Damp caused by water ingress (not condensation) and developer no longer will fix.

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jogger
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Damp caused by water ingress (not condensation) and developer no longer will fix.

Postby jogger » Sat May 21, 2022 7:27 am

We bought our house in 2017 which was sold through the bank, it was part of a small development in which a large Spanish house builder bought from the original builder , finished them off and then sold them on through the bank (hence only 3 year guarantee). Since we've owned the property we have had winter damp problems caused by water ingress and every year the developer sends out a sub contractor to try and sort it. This year is the first year we've lived here fulltime and have witnessed the initial ingress and spread of the damp. but the developer has said if it's not the original problem (i have photographs to prove it is) they don't want to know. Out came the contractor who agreed it was. I then hadn't heard from the developer so i sent two emails and then had to threaten legal action only to get a response saying the guarantee was up and they are no longer responsible. Now i can't really afford to start legal action as this could possibly be very costly but they are clearly walking away from the originzl problem without fixing it and i really don't want them to get away with it, even though each year i can scrape and repaint the walls, it's the mould over a cold damp winter is also a worry. Some neighbours have said many Spanish homes do this paint repair every year.
Any suggestions would be gratefully received.
Thanks
Roy

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Enrique
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Re: Damp caused by water ingress (not condensation) and developer no longer will fix.

Postby Enrique » Sat May 21, 2022 9:08 am

Hi jogger,

Time to move on and sort the problem yourself..........

How is the water getting into the property............ is it just the prevailing wind/rain side........ :?:

Have you got gutters............ :?:

Plastic paint can be used but needs redoing from time to time.........

There is a orange/yellow water proof compound that can be sprayed on.

Houses up this way have corrugated metal sheets on the prevailing wind/rain side...........can be painted over so not too visible.
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jogger
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Re: Damp caused by water ingress (not condensation) and developer no longer will fix.

Postby jogger » Sat May 21, 2022 10:23 am

Hi Enrique
We had the house painted this year, prior to the heavy rains but yes i think the wind up here with the rain is quite bad and may be part of the problem. Upstairs by the roof terrace door, ( terrace was replaces 3 years ago ) we get damp coming in, then by the front door and water meter cupboard gets very wet. We don't have guttering but i was thinking that may be a solution or part solution, what do you think?
There is something called Stormproof, which is supposed to be brilliant, i was thinking of painting over the terrace and roof tiles.

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Enrique
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Re: Damp caused by water ingress (not condensation) and developer no longer will fix.

Postby Enrique » Sat May 21, 2022 11:01 am

Hi jogger,

Had similar problems with back door ( windy side) had a porch roof fitted also over Garage door.......... will get pictures later as have a VOR to fix.

The front door is suitably covered with a Tractor high corrugated metal roof that covers the whole of the front, great when its raining to unload car .. :D

Some of the items I've mentioned might not be suitable for a modern house but could be "poshed" up for your situation.
All my best learning experiences start with a problem I need to solve.

jogger
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Re: Damp caused by water ingress (not condensation) and developer no longer will fix.

Postby jogger » Sat May 21, 2022 1:24 pm

Thanks Enrique much appreciated.

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Enrique
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Re: Damp caused by water ingress (not condensation) and developer no longer will fix.

Postby Enrique » Sat May 21, 2022 9:16 pm

Hi jogger,
Sorry no pictures, been a long hot day and still motor is in bits across the garage floor.......... :(
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Re: Damp caused by water ingress (not condensation) and developer no longer will fix.

Postby olive » Sat May 21, 2022 11:58 pm

A dehumidifier might be useful.

Good ventilation helps reduce black mould inside. If you cannot ventilate for whatever reason, then a dehumidifier works quite well. We run one and it fills the five litre container in less than 48 hours. No idea where the water comes from.

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Enrique
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Re: Damp caused by water ingress (not condensation) and developer no longer will fix.

Postby Enrique » Sun May 22, 2022 8:33 am

Hi jogger,

The pictures.............
Image

Image

Both custom made by our builder..........

Top one wooden frame topped with roof tiles........... this one is on the prevailing wind/rain side and has stopped the rain getting through the metal door.

Bottom one metal frame with plastic (?) insulated roofing material that seems popular now as it's light in weight. Stops rain hitting garage door and running inside.

The front Door is protected with the metal roof that covers the whole front..... can just see part in bottom picture.
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Re: Damp caused by water ingress (not condensation) and developer no longer will fix.

Postby Wicksey » Sun May 22, 2022 1:00 pm

Apart from El Cid who had his house built properly, I don't know of any house with a damp proof course here, so they are liable to rising damp. The previous owners of ours put crazypaving stone on the bottom half of the outside walls (similar to yours Enrique) which is very common to try to hide/keep out the wet. The first thing we do at every house we've owned is to put up gutters and to direct the water away from the house.

We'd had a small en-suite built at one of our previous houses and we saw it built and weatherproofed, but the roof always leaked in rain. We tried everything and could not source where it was coming in as it was all very well sealed when built.

jogger
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Re: Damp caused by water ingress (not condensation) and developer no longer will fix.

Postby jogger » Sun May 22, 2022 7:41 pm

Thanks Enrique and Wicksey we have like an alcove were our front door is and I was thinking of either a canopy or guttering. Our village has lots of houses with either tiles or stone built up the walls, does that stop the water coming in because I also thought of doing that too.


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