Black mould in the bedroom corners, a tide mark on the wall, peeling paint by the window. Damp is miserable, it's bad for your health, and it's one of the most common reasons people ring us.
The key to fixing it is knowing which kind of damp you've got. There are three main types, and they need completely different fixes. Getting that wrong is how people spend money on a damp course that makes no difference.
Warm, moist air from cooking, showers, drying clothes and breathing hits a cold wall or window and turns to water. Mould follows. It's worst in winter, in corners, behind furniture and on north-facing walls.
Rain getting through the wall, roof or around windows. It's very common in exposed spots on the coast and on older houses where maintenance has slipped.
Moisture drawn up from the ground into the bottom of the wall. It happens, but it's diagnosed far more often than it exists.
If you rent from a council or housing association, Awaab's Law now requires social landlords to investigate and fix serious damp and mould hazards within set timescales. Private landlords have duties too under housing health and safety rules. If you're a landlord, our landlord guide covers what's expected.
We don't sell damp treatments for the sake of it. We find the cause first: gutters, roof, pointing, ground levels, ventilation. Then we fix that with our own roofers, bricklayers, plasterers and electricians. One firm, no passing the blame between trades.
This is general guidance, not formal advice on your property. Rules change, so we check the current position at the free site visit and handle any applications as part of the job.
Condensation mould is usually black and spotty, in corners and behind furniture, and worse in cold weather. Penetrating damp grows after rain. Rising damp shows as a tide mark low down on ground floor walls.
Only if the damp course has genuinely failed. Most damp we see is condensation or rain getting in, which a damp course won't touch.
It can affect breathing, especially for children, older people and anyone with asthma. Clean it off with a proper mould remover and fix the cause so it doesn't return.
Yes. We have roofers, bricklayers, plasterers and electricians on our own books, so we fix the source and make good afterwards.
Whatever the brief, the route in is the same: ring us, we'll visit, we'll come back with a fixed price in plain English. Free site visits across Durham, Sunderland and Newcastle.
Or email enquiries@atkinsonsgroup.co.uk
No call-out charge for quotes. Fixed prices, in writing.
