Penetrating Damp
As many as 15% of homes in the UK may have signs of damage due to dampness. Rain penetration into masonry can occur in buildings of all ages, and has many reasons for it occurring in the first place -defective guttering, leaking roofs and badly sealed windows can all leave your home vulnerable to penetrating damp. However the most common problem is damaged and poorly maintained exterior walls.
Common building materials are all porous, which means that bricks are effectively a sponge. An average brick can hold over a pint of water. In particularly cold conditions, moisture retained in porous brickwork freezes and expands, pushing the bricks and rendering apart.
Overtime render may become cracked and blown, and house bricks constantly open to the elements may exhibit signs of surface erosion, or spalling. These problems create weaknesses in the wall which leave your home vulnerable to penetration damp.
At its most obvious, it penetrates right through the wall and is visible as a damp patch on the internal wall. However, rainwater penetration can be damaging to a property, even if it does not penetrate all the way through a wall. For example, moss growth, increased heat loss, and frost damage can be caused by rain penetration into masonry.
Rising Damp
Rising damp is water that has been drawn up from the ground through porous masonry, a bit like blotting paper. Where present, moisture can rise up the wall to a height of a metre and it will often leave a characteristic horizontal ‘tide mark’.
Well built modern houses include a synthetic damp-proof course, just above ground level, to act as a barrier through which water cannot pass. Therefore, this is more common in older properties which were built without a damp proof course but can also occur where a damp proof course is damaged or was poorly installed.
Rising damp tends to cause secondary damage to a building. The unwanted moisture enables the growth of various fungi in wood, causing rot. Plaster and paint deteriorate and wallpaper loosens. Stains, from the water, salts and from mould, mar surfaces. Externally, mortar may crumble and salt stains may appear on the walls.
Our Treatment Service
Whenever rising damp is diagnosed, it is important to have the condition correctly treated as failure to do so can cause damage and devaluation to any property.
It is not sufficient simply to cover up the problem with a special paint or coating in the hope that the problem will go away. Only by preventing the dampness rising up the wall in the first place can rising dampness be adequately controlled.
Up until now, the most widely employed method of achieving this has been to inject water-repellent fluids into the wall under pressure. Although this method has proven effective, it is known to have a number of disadvantages; for example, it introduces large amounts of liquid carrier into the wall, prolonging the drying out period. The process is also very slow and operator dependant.
The Dryzone System is fast, clean and effective
Dryzone has many advantages over conventional chemical injection systems:
- Quick to install – no double drilling, no waiting for fluid to soak in under pressure.
- Easy to install – less scope for operator error
- Concentrated formulation (over 60% active ingredient) – does not introduce large volumes of liquid carrier into the wall
- Low hazard – no-caustic, non-flammable and not injected under pressure
- Spillage and mess virtually eliminated – no problems with fluid flooding through party walls
- Consistent application rate – easy to estimate the amount of material that will be required
- Does not require an electric DPC pump – can be used in situations where power is not available
Dryzone is a revolutionary new material for the control of rising damp. Dryzone comes in the form of a water repellent cream packed in a 600ml foil cartridge to minimise environmental impact. The Dryzone cream is introduced by means of a simple applicator gun into a series of holes drilled into the mortar course. Once the Dryzone is installed, it uses the moisture contained in the damp wall to diffuse where it is most needed before curing to form a water-repellent resin.
Superior Performance
Dryzone is the result of an extensive in-house research and development programme. This involved the screening and testing of hundreds of potential formulations. Our tests demonstrate that Dryzone offers a higher degree of protection against rising damp than the chemical injection systems that is was designed to replace.
Independently Tested
Extensive test-work carried out by the British Board of Agreement (BBA) has led to Dryzone being awarded a prestigious BBA approval. The BBA is a Government-partnering testing organisation that has been providing independent information on building products for over 30 years.
Not all rising damp treatments have passed the tests necessary to achieve BBA approval. Using a BBA certified product, such as Dryzone, is your assurance that the product has been proven fit for the purpose it was designed for.
Your Guarantee
The Dryzone System is recognized by the Biokil Crown 30 Year Underwritten Guarantee Scheme as an acceptable method of Rising Damp Treatment.
The Environment
Dryzone was designed with the environment in mind. Its concentrated formulation means that less product has to be transported to the point of use and minimal packaging means less wastage. The formulation is based on silicones. These are derived from quartz and are widely used to manufacture a wide variety of products from medical instruments to cosmetics and sealants.
Dryzone is water based and contains no hydro-carbon solvents.