What's Going on With This Brickwork

[Richini]

I'm after some help to figure out what's going on with the brickwork on our single skinned outhouse please.

 

Pictures attached show view from inside and outside. It seems like the inside of the brick is coated with some sort of waterproofer? 

From the outside it looks like there's some sort of DPM installed 2 courses up. 

As you can see the cement around this DPM is much darker than than rest and seems to be holding water much more than through the rest of the brickwork. In wet conditions this seems to be a point of water leaking through to inside.

 

Does this setup look correct? Should I just be looking to cover the brickwork in some water sealer or does the brickwork require greater attention?

 

Thanks. 

[Temp]

It looks like there are 2 DPC, one just above the drain cover and another two bricks above it. Is that a linear drain around the whole perimeter?

 

If the drain fills up with water there will probably be penetration below the lower DPC. There may also be some rain splashing up above the lower DPC.

 

My guess is they painted the inside with a liquid DPM of some sort to try and minimise water penetration but a single skin wall is never a great idea. 

 

Perhaps consider raising the floor inside.. install a DPM lapped up the walls above the top DPC. Fit insulation and new floor screed to raise the floor.

 

 

[Temp]

Just seen your other thread,

[Richini]

Thanks for your reply. It's a bit of an odd design, but the single skin building does step down from the main house by 100mm. 

Should I be looking to get an internal second skin laid followed by a new floor? Not certain, but would think the internal dividing wall of the outbuilding can probably come down without disturbing the outside shell.

[Temp]

You could get another block leaf built but it might be easier to build the new floor then add internal wall insulation and plasterboard. Treat it a bit like a garage conversion. This would take less internal space.