tedmosby

I have allocated a budget of 15k (taken into account at offer stage) to deal with the damp in one of the bedrooms and the living room (together 45sqm). Given I have accounted for this spend, am I still being foolish to go ahead? May I ask why you believe this is the sector within the building industry to stay clear off? Thank you! Bo

Hi everyone, I'm in the process of purchasing a basement apartment in West-London at the moment as a first-time buyer. As part of the full homebuyer's survey I did, the surveyor noted he could not comment on any of the plumbing/drainage within the flat. Given it's a building dating from the late 1800's, I would like to get this further checked out before executing the sale. But I am a bit confused whether I would need a 'Drainage report', or a 'Plumber report'? Reading what they both do, it seems very similar to me.. What I want to get checked is whether all water taps (sinks, toilets, showers) etc are running fine, as well as if all the pipes inside/and serving the flat are in good conditions, free from any damages. And given the flat has some small visual damp issues, I would like to make sure this is not faulty drainage/pipes that cause this. Do I need a Plumbers report or a Drainage report for this? Or are they the same? Reading online I suspect I definitely need some CCTV checking of the pipes/drainage. Thank you so much for your help. Cheers T

Many thanks for the reply. This was the official finding on the damp report: "High moisture readings characteristic of rising and penetrating dampness has been found in the property. In the surveyor’s opinion, these readings are due to a failure and breakdown of the existing damp proof course and possibly the use of the wrong type of modern materials in an old property" These were the steps laid out in the report to repair the damp issue Walls: 1. Skirting Boards and Plaster Removal 2. Salt Neutraliser 3. Damp Proof Course Injection 4. Tanking Slurry 5. Waterproofing Render 6. Plaster Finish Flooring: 1. The floor will be damp proofed with two layers of liquid DPM 2. A thin water proof concrete floor screed approximately 3mm deep will also be laid to provide a second layer of protection and to protect the liquid DPM. Does this sound reasonable, or am I potentially getting myself in a mess if I proceed?

Many thanks for your response Peter. As it is a lower ground floor/garden flat, it does need a proper DPC and some treatment to the walls. (All in all quoted 15k GBP for various parts of the flat). Given it comes with a 30y 'guarantee', I was under the impression that this would be pretty safe. Am I completely wrong?

Hi all, I'm in the final stages of the buying process of a lower ground floor/garden flat (first time buyer so nervous times!). Now as the flat evidently has damp, and I had a damp survey done with a local specialist. He confirmed that parts of the walls and flooring had damp in it and needed damp treatment, which was expected. However, one important thing for me is very unclear: In the Damp specialist report it said that a layer of Screed with a thickness of 3-4 millimetre would be laid down, before a new wooden floor can be put in, with a drying time of just a few days. However, every where on internet I seem to read that a layer of Screed needs to be 3 - 4 centimetre thick. This would have large implications on the time I could potentially move in (assuming 1mm per day of drying) and would also require more work I guess with making door post level etc. I'm a bit confused and worried by this, so it would be super grateful if someone has some advice on this. Thank you so much for any advice! Ted