Damp walls in old houses

Posted By Castelo Construction Lda in buying property in portugal, damp house, House for sale, Living in Portugal, property problems, refurbishment December 7, 2015

Portugal is not alone when it comes to damp walls in old houses.

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Portugal has a warm and sunny climate so we dont usually think about rain and high humidity until it arrives in the winter months.

When the winter rain comes the rainfall is often heavy and prolonged it is then that we start to notice the damp patches spreading and internal walls having a glazed/wet look as if they had been sprayed with water.

Some unfortunate people also have water running into their homes through a light fitting or flooded basements which often cause people huge distress.

These mini floods transform a comfortable home into a dank, humid, smelly space and is a horrible experience for any home owner.

Driven and standing rain water has a habit of appearing in the home when and where we dont want it.

If you have ever sat in your Portuguese home watching bowls and buckets trying to catch the drips and towels to catch the water streaming down the walls you will know how demoralising this can be.

All it takes is the first heavy rains to find the new faults and cracks which have appeared in your stairs, outside steps roof terraces and verandas.

Now you must just sit and wait. Wait for the rain to stop and the problem to ease for a while.
We know that water can cause problems such as electrical shorting and is an electrocution hazard.

The water will have soaked into the structure of the building causing paint and plaster damage, damp walls and ceiling and that awful damp smell.

What to do about the problem.
Understand what it is – It is called Penetrating damp
Understand what it causing the problem and also where it is entering the home – This may not be as obvious as you first think and can require some experience to spot the source of the problem.

Understand what materials or systems are required to stop this happening again.

You’d think it would be fairly easy to locate the ingress of water into your property but the problem is that it can often be weeks or months before any damp appears.

Typical signs of penetrating which damp are:
Growing circles of darker damp patches on walls or ceilings
Raised blotchy patches on walls
Wet and crumbly plaster near the skirting board
Signs of black spots, stains or mildew
Water drips and puddles after it rains

Call or email casteloconstruction@gmail com

Tel 927168247

Check out our full website for some of the projects that we have done in Central Portugal

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About Castelo Construction Lda

Castelo Construction Lda are builders in Central Portugal. We have 12 years’ experience of working with and delighting clients in Portugal. Tel 00351 927168247 or kelvin@casteloconstruction.com If you need an English speaking builder for renovation or new build work we will provide free estimates, fixed prices and carry out your work to a very high standard. Many of our clients are not in the country full time so rely on our regular photographic updates and written reports. They are always surprised when they make inspection visits. New Construction and Refurbishment of Portuguese Property It’s exciting for both our team and of course our clients to mark out on the earth the site of a new home. We will have been with them during the design process and have spoken to the architect many times so we will be comfortable with what we are about to do. For many clients, this stage is a little daunting as it’s hard to see without experience just where the house is going to be in relation to other things on the property. Once the foundations are dug out the house normally looks smaller than they thought, As the pillars and foundation wall start to go you get a much better idea of scale. You can see with your mind’s eye the location of the kitchen, bedrooms and so on. Once the walls are up and the first floor is in place the rooms start to looks smaller again (something to do with the light absorbing properties of the bricks) once the walls are plastered the rooms look a lot larger and it starts to feel more like the home our clients imagined building. As the build progresses we are involved with many specialist subcontractors and it is our job the get them on site at the right time so that the trades do not overlap and time is not wasted. Once the roof is on and tiled it is traditional in this area to have a dinner on site. Everyone who is involved in the build is invited to share a suckling pig dinner with local bread, oranges and of course wine. This is a great way for the clients to enjoy some local hospitality and meet the craftsmen who are building their new home. We also invite the near neighbors so that they get a chance to see what’s going on (when the house is at a very basic stage) and it gives our clients a relaxed opportunity to make their acquaintance. As we always accompany our clients to choose, kitchens, tiles, bathroom fittings or whatever they want. We can help with translation and of course negotiation! As the house is coming to completion we always have them professionally cleaned so that when we hand over the keys it feels more like a home than a building site. 2 months after the house is finished we are back to check for any small faults that may need attention and of course we are available to help and advise should that be needed. Central Portugal builders