Insulation Cavity and/or dry lining needed?

Gareth2011

Hi All,

I live in a house that was built in 1942 that is suffering terrible with damp and mould especially when it rains. I will be insulating the attic myself with 300mm fibreglass but i dont know what to do about the walls. Anyone know how i find out what type of walls i have (cavity or solid block)? If i have cavity il get blown insulation and if solid il get insulated plaster board and dry lining. Anyone help with the knowing how to find out what blocks i have? thank's peeps

colorc

Insulation won't cure your damp problem, maybe you should look at this first? If you apply a drylining board to the internal leaf of the external wall you are only covering up the damp problem - not fixing it.

Hope this helps!

Gareth2011

I know just putting insulating the walls wont cure it but the attic is also not insulated so il be doing that too. We had a damp guy in and he reckons once the attic is insulated it should more or less stop the damp cause its all condensation more so than rising damp. no idea how to measure the bricks by any chance?

MightyDucks

Get into the attic and look down on top of the wall. it'll be a tight squeeze tho. Throw a young lad in there if you can't fit. If its a cavity you'll most likely see it. I'm not so sure how insulating you attic will stop the condensation. Make sure the house is well ventilated and maybe even get a second opinion.

BryanF

colorc is right about the drylining in an already damp house. but maybe you should step back and assess the "terrible with damp and mould especially when it rains". if it happens particularly when it rains then start looking there
externally:
consider water table level, if its not that, are there any springs near house?, also, look at landscaping against house and whether any changes in paving has caused water t be trapped near foundations and rising walls. adjoining owner works often causes increased dampness.

there are methods to reducing water near dwellings and reducing rising damp, but you should seek specialist advice

internally have you changed the windows recently? if so, maybe you've inadvertently blocked your leaky natural ventilation wins, which were helping fresh air infiltration and helps to reduces mould.

your 40's house probably does not have a cavity, as discussed by others there are some pitfalls to the many insulation materials available.

there's a similar aged house near to mine being upgraded at the moment and there is clearly no one overseeing the contractor, to the future detriment of the owner, I'm sure.
Please employ a professional to supervise, specify a recommend processes of retro-fitting, suppliers will just tell you what you want to hear.

shcoff

does this problem appear on all your walls? or just the walls on one elevation, ie north facing or east facing walls?

is your house on an exposed site?

usually damp and mold is due to high humidity and cold surfaces which can be dealt with by improving ventilation and insulation, however if you have driving rain penetrating your wall these will not solve the problem.