective to dig away
the earth from the wall and pour in some gravel. What are the exact symptoms
you are getting?

Also check for things like broken guttering outside as this can cause
damp problems, especially on walls with no cavity.

sPoNiX

(Geoff) wrote in message . com...
I'm handy with most jobs but haven't treated damp myself before.
Kitchen wall has rising damp.

I'm going to drill size 12 holes into the wall and inject a damp proof
treatment. It's a Victorian house and has double walls - do I keep
drilling though to the internal brick wall as well (obviously not all
the way through) Or do I just get to the gap and inject into there?

A friend had the work done (he's in Bedford) and couldn't believe it
when he paid hundreds of pounds and the bloke came around and drilled
the holes, put in the filler, and left almost as quickly as he
arrived. The holes drilled there were about 50cm apart. From what I've
read, that's too far apart. Has he been diddled, or is a little
knowledge worth that much these days?

I won't do the internal re-plastering though. The previous occupant
already made a hash of that. What sort of quote should I expect (in
London) for replastering - 1.5, high (to be safe) x 2 metres wide?
I'll take the existing plaster off myself (anything else I can do
before the plasterer arrives to make his life easier and mine
cheaper?)

Thanks.

Geoff.

I wouldnt do anything until youre much clearer about all of this. For
a start probably the majority of these jobs dont need doing, since
there are other preferable effective ways to achieve dryness. I could
be wrong but it doesnt look like you know either what the cause of the
problem is nor what the solution is at this point.

Regards, NT

Geoff wrote in message
om...
I'm handy with most jobs but haven't treated damp myself before.
Kitchen wall has rising damp.

I'm going to drill size 12 holes into the wall and inject a damp proof
treatment. It's a Victorian house and has double walls - do I keep
drilling though to the internal brick wall as well (obviously not all
the way through) Or do I just get to the gap and inject into there?

As others have said conditions other then Rising damp can cause damp walls.
You need to be sure of the cause before wasting your money on chemical DPC
that even with ideal bricks/mortars (Victorian, London, I don't think so)
have a limited life.
*IF* you do have rising damp and go for the Chem-DPC be aware that the
internal walls will have taken up salts from the ground, and will need a
cement render with a water-proof salt inhibiting ad-mix (which must dry)
before any re-plastering can take place, if you expect this to work.

In article , Geoff
writes
I'm handy with most jobs but haven't treated damp myself before.
Kitchen wall has rising damp.

What makes you think it is rising damp?

I'm going to drill size 12 holes into the wall and inject a damp proof
treatment. It's a Victorian house and has double walls - do I keep
drilling though to the internal brick wall as well (obviously not all
the way through) Or do I just get to the gap and inject into there?

By "double walls" do you mean a one-brick wall (i.e. nine inches thick)
or a cavity wall - unusual in a Victorian house.

A friend had the work done (he's in Bedford) and couldn't believe it
when he paid hundreds of pounds and the bloke came around and drilled
the holes, put in the filler, and left almost as quickly as he
arrived.

Did he ride his horse into the sunset?

The holes drilled there were about 50cm apart. From what I've
read, that's too far apart. Has he been diddled, or is a little
knowledge worth that much these days?

In the days when people used to have injected DPCs, the aim was to
inject each and every brick until the fluid wet the entire front of the
brick and oozed out of the mortar. In a cavity wall you do the near wall
first by drilling halfway into the brick, then drill all the way through
and halfway into the inner brick and inject the same amount of fluid.

I won't do the internal re-plastering though. The previous occupant
already made a hash of that.

In a Victorian house the mortar will be lime-based, so the plaster
should be as well. Indeed if the previous occupant has used gypsum
plaster that may be why you think you have "rising damp".

What sort of quote should I expect (in
London) for replastering - 1.5, high (to be safe) x 2 metres wide?

As much as they think they can get out of you.

I'll take the existing plaster off myself (anything else I can do
before the plasterer arrives to make his life easier and mine
cheaper?)

Learn to plaster. Its much easier with lime plaster than with gypsum as
you have several hours to push it around before it goes off. Put battens
on the wall, and level up to them with a straight edge, then skim the
following day with a finishing coat.

J.
--
John Rouse

(Geoff) wrote in message . com...

I'm going to drill size 12 holes into the wall and inject a damp proof
treatment. It's a Victorian house and has double walls - do I keep
drilling though to the internal brick wall as well (obviously not all
the way through) Or do I just get to the gap and inject into there?

the idea is to saturate each brick, so its useless to inject into the
wall cavity.

A friend had the work done (he's in Bedford) and couldn't believe it
when he paid hundreds of pounds and the bloke came around and drilled
the holes, put in the filler, and left almost as quickly as he
arrived. The holes drilled there were about 50cm apart. From what I've
read, that's too far apart. Has he been diddled, or is a little
knowledge worth that much these days?

The correct way is to do 2 holes in each brick. The popular way is one
hole per brick, but this ups the failure rate. One hole oer 50cm? I
dont think so! Not unless youve got very very large bricks.

Regards, NT

John Rouse wrote in message ...

By "double walls" do you mean a one-brick wall (i.e. nine inches thick)
or a cavity wall - unusual in a Victorian house.

Myth alert. There are lots of Victorians with cavity walls. Half inch
cavity was a popular standard. The cavity was to reduce dampness, not
for insulation, so half inch was all that was needed. There are lots
of solid wall Vics, but also many cavity wall ones too.

There is also ratbond brickwork, which was a 4" cavity type of wall
used in Vic times. The bricks were used on their sides to reduce brick
count, and in a specific pattern which gives a bridged 4" cavity
construction.


Learn to plaster. Its much easier with lime plaster than with gypsum as
you have several hours to push it around before it goes off. Put battens
on the wall, and level up to them with a straight edge, then skim the
following day with a finishing coat.

Ah, should beginners try lime rather than gypsum?


Regards, NT

Myth alert. There are lots of Victorians with cavity walls. Half inch
cavity was a popular standard. The cavity was to reduce dampness, not
for insulation, so half inch was all that was needed. There are lots
of solid wall Vics, but also many cavity wall ones too.

Yes, my parent's 1890s house is very unusual. There is a different
construction on every floor.

lower ground floor: double brick, cavity, single brick
upper ground floor: triple brick
1st floor: double brick
2nd floor: single brick

At the floor level on every set of stairs, there is either a "ramp" or a
useful shelf as the wall gets thinner. I strongly suspect the lower ground
floor cavity is due to the fact that this floor is half buried in the
hillside.

Christian.

In article , Christian
McArdle writes
Yes, my parent's 1890s house is very unusual. There is a different
construction on every floor.

lower ground floor: double brick, cavity, single brick

I assume that by double brick you mean 1 brick and by single brick you
mean half brick, otherwise it is going to be a very thick wall - thirty
inches or so.

upper ground floor: triple brick
1st floor: double brick
2nd floor: single brick

At the floor level on every set of stairs, there is either a "ramp" or a
useful shelf as the wall gets thinner. I strongly suspect the lower ground
floor cavity is due to the fact that this floor is half buried in the
hillside.

How are the two skins tied together?

J.
--
John Rouse

"Christian McArdle" wrote in message . net...
Myth alert. There are lots of Victorians with cavity walls. Half inch
cavity was a popular standard. The cavity was to reduce dampness, not
for insulation, so half inch was all that was needed. There are lots
of solid wall Vics, but also many cavity wall ones too.

Yes, my parent's 1890s house is very unusual. There is a different
construction on every floor.

lower ground floor: double brick, cavity, single brick
upper ground floor: triple brick
1st floor: double brick
2nd floor: single brick

At the floor level on every set of stairs, there is either a "ramp" or a
useful shelf as the wall gets thinner. I strongly suspect the lower ground
floor cavity is due to the fact that this floor is half buried in the
hillside.

Christian.


Yup. Each section will often be done with whatever they thought they
could get away with. I've also seen one with half inch cavity flemish
bond, stretcher bond, 4" cavity ratbond, rubble, single brick, and a
small section of triple too. It certainly keeps the building costs
down, and enables one to have the nicest brickwork at the front, and
any old cheapass at the back.

I guess nowadays there are too many constraints regarding insulation
and structural strength to mix and match like that.


Regards, NT

John Rouse wrote in message ...
In article , Christian
McArdle writes

At the floor level on every set of stairs, there is either a "ramp" or a
useful shelf as the wall gets thinner. I strongly suspect the lower ground
floor cavity is due to the fact that this floor is half buried in the
hillside.

How are the two skins tied together?


Of course I dont know about Christians house, but mostly bricks were
used as the ties: with a half inch cavity wall this means some end on
bricks are half an inch recessed on the inner wall, which isnt a
problem. Sheets of stone were also sometimes used for tying in. But
given the complete absence of any building regs covering wall ties
back then, you could have anything, even no ties at all if youre
unlucky. IIRC the only thing covered by build regs in Vic times was
the depth of foundations: and that was widely flouted.


Regards, NT