In our experience, more and more Building Survey reports are being received by our Clients for old buildings in Cornwall that identify damp problems within the walls of the property. The report then goes on to recommend tanking the walls to eradicate damp.
Tanking is usually achieved by using either a membrane, which comes in the form of a sheet that is fixed to the wall or slurry that is chemically designed to form a bond with damp walls and form a waterproof layer/barrier. Both of these methods will most certainly cause more damage to damp walls in old buildings in Cornwall.
Why is that?
If you have read any of our previous blogs, you will see that a lot of the damp problems in old buildings in Cornwall are caused by the lack of breathability. Old walls need to be maintained using breathable materials so that any moisture, that will inevitably get in the wall, is able to escape. Following the removal of non-breathable materials, some of the breathable applications we use are:
There are many measures that can be taken to limit damp problems, and we would not recommend either of the Tanking methods mentioned above in most of our visits to historic properties.
Sealing walls internally prevent movement of moisture and Tanking an old property in Cornwall can force moisture up and around the area that has been treated, thus forcing moisture elsewhere and not effectively managing the moisture content.
For more information about damp, please visit our Damp Problems and Limitation Measures website pages.
Before you consider any form of Tanking in an Old House in Cornwall, please Contact Us for some professional and friendly advice.
Tanking Specialists Cornwall – Wall Tanking Cornwall – Tanking Old Walls Cornwall – Sealing Old Stone Walls Cornwall – Should I Tank My Walls?
