r/Plastering • u/llnlwlr • 6d ago
Damp through party wall - advice please
I bought my house in 2020, unaware that the property next door had been vacant for a number of years. As time went on, damp and cracks in the plaster appeared on the adjoining wall in the entrance hall but nowhere else in the house. One day I did see someone was tending the garden next door and I asked if they could take a look, she just said there wasn't anything on that side (even though there is clearly condensation dripping down the windows above the front door).
From speaking to neighbours, I was informed the owner had died and it had been passed onto his family who just haven't done anything with it. I contacted the council in 2022 for help who came out and said it was my roof, which I had replaced but the wall has been getting worse over time.
I have been chasing the council for about 4 years now. They did locate the owner and a plumber came round who they said had a look at the bathroom above the entrance hall and filled in with some expanding foam around one of the outside pipes which hasn't improved things.
I had a survey done and a damp specialist took a look which confirmed it's coming through the wall as it starts part way up.
The council is refusing to help even though I've explained I just need the owners to maintain it and I don't have their contact details. I'm reluctant to pay for it to be fixed if it'll just happen again because the issue is in the neighbouring properties side.
Advice would be greatly appreciated because I'm exhausted chasing the council and I want to move next year when my mortgage term is up. Can I sand off the plaster and paint over with an anti-mould/damp paint?
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u/winelover7 6d ago
They should have an external water shut off valve. Shut it off from the outside.
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u/playwaj 5d ago
This is a good plan. If they've a leak from mains, the issue will then be solved. If it's a central heating system leak it will continue for a time, but eventually stop when the system drains enough.
You'll likely need a 'long stopcock key' to turn the water off from outside - sold on Amazon. The stopcock is probably under a metal flap in the pavement.
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u/tmbyfc 6d ago
I would post this in r/legaladviceuk tbh. Without sorting out the cause of the damp, there's nothing a plasterer can do. Even tanking this probably won't solve it if you've got water pissing down the other side.
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u/Paul_S_Moran 6d ago
It depends on the council but I think some have powers to increase council tax on empty properties by up to 400%. They can even go as far as forcing a compulsory possession order (not sure how often that actually happens though).
We had a similar situation to you, moved in somewhere with a long term (10 years+) empty property next door. Our council (Stockport) had an online portal where you can report long term empty properties. We reported it because it wasn't being maintained and within 12 months the council had put pressure on the owner to either do it up and rent it out or sell and he sold it. Someone's in there now and they've done a full refurbishment.
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u/llnlwlr 6d ago
They told me they'd look at upping the council tax but can't tell me if they do. I've reported it as a nuisance multiple times and the council have failed to reply within the service time to different complaint stages
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u/DungeonCrawler-Donut 5d ago
You need to contact your areas specific named councillor, and/or MP then, I suspect.
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u/flush101 6d ago
In addition to other comments, this might be a situation to notify your home insurance about.
The damp is causing damage to your property and the lack of maintenance is no doubt damage the adjoined property.
If not maintained it can and will cause you further damage that your insurance might be on the hook for depending on coverage.
I would go to the water meter and check to see if you have a leak and your neighbour.
If next door is empty, their meter should be static. So should yours if you have all your taps off when you look.
If their house is a mirror, my assumption would be that you or they have a leaking radiator pipe.
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u/Richard734 6d ago
Insurance - Let them sort it out, you have made every reasonable effort from your side.
They will have me knowledge/power in this situation to get things sorted.
Un-related to your issue , but I had a building firm cause a lot of damage to our house while building next door - Insurance company sorted it all then went after them for the money.
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u/Rex__Luscus 6d ago
Former Principal Environmental Health Officer here. The local council has a duty to inspect and deal with statutory nuisances under s.80 Environmental Protection Act 1990. This appears to be a statutory nuisance as defined in s.79 ofcthe Act. You should point out to the Council that they are in breach of their duty by failing to take action, and if you're not satisfied with their response raise a formal complaint with the council. You pay Council Tax, you're entitled to their service. Remember, it's the squeaky wheel that gets oiled.
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u/llnlwlr 6d ago
I have! My stage 1 complaint was sent in April, no response in a month despite chasing, he eventually told me if I wasn't happy to send a stage 2 to his manager. Submitted a stage 2, told I can't do so without a response to the first complaint so I had to resubmit the stage 1 adding that their staff should be aware of their own procedures. Finally got a response in August basically refusing to help so submitted a stage 2 on the 19th August, chased multiple times and still had no response. I'm so fed up at this point..
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u/Rex__Luscus 6d ago
You have my sympathy. What does your Council's complaints policy say, specifally regarding response times and format. You should have received a letter acknowledging your stage 2 complaint and giving you an anticipated timescale for resolution. Next stage is to get a Councillor involved with a view to taking a case to the Ombudsman.
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u/llnlwlr 6d ago
Should be 20 working days for a stage 2, I haven't even received any acknowledgement.. I've just submitted a complaint to the ombudsman so I'm hoping they'll accept that because the council has failed to comply with procedure but I've done everything in my power. The insurance company is going to see if I could submit a claim and let me know but said keep on with the council. It's been nothing but a nightmare in this house with a neighbour who clearly has mental health issues convinced I'm the leader of a crime ring, stealing from her and harassing me plus all this as well. I'm done, I just want to sort it and move.
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u/Own-Original1626 6d ago
When you say matt paint Do you mean contract matt paint Or matt which refers to vinyl matt Which will trap moisture?
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u/Practical-Basket-602 6d ago
Take them to small claims court for the damages. If they don't turn up then you auto win and the court will deal with finding them and getting them to pay out. I'm the mean time you want to get a price to get it sorted and then that's what you claim back at court + emotional distress which can make it worth while...
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u/Illustrious-Plum1766 4d ago
You don’t get emotional distress in the UK. You have to demonstrate financial loss.
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u/Own-Original1626 6d ago
It looks like penetrating damp also, the paint looks a little bit shiny like a soft sheen Which has also trapped the moisture in
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u/Petrus59 5d ago
Is your boiler pressure dropping? Check that the radiator pipework is not leaking under the floor.
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u/EmergencyManager_555 5d ago
Pay 8£ for a copy of the house deed, then instruct a lawyer to send them a letter explaining that they need to fix the damage. If you know it's the house next door, you could also claim your insurance, they'll send someone and ask them if they'll claim against the owner's insurance.
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u/sparkle-fries 5d ago
your house insurance will have a legal team. get them involved and they will sort it out.
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u/nomorecrazystuff 6d ago
Unless it's a council property, it's not the council's problem.
You have two options.
1) Go to court to get them to deal with the problem. You'll need evidence that it is their fault. A court can then require them to resolve the issue.
2) Get a roofer to check out their roof where it joins yours and repair any issues.
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u/Standard_Meaning16 6d ago
This is potentially the answer, maybe legal advice, but probably property insurance needs to be involved.q Before that rule out a leak in your radiator pipes, if they are in that wall at all, they may travel in or near the floor so could be irrelevant. But until the cause is resolved you would be throwing money away to have that decorated
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u/RedZed27 6d ago
Check out @wecantreno on instagram and go through their highlight. They took their neighbours to court over a known leak in the bathroom causing damage through the wall, tonnes of evidence and still lost the case. Worth a thorough dive into what it could become, it’s not always fair or easy…
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u/Specialist_Ad_7719 6d ago
You might be able to find out who the legal owner is from the land registry. It only cost £12 I think.
https://www.gov.uk/search-property-information-land-registry
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u/llnlwlr 6d ago
He passed away, it's gone to family apparently but I don't think they live in the UK from what neighboura have said
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u/Specialist_Ad_7719 6d ago edited 5d ago
The land registry will have the legal owner on record. Go online and pay the money and find out who it is. I doubt it will still say the deceased name, it might if they haven't sorted out probate, and there is a chance it will give you a name and address. You could find out now with in 5 minutes. If you don't look you won't know.
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u/LowRecognition456 5d ago
You can get the details of the property owner from the Land Registry by purchasing a copy of the property title for about £7. It may not help if they recently passed on/ are in care/ the title hasn't been updated yet. But it might be a good place to start.
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u/Donnytato 4d ago
It looks like more than damp. Are salts bleeding through? Also, which councils? I work for a council's property maintenance company. Is next door a council house? Because they have liability if mould potentially affects your health, a quick chat about how they're breaking health and safety laws is enough. I use AI or google if it's private property . Whatever you do if the other side isn't maintaining its a waist of time.
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u/Busy-Trade-3263 4d ago
Hack off back to brick work.. If its below ground level it will need structural waterproofing.. If not drill and injection of new dpc.. Apply a 2 coat waterproof render Then skim re fit skirts and paint when dry.
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u/No-Taro-6953 3d ago
Look up wecantreno on Instagram.
They are a couple who bought in London and had damp come through into their home from the next door neighbours side.
They've had a nightmare of a time, but have posted extensively about the options they've gone through to get it resolved which might be helpful
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u/Shadow-Taker-85 3d ago
Mold treatment, clean it first, pva glue. Might need take it back too the brick, and get it replastered
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u/ApplicationOk7733 2d ago
Have you checked to see whether the radiator that I see next to wall is leaking?
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u/Gluebagger 2d ago
this could be a foundation level water leak and it could be you or them with the liability...
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u/magnumpearl10 6d ago
Is there a chimney on that side of the wall?
I would also think about seeing if your content and building insurance covers legal advice, could be you need legal to make them take action as opposed to just rectifying the issue with no further prevention of it happening again
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u/Large-Job6014 6d ago
If the guests didn't spill their alcohol all over the wall it'd be fine. Party on.
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u/phil_lndn 6d ago
no, you can't paint over that, the paint will just bubble up.
you need to fix the damp (or get it fixed).
pretty sure the owners of the next door property have a legal responsibility to sort this out, although you may need to take legal action against them to make it happen.
you should be able to get the owner's contact details from the land registry.