Browse Forums DIY, Home Maintenance & Repair 1 May 24, 2014 6:57 pm Rising Damp from side of slab / concrete path Hi just looking to get some advice on what I should do about some rising damp? Water appears to be rising from the side of the house and is visible on the concrete path. Theres no leaks from down pipes, sewage or mains water. I think its just rain water getting trapped and rising up slowly? What would be the best course of action? theres a 400mm gap between the fence and the footpath that is filled with dirt which I thinking of installing a drain. And filling the 20-30mm gap between the house and footpath with concrete Any advise would be appreciated Re: Rising Damp from side of slab / concrete path 3May 26, 2014 8:06 am The cause of some of your dampness, judging by the stains (and increased termite risk) is HWS overflow discharging against wall. You should extend that away from the house, over a drain or put a bucket under and empty regularly. Foremost Building Expert in Australia,assisting with building problems/disputes, building stage inspections,pre-contract review advice for peace of mind 200 blogs http://www.buildingexpert.net.au/blog Re: Rising Damp from side of slab / concrete path 4May 26, 2014 2:30 pm insider : Concrete in one area of the path is slopping towards the house. But I've only seen rain water run towards the house when it rains extremely heavy (only 2-3 times a year in Adelaide) building-expert : the HWS is very close to where the rising damp is coming from but it runs straight into a drain. I'll take a further look to see if its discharging elsewhere. thanks for the replies also Re: Rising Damp from side of slab / concrete path 5May 26, 2014 5:22 pm Peterb81 Water is getting in from somewhere it maybe the drain for the hw serice is not working as BE has suggested maybe the source or paving sloping towards the house, it doesn't take much to saturate the soil and it can't evaporate under the concrete so even during hot weather it is still wet. Also look up and see if your gutters are not the source they may over flow in that area or have a leak.It's a matter of elimination. Re: Rising Damp from side of slab / concrete path 6May 26, 2014 5:50 pm Does the wall face the direction that the weather normally comes from? If so, the water source could be the wind driven rain that hits the wall and then flows down to the gap between the path and the wall. 3in1 Supadiverta. Rainwater Harvesting Best Practice using syphonic drainage. Cleaner Neater Smarter Cheaper Supa Gutter Pumper. A low cost syphonic eaves gutter overflow solution. Re: Rising Damp from side of slab / concrete path 7May 26, 2014 6:16 pm ANy water that goes in that gap will wet the soil under the path and will take a long time to dry out. It will be absorbed through the path slab, it wont take a lot of rain to keep the soil wet. As BE said the issues can be termite risk, and if the damp goes deeper below your foundations there is the risk of cracking. My advice is to seal up the gap then over time the moisture level under the path will stabilize and the concrete will dry out. Use a foam backing rod in the gap about 10mm below the surface then top with a polyurathane sealant such as sika flex. dont use silicone as it wont flex and will crack if the path moves. Re: Rising Damp from side of slab / concrete path 9May 26, 2014 7:07 pm the huge gap between the path and slab would be my guess on where the moisture is coming from. once water goes down there, it takes a long time for it to dry out. So it would not take a lot of water to keep it wet. Re: Rising Damp from side of slab / concrete path 10May 26, 2014 9:42 pm I agree the soil doesn't taken much to stay wet.One thing we haven't though of is it could be a sign that a pipe is leaking under the paving and causing the rising damp. If the concrete slopes towards the house as peter81 said I would look at re doing the paving check that the storm water isn't leaking at the same time and connect the HW service to the storm water while the paving is up. Might sound like over kill but better to deal with water problems before the become foundation problems. Re: Rising Damp from side of slab / concrete path 11May 26, 2014 10:39 pm I ran the HWS overflow valve and the water doesn't appear to be spilling out of the drain. its a concrete path so wouldn't be easy to pull up to correct the slope ... i'll seal up the gap and put up something to stop the rain getting in. Thanks for the help guys Re: Rising Damp from side of slab / concrete path 12May 27, 2014 7:47 am Another option would be to build little pergola along the wall to prevent rainwater. Foremost Building Expert in Australia,assisting with building problems/disputes, building stage inspections,pre-contract review advice for peace of mind 200 blogs http://www.buildingexpert.net.au/blog Hi all Following the recent heavy rainfall in Sydney, I am keen on redirecting water away from the house's base as much as… 0 6809 Firstly the ableflex that has been installed needs (manufactures specification) a sealant cap over the top, preventing water draining down between the slab and the… 3 7795 Have look at your house plans and you will probably find that brick articulation joint has been missed. Maximum allowable spacing is 6M or 5.5M for a wall with window… 17 20619 |