Damp Proofing in Sunderland
Sunderland's housing is unlike anywhere else in the North East, and so is its damp. The single-storey Sunderland cottages of Millfield, Pallion, Hendon and Fulwell sit low to the ground with solid walls and small floor voids, the Victorian terraces of Ashbrooke and Barnes have the same breathing-wall problems as Jesmond, and the seafront streets of Roker and Seaburn take salt-laden weather straight off the North Sea. We cover all of it with the same approach: find the cause, fix it once, replaster properly.
Damp in Sunderland homes
Sunderland cottages are the most common damp call we get in the city. Because they are single storey, every room is a ground floor room, so a failed or bridged damp course affects the whole house rather than just a hallway. Raised back lanes, concrete yards poured above the original DPC and rendered plinths all bridge it. A chemical damp course along the affected walls with renovation plaster above is the standard fix, and because the cottages are compact the job is usually done in a few days.
On the coast at Roker, Seaburn and Fulwell, penetrating damp is as common as rising damp. Onshore wind drives rain into east-facing gables and bay fronts, and tired pointing, cracked render and failed cills let it through. Those walls need the outside fixing first, and we do the render and pointing repairs as well as the plaster inside so one firm sees the job through.
The post-war estates at Pennywell, Thorney Close, Grindon and Farringdon are mostly cavity-walled and well built, and the damp there is nearly always condensation: cold north walls, mould behind wardrobes, bathrooms without a working fan. We treat the mould, improve the finish and advise on ventilation rather than selling a damp course the house does not need.
Parts of Sunderland we cover
We work across the whole of Sunderland and the streets around it, including Roker, Seaburn, Fulwell, Ashbrooke, Barnes, Hendon, Southwick, Pennywell, Silksworth, Ryhope, Doxford Park, Grindon, Thorney Close, Millfield, Castletown and Hylton. There are no travel charges anywhere in City of Sunderland.
What we check in a Sunderland cottage before quoting
A Sunderland cottage is low and compact, and its ground floor often sits close to the level of the yard and the street. On the survey we measure how far the outside ground is above the inside floor, because where a yard has been concreted or a path built up over the years, the old damp course can sit below the surface outside. We check the air bricks under suspended floors, the joint where a rear kitchen or loft extension meets the original wall, and the chimney breast, which is often the dampest wall in the house. Those joins between old and new work are where most cottage damp actually starts, so we spend as long outside as in.
Because so many cottages have had loft rooms added, we also look upstairs. A dormer or a skylight that leaks can put water down inside the party wall and show as a patch on the ground floor, which is easy to mistake for rising damp. Finding that before the plaster comes off saves money, because the fix is a flashing or a seal, not an injection. We explain what we find room by room and quote only for the walls that need it. Where the loft room itself has condensation, usually from a skylight over a bed or a small window that never opens, we say so, because that is a ventilation fix rather than damp proofing, and it costs far less to put right than replastering the room below.
How we do damp proofing
The full process, step by step, and what it involves.
location_onOur Sunderland guide
The homes in Sunderland and the problems they tend to have.
photo_libraryCase studies
Real jobs written up: the problem, the work and the result.
menu_book5 warning signs you have rising damp
Our guide, written for homeowners.
Our 20-year guarantee
Where we install a damp proof course, you get a written 20-year guarantee against rising damp coming back through it, and it transfers to a new owner if you sell. For penetrating damp, condensation and the replastering that goes with them, our workmanship promise applies: if something we did is not right, we come back and sort it.
Damp Proofing jobs we have written up
Rated by customers across the North East on Checked & Vetted, MyBuilder and Google. Read the reviews.
Damp Proofing questions from Sunderland
They can be. Water from a leaking dormer, skylight or valley gutter can run down inside the wall and appear lower down, sometimes on a different wall from where it gets in. We check the roof work and the flashings as part of the survey so the right thing gets fixed.
Usually, yes. Cottages are compact, so treating and replastering several walls in one visit is often quicker and cheaper than doing a room at a time. We plan it so you keep a working kitchen and somewhere to sleep, and we tell you on the quote how many days the job will take.
It points to rain being driven into the wall rather than water rising from the ground. The exposed side wears its render, pointing and window seals fastest. We look at the outside of that wall first, repair whatever is letting the water in, and only replaster inside once the wall has had time to dry.
More of what we do in Sunderland
Damp Proofing near Sunderland
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