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Can anybody advise me?

Walking into the property you can feel the dampness in the air. The kitchen and bathroom run along the front of the house on the ground floor. There is a smell coming from the kitchen that may be damp related but no evidence of staining or condensation. In the bathroom there is a staining on the wall behind the toilet rising from the floor and lots of condensation on the cistern and a contant puddle from the dripping of the condensation.

I don't know if I need a plumber or a damp surveyor? Any signs I should look for?

Any help would be greatly appreciated

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  • Is this property on a slab, crawl space or foundation? Any evidence of a roof leak? Are there any sump pumps, well pressure tanks? need more investigative info. We are looking for sources of moisture.
    – shirlock homes
    Commented Mar 30, 2011 at 19:32

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If this is a fairly sudden change or it's very localised then it could indicate a leak or overflowing gutter etc.

If it's always been this way, the problem is more widespread or the change has been very gradual then it's more likely to be damp. Are any areas of the house below ground level? Or has the ground level been built up along that wall? The cure could be as simple as digging some soil away from the walls, to make sure that the existing damp proof course hasn't been bridged. This will stop any more moisture getting in and allow the rooms to dry out.

If none of these simple remedies work, I'd call in at least two professionals to give quotes. If they give wildly different possible causes then get a third. Fixing damp can be expensive and if you get it wrong and it doesn't actually cure the problem.

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