View Full Version : Whats wrong with my wall?
Mr_love_monkey
05-07-2006, 21:36
Hi,
About a year/ 16 month ago, we had our kitchen replaced - with all walls replastered, painted etc...
All fine and dandy, until about 2 months ago the paint in the corner of the room started cracking and flaking, until a chunk of it just came off, exposing what looks like wet plaster underneath it - the plaster now looks like it's coming away from the metal strip things, that they put on the corners, as well as what seems like powder coming out of it - see the pictures to see what I mean - anyone got any ideas what it is, what's causing it, and what I can do to stop it?
Ta
I could be wrong matey, but it looks like there's damp in there - is it an exterior wall?
When we were decorating Baby Nugs room, the walls looked quite similar (without the plaster actually coming away - yet!), and the damp meter told us that it was soaking.
Girlie reply - not allowed to dry properly or bad mix? I know it cracks if its dried too quickly. :erm:
To dry it out, all we did was get loads of heaters in there - took a while but the walls did dry out completely :)
Creative
05-07-2006, 21:47
Did you notice if it started at the bottom or top of the paint issue?
It looks as Nugget says like damp, but is it rising damp? As part of the kitchen refit was the flooring replaced?
Alternativley could there be pipework behind the wall that sticks out, which may have a slight leak?
Mr_love_monkey
05-07-2006, 21:55
is it an exterior wall?
Course it's not exterior, it's in the kitchen :) :dunce: - yeah, it's an exterior wall....
I had a feeling people were going to start talking about damp...
To answer all the others bits...
Fairly sure it dried out normally, there was a space of several weeks (due to MFI losing our kitchen) between plastering being done and any painting.
Unsure about the mix quality, but as it's only happening in one place (that I know of) - hopefully not.
I think it did start at the bottom, but can't be 100% sure on that.
Floor was replaced as part of the refit.
As far as I can recall there are no pipes behind there.
MFI lost your kitchen? Couldn't you just have directed them to the back of the house ;)
It does look like damp though - stupidly enough, do you know any plasterer-type peoplw who could have a look, as it may just be that damp was sealed in the wall when it was done originally.
Mr_love_monkey
05-07-2006, 22:05
ok, just decided to have a bit of a look by taking some boards off the cupboards.
It's very damp behind there - looks like something is leaking. ****.
looks like the fitters will be getting a call to come and sort it out
ok, just decided to have a bit of a look by taking some boards off the cupboards.
It's very damp behind there - looks like something is leaking. ****.
looks like the fitters will be getting a call to come and sort it out
Is your bathroom above the kitchen? If so, could it be a pipe leaking under the bath, maybe?
Creative
05-07-2006, 22:07
Course it's not exterior, it's in the kitchen :) :dunce: - yeah, it's an exterior wall....
I had a feeling people were going to start talking about damp...
To answer all the others bits...
Fairly sure it dried out normally, there was a space of several weeks (due to MFI losing our kitchen) between plastering being done and any painting.
Unsure about the mix quality, but as it's only happening in one place (that I know of) - hopefully not.
I think it did start at the bottom, but can't be 100% sure on that.
Floor was replaced as part of the refit.
As far as I can recall there are no pipes behind there.
Is the new floor solid (i.e. concrete) or floorboards on an air gap?
EDIT : Now seen the cupboard post. Hopefully its only a minor leak, which is easily fixed. :)
Mr_love_monkey
05-07-2006, 22:20
Is your bathroom above the kitchen? If so, could it be a pipe leaking under the bath, maybe?
It is, but I don't think its coming from there - from what I can see the leak is happening on one wall, and just running around the wall, so it seems to be coming from some other piping. it looks like there's been a lot of water :(
It is, but I don't think its coming from there - from what I can see the leak is happening on one wall, and just running around the wall, so it seems to be coming from some other piping. it looks like there's been a lot of water :(
That's harsh mate - the plaster should be fine if it's allowed to dry out, but the bugger's going to be getting to whatever pipe's apparently leaking.
Hopefully, it's a mild leak that just happens to have been going for a while, as opposed to a recent major one :)
Mr_love_monkey
05-07-2006, 22:29
gut the bugger's going to be getting to whatever pipe's apparently leaking.
It's going to be even harder for him to get to it with a kitchen cabinet up his jacksie.
I know what you are going through.
We had a central heating pipe fitting come loose and if we hadn't spotted it in time the whole celing would have become like a sponge and collapsed in.
Good luck with getting it all sorted out.
Mr_love_monkey
06-07-2006, 21:16
Hmm.. guy came round to look at it, he claims it's from condensation from the lead water pipe coming into the house, where the weather is hot.
I pointed out that the back wall is soaked, the floor is soaked and the wall (in the picture is soaked) - that's a lot of condensation.
He's coming back next week to take out a cupboard to prove it to me
Could be condensation, I had to replace a whole window the other day due to it.
Next time it rains though, go outside and check if your gutters are leaking/overflowing around that area, as this can cause a LOT of problems like this.
homealone
06-07-2006, 22:14
Hmm.. guy came round to look at it, he claims it's from condensation from the lead water pipe coming into the house, where the weather is hot.
I pointed out that the back wall is soaked, the floor is soaked and the wall (in the picture is soaked) - that's a lot of condensation.
He's coming back next week to take out a cupboard to prove it to me
next week :Yikes:
I would either buy a damp tester & try to track it back, yourself, or get someone in who may have one more brain cell than the previous bloke....
That 'condensation' theory sounds very dodgy - there isn't, in my opinion, such a difference in the properties of lead versus copper pipe, that would account for the amount of water you seem to be getting. You have to have some kind of pipe, fgs ;)
I would be surprised if you had lead pipes, most people i know have had them ripped out and repeaired in the last 20 years...
Mr_love_monkey
06-07-2006, 22:22
I would be surprised if you had lead pipes, most people i know have had them ripped out and repeaired in the last 20 years...
He says it's the mains water pipe.
---------- Post added at 22:22 ---------- Previous post was at 22:22 ----------
next week :Yikes:
I would either buy a damp tester & try to track it back, yourself, or get someone in who may have one more brain cell than the previous bloke....
That 'condensation' theory sounds very dodgy - there isn't, in my opinion, such a difference in the properties of lead versus copper pipe, that would account for the amount of water you seem to be getting. You have to have some kind of pipe, fgs ;)
The thing is, it does seem to be coming from that area, but I think it's more likely where he has joined to that pipe than the original pipe itself
Are there any taps in the kithchen which are fed direct from the mains? Is so to rule out a leak attach a bit of transparent *ish) plastic pipe to the tap, turn off the exterior feed stop c o c k, turn on the tap that your bit of plastic pipe is attached to, you'll get a bit of water coming out as the bit from the 'above you pipework' empties, then carefully watch the level in the plassy tube, if needs be mark the pipe and go away and play on the puter and check it later. If the levels dropped you've got a leak
TheBlueRaja
08-07-2006, 17:52
Hmm.. guy came round to look at it, he claims it's from condensation from the lead water pipe coming into the house, where the weather is hot.
I pointed out that the back wall is soaked, the floor is soaked and the wall (in the picture is soaked) - that's a lot of condensation.
He's coming back next week to take out a cupboard to prove it to me
My **** thats condensation.
If there is a lead pipe there could it be cracked somewhere?
I would be surprised if you had lead pipes, most people i know have had them ripped out and repeaired in the last 20 years...lol......I have just had lead sleeved electric wires (c. early 1900's) removed from a building....and they were in use till I bought the place :disturbd:
---------- Post added at 18:07 ---------- Previous post was at 18:05 ----------
My **** thats condensation.
My thoughts exactly! I'd be sceptical of that diagnosis till it was proved beyond doubt....:D
Mr_love_monkey
20-07-2006, 20:59
For those of you that are interested.... (which is probably everyone on this site - I know your world's revolve around me :) )
Builder came in, took cupboard out, examined it and said 'hmmm youve got a leak'...
'Really?' said I
'The stopcock is leaking, but I never touched it when I did all the pipework here...'
'I see...'
'...but I'll replace it for you for free, you'll just have to pay for the new stopcock'...
'My, that's _awfully_ kind of you...'
So exactly where is the stop tap, is it hidden cos I cant see it m8. Is this a hollow section with pipes behind it!
Mr_love_monkey
20-07-2006, 21:22
So exactly where is the stop tap, is it hidden cos I cant see it m8. Is this a hollow section with pipes behind it!
eh???
For those of you that are interested.... (which is probably everyone on this site - I know your world's revolve around me :) )
Builder came in, took cupboard out, examined it and said 'hmmm youve got a leak'...
'Really?' said I
'The stopcock is leaking, but I never touched it when I did all the pipework here...'
'
Where is the stopcock located
MovedGoalPosts
20-07-2006, 21:49
Wherever the stopcock is, it needs to be accessible, not concealed behind plaster, cupboards, or whatever. You should have been able to get at it to see it was leaking. If it has been covered over, with no access, then the installation of your kitchen was poor, if the kitchen fitters obstructed it's access.
Wherever the stopcock is, it needs to be accessible, not concealed behind plaster, cupboards, or whatever. You should have been able to get at it to see it was leaking. If it has been covered over, with no access, then the installation of your kitchen was poor, if the kitchen fitters obstructed it's access.
Rob, Your right, thats what Im trying to find out m8, exactly where the pipes are in relation to the wet patch.
Wicked_and_Crazy
20-07-2006, 21:56
so he did a whole load of plumbing without turning off the stop cock????
No idea m8. It seems the stop tap is leaking. Im just trying to find out where the damned tap is located. If its accessable then it would be easy to see if it was causing the problem.
Mr_love_monkey
21-07-2006, 23:50
Stopcock is half a metre away from where that picture was taken.
As I say, it was a leaking stopcock, which has been replaced.
It is accessible, through the cupboard, and I had a feel and it was wet, but so was most of the piping back there.
Basically the stopcock had leaked soaked the walls and so on.
As I said, I already knew it was a leak from somewhere, I just wanted the builder to admit it and replace it, which he did - whether he admits it was his fault, I don't care too much, but the fact he did it for free speaks volumes.
Creative
22-07-2006, 22:45
Stopcock is half a metre away from where that picture was taken.
As I say, it was a leaking stopcock, which has been replaced.
It is accessible, through the cupboard, and I had a feel and it was wet, but so was most of the piping back there.
Basically the stopcock had leaked soaked the walls and so on.
As I said, I already knew it was a leak from somewhere, I just wanted the builder to admit it and replace it, which he did - whether he admits it was his fault, I don't care too much, but the fact he did it for free speaks volumes.
Before the builder did the work, when was the last time the stopcock was moved?
It maybe that the builder turning off and then on of the stopcock caused the problem due to an issue with the stopcock, which was out of his control. A solder joint or such like may have given way.
It maybe cheaper for him to fix than go to court and argue. However I don't know the finer details and he may well be bang to rights!
Anyway, its fixed now so hopefully the warm weather will help dry out the walls.
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