It is less than 100 years since a solution was found to dampness entering homes. For hundreds of years houses, even those of the wealthy, were cold, damp, and pretty miserable. Once houses began to be constructed with brick and stone, various solutions were tried to keep damp at bay.
If you walk around and see anything pre-1920, more often than not, it will be rendered. This provided a protective layer over the brick which could be painted to try and keep wet weather on the outside.
This was successful up to a point, but the system would often fail in particularly wet weather when walls were saturated, and dampness would eventually soak through the bricks to the inside of the building. Often walls were made to be very thick to try to avoid this, but this was of little benefit.
Victorian inventiveness came up with the slate damp proof course, slate being impermeable to water. These were laid across the first few courses of bricks and stopped dampness rising from the ground and penetrating the house.
However, any slight movement in the building would often lead to the slate, which is very brittle, cracking and the solution failing. On top of this, the old solid wall Victorian style of construction still meant that rainwater would find its way in through cracks or just because bricks are porous.
It was not until the 1920s and 30s when cavity construction became popular as this system made it virtually impossible for water to find its way through to the inside. The outer layer of brick could become as damp as possible, yet because there was a gap between that and the inside skim no water could find its way through.
Unfortunately, the craze for cavity installation meant that in many properties this gap is now filled and, in many cases, water now has a route through to the inside. This doesn’t happen in all cases, but where it does – particularly in exposed locations such as the top of hills or coastal areas – Cavitech can quickly and easily remove a damp insulation to allow the cavity to do exactly what the design is of the 1920s envisaged i.e. a keep damp away.
To find out more about getting cavity wall insulation removed call us on 01903 331578.
