Thread: damp proof course too low

Hi.

Originally Posted by jeremy

Is this a major problem? (What problems will it cause in the future?)

NO, only if you dont mind your house rotting away.

Originally Posted by jeremy

Any recomendations to get around this?

Jack up the house or lower the path.

Al

Could you set the path back from the house about 200mm or so and have a concrete spoon drain set just below your dampcourse?Like Al said, you don't want to raise the ground or house surrounds above the DPC if you want to avoid rot.

Mick

Originally Posted by jeremy

The path would run along the side of the house for 2 metres. The problem is, where the brickwork meets the patio, the damp proof course is below the height of the patio. So the path would end up covering the damp-proof course by about 150mm.

- Is this a major problem? (What problems will it cause in the future?)
- Any recomendations to get around this?

No, it's not a major problem, in fact it is NOT a problem at all.

You can purchase a dampproof material these days that is "painted on" there are a few available, though I don't know their brand names. Apply this to the brickwork (?) below the path level and just a little higher than the path.

When the path is installed ENSURE that you have a "fall" eg slope AWAY from the house, so the natural water flow off the path would be away from the house and everything will be fine.

This dampcourse material is used for brickwork that forms the walls of basements or undercroft garages etc, those that are below ground level.

Peter's advice is good - just make sure you do not have a brick wall with weep holes in it. If you block up weepholes water will get trapped inside the wall.
To aid in keeping water away from the wall, consider placing a 200mm band of screenings (no fines) next to the wall, and make sure the compacted subgrade itself also slopes down away from the house.
Cheers
Justine

Anyone take into account white ants?

Al

Regardless how good a waterproof membrane you can get to paint onto the outside of the brickwork I wouldn't follow this course of action unless the manufacturer/specifier would give a written garuantee that it would work in this situation and that they would cover costs to rectify any subsequent rising damp problems. Ask for that in writing and see how many people are willing to warrant their product as suitable in this application. And besides, as Al rightly points out, termite entry is a whole other problem that may occur because of this application.

Mick

When you tank a basement there are other things that are also in play to keep the water out, as in, aggie drains, lots of screenings plus some sort of mechanical barrier as in flute board, to stop the screenings abrading the bitchumus paint.

Al