4-months in plaster won’t dry

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Southlondoner

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Hi all,

here seeking any advice and solutions on a nightmare job I had completed in my flat 4 months ago.

Had some blown plaster on either side of an internal wall after flat had been empty a few months during last year. Firm recommended I strip back to brick and then sand & cement render before plastering over.

went ahead with it and it’s now been 4 months since the job was completed and the plaster still won’t dry. got tenants due to move in in a month and at a loss of what I should do.

guy who carried out the job is now too busy to address it and offered my money back. Anyone seen anything like this before? I thought it might be best to get another firm in to hack it back and repeat but worried the drying time will continue and I’ll lose another 4 months before being back in the same situation.

Other thought was to get a dehumidifiers in. Just hoped for your thoughts on it.

first pictures show the front room which is unpainted. Second lot with the dark walls is the adjoining bedroom on other side of the wall, I painted it but stains are coming through.

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The white stuff is effervescence......salt......it's in the bricks and comes from damp, it won't go away
Knock it off, treat it, fit a Pam ties membrane system to it properly, dab some new boards over,and skim, fastest way out of that mate......dry it all you want, it won't go away as the bricks are contaminated......you will always have dusty white stuff on the paint coming through......
Would really help to know what's the cause though.......something s leaking somewhere.......
Look up Pam ties in Leigh Lancashire, .....contact them for help and advice , there a decent honest supplier.
 
Magic wand said:
The white stuff is effervescence......salt......it's in the bricks and comes from damp, it won't go away
Knock it off, treat it, fit a Pam ties membrane system to it properly, dab some new boards over,and skim, fastest way out of that mate......dry it all you want, it won't go away as the bricks are contaminated......you will always have dusty white stuff on the paint coming through......
Would really help to know what's the cause though.......something s leaking somewhere.......
Look up Pam ties in Leigh Lancashire, .....contact them for help and advice , there a decent honest supplier.
Click to expand...
Nice one, sounds like a good and fast way to get it dealt with. So that’s knock off all
Plaster then a membrane over the recent sand cement and then boards/skim over that?

bricks were bone dry when they took it back that far, maybe the contamination is still pulling through. Very old
Building and lower ground flat. Far too high to be rising damp mind
 
Your problem really is no professionals used and that may be ignorance or trying to save money

Perhaps a professional was contacted and you declined the quote?

If the original wall blew both sides whilst flat was empty 4 months what caused that all of a sudden? Was that identified and corrected and appropriate measures taken to remedy the situation according to its specific needs?

Looking around many signs of amateur or money saving work if I may say?
Radiator pipes and boxing in!
Surface planted ring main!
Two two gang sockets butted up to one another apparently installed just after being re plastered?
Painting wobbly cutting in!

Downfall and root problem is not using professionals
 
Last edited:
Monkey Boy said:
Your problem really is no professionals used and that may be ignorance or trying to save money

Perhaps a professional was contacted and you declined the quote?

If the original wall blew both sides whilst flat was empty 4 months what caused that all of a sudden? Was that identified and corrected and appropriate measures taken to remedy the situation according to its specific needs?

Looking around many signs of amateur work
Radiator pipes and boxing in looks junk
Surface planted ring main and patress boxes look junk
Two two gang sockets butted up to one another look junk
Painting cutting in looks junk

As I said your root problem is not using professionals
Click to expand...
Yeah understood - was convinced by what I now know as amateurs to be “straight forward” work. Got first kid on the way so money is tight.

priority now is to get is properly solved in next few weeks, ill have to take the debt - just need it sorted but not even sure what the process to remedy this is now, which is the hardest part.

doesn’t really seem to be any solution to ensure a smooth finish despite there being no evidence of damp in the brick.
 
Southlondoner said:
Hi all,

here seeking any advice and solutions on a nightmare job I had completed in my flat 4 months ago.

Had some blown plaster on either side of an internal wall after flat had been empty a few months during last year. Firm recommended I strip back to brick and then sand & cement render before plastering over.

went ahead with it and it’s now been 4 months since the job was completed and the plaster still won’t dry. got tenants due to move in in a month and at a loss of what I should do.

guy who carried out the job is now too busy to address it and offered my money back. Anyone seen anything like this before? I thought it might be best to get another firm in to hack it back and repeat but worried the drying time will continue and I’ll lose another 4 months before being back in the same situation.

Other thought was to get a dehumidifiers in. Just hoped for your thoughts on it.

first pictures show the front room which is unpainted. Second lot with the dark walls is the adjoining bedroom on other side of the wall, I painted it but stains are coming through.

View attachment 61829
Click to expand...
What behind the wall? Problems ther before?
 
Magic wand said:
The white stuff is effervescence......salt......it's in the bricks and comes from damp, it won't go away
Knock it off, treat it, fit a Pam ties membrane system to it properly, dab some new boards over,and skim, fastest way out of that mate......dry it all you want, it won't go away as the bricks are contaminated......you will always have dusty white stuff on the paint coming through......
Would really help to know what's the cause though.......something s leaking somewhere.......
Look up Pam ties in Leigh Lancashire, .....contact them for help and advice , there a decent honest supplier.
Click to expand...
Pamties are very good, oh but they in Tyldesley not leigh...
 
Southlondoner said:
Yeah understood - was convinced by what I now know as amateurs to be “straight forward” work. Got first kid on the way so money is tight.

priority now is to get is properly solved in next few weeks, ill have to take the debt - just need it sorted but not even sure what the process to remedy this is now, which is the hardest part.

doesn’t really seem to be any solution to ensure a smooth finish despite there being no evidence of damp in the brick.
Click to expand...

Sure you have heard the expression 'pay less pay twice' this is prime example except it's going to cost some serious money now as everyone is flat out and materials prices have gone through the roof.

Needs membrane. Try to find the source of the issue looks bad.

Good luck - I reckon around 6K.
 
Cheers for all the advice, had a few people in to look over it today and general consensus is to once again hack it back to brick, floor to ceiling and then slurry or membrane and dab dot for a quick-ish dry time. No one keen to try that method around the chimney mind, will have to plaster that.

people think that’s a sensible way to get it dealt with for the foreseeable?

cheers again
 
Southlondoner said:
Hi all,

here seeking any advice and solutions on a nightmare job I had completed in my flat 4 months ago.

Had some blown plaster on either side of an internal wall after flat had been empty a few months during last year. Firm recommended I strip back to brick and then sand & cement render before plastering over.

went ahead with it and it’s now been 4 months since the job was completed and the plaster still won’t dry. got tenants due to move in in a month and at a loss of what I should do.

guy who carried out the job is now too busy to address it and offered my money back. Anyone seen anything like this before? I thought it might be best to get another firm in to hack it back and repeat but worried the drying time will continue and I’ll lose another 4 months before being back in the same situation.

Other thought was to get a dehumidifiers in. Just hoped for your thoughts on it.

first pictures show the front room which is unpainted. Second lot with the dark walls is the adjoining bedroom on other side of the wall, I painted it but stains are coming through.

View attachment 61829
Click to expand...
do u live in the rotherhide tunnel by any chance
 
Knocked into a section of the wall to see what’s going on and get an idea of what the cowboy actually used. Very crumbly sand, attached a photo below. Can anyone make any sense of that? Wall wasn’t particularly damp before they get stuck in just can’t sus why their mess of a job is drying so slowly and some areas not at all.

got varying levels of advice. Two current options are looking like:

1. (££) 1.5 high to whole rooms take back to brick insert chemical dpc barrier treat masonry with pro m50 then sbr primer x2 coats tanking slurry install newton 500 membrane barrier Apply drylining dot & dab plaster board scrim joints apply x2 coats multifinish plaster hard trowel smooth finish.

2. (£) To hack off damp areas back to brick 1.5m, Install a new damp proof course, Apply a salt neutraliser, Sbr, Two coats of waterproof render, sbr again, two coats of a waterproof slurry tanking.

both can be started Friday, got tenants moving in in 5 weeks and a baby due the same day so drying time for decorating is the killer.

What you thinking given the deadline, 1 or 2?

thanks again to a community as solid as I hope my walls to be at some stage
 

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Southlondoner said:
Knocked into a section of the wall to see what’s going on and get an idea of what the cowboy actually used. Very crumbly sand, attached a photo below. Can anyone make any sense of that? Wall wasn’t particularly damp before they get stuck in just can’t sus why their mess of a job is drying so slowly and some areas not at all.

got varying levels of advice. Two current options are looking like:

1. (££) 1.5 high to whole rooms take back to brick insert chemical dpc barrier treat masonry with pro m50 then sbr primer x2 coats tanking slurry install newton 500 membrane barrier Apply drylining dot & dab plaster board scrim joints apply x2 coats multifinish plaster hard trowel smooth finish.

2. (£) To hack off damp areas back to brick 1.5m, Install a new damp proof course, Apply a salt neutraliser, Sbr, Two coats of waterproof render, sbr again, two coats of a waterproof slurry tanking.

both can be started Friday, got tenants moving in in 5 weeks and a baby due the same day so drying time for decorating is the killer.

What you thinking given the deadline, 1 or 2?

thanks again to a community as solid as I hope my walls to be at some stage
Click to expand...
No need for any damp course if there was no damp before, hack off back to brickwork and get me in to do it properly
 
superspread said:
No need for any damp course if there was no damp before, hack off back to brickwork and get me in to do it properly
Click to expand...
There’s since been a tonne of salt pouring out and been serious building work next door. plus it’s a Victorian lower ground flat so would be doing it as insurance more than anything and likely invoicing me rich neighbours for it
 
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