Hi All . I just purchased a 1930's house. (Which needa lot of work doing...its been empty for about 20 months) The survey said potential damp. So I had two different companies come round. ...both co's said i had damp one said the whole house needed a new DPC and the other only front and a flank wall only.....I also have a rendered plynth which goes from ground level to approximately 1.5 ft. Its been suggested my DPC may be being bridged by this plynth and the damp company are suggesting to remove part of the plynth 6 inches above ground level and paint with a bithumen paint and then tidy up the plynth with a bell bead and re-render, as well as injecting a chemical DPC, and doing the internal walls replastering. However, every house in my surrounding estate has this plynth, and I've heard this plyhth its self is providing protection to the brickwork from ice/water/damp/elements, and acts as a type of DPC.

The questions I have are

1. Is is this plyth protection for my bricks or should the removing of the plyth be carried out ?
(About 50 or 60 houses round me have this plynth and seem Ok and have been around for about 70 years without problems)

2. The other thing I was thinking of /suggested was leaving not doing the chemical PC /removing plynth and palstering all my internal walls, but do the following

a. Digging a small trench (6 inch wide) around the house and filling with large gravel to let water drain away
b. Cut a small lateral grove along the plynth 6 inches above ground level (with an angle grinder) this creates a break in the render (so as not to bridge the DPC) and fill it with some water proof mastic/resin
c. Finally protect plynth from water by painyting the plyth itself with bithumen paint to provide a water proof barrier.

Is this overkill belt and braces ....or does some of this make good sense?

All comments appreciated.

PS the damp proof co's want about £3500.00 I can do the above labour myslef with about £150.00 spend for materials

Your suggestions for the plinth, sound like a decent plan to me and it might help a little, however-

If there is no DPC or if the cavity is being bridged (perhaps by masonry debris etc) you will still get rising damp on the inside, so this will need addressing.

Also if you already have rising damp, the effected plaster will eventually need removing as the salts in it will eventually surface.

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DIY | Donnas dream house

if you havent already bought it negotiate the £4000 off the price

then air and heat the house thought till next summer then about august see what condition is then and expect 75% off the problems to have dried up with a lot less work needing to be undertaken

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we are all ------------------still learning

Agree with BA, 90% is probably damp where the house has been shut up with no heating, ventilation etc.

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I moved into a 1930s house that had a bit of damp in the walls, was nothing much mind you. mine was caused by the DPC being too close to ground level outside so i had to cut back a load of concrete to put in a trench. since then ive been heating and venting the main room and have recently taken back the wall to brick and used a sand and cement render with waterproofer in the coat, so now all thats left is to reskim the room and that should be job done now

So yeah if i was you, id do as BA says get the work done at a much much better discount and then strip the effected walls back to brick and use a sand and cement render with waterproofer then have that skimmed