Dampness in Buildings

Causes of Dampness in
Buildings
Remedial measures
BY : Ashar Gill
Topics

• Definitions
• Types of Dampness
• Causes of Dampness
• Effects of Dampness
• Remidial measures
• Classification of Damp proofing material
Definitions
• Dampness
– The excess entry or penetration of moisture inside a building
through its
– Floors
– Walls and
– Roofs
is called Dampness.
Dampness is dangerous both for
Inmates
Building
• Due to dampness the building become unhygienic.
• Dampness in buildings is a risk factor for health effects.
Definitions

• Peeling off
– This term is related to plaster and it means that the
plaster surface get disfigured.

• Blistered and Bleached

– These term are related to Painting
• DPC (Damp proof course)
– It is a continuous layer of impervious material
between source of dampness and building component
Types of Dampness

• Based on the movement of moisture the

dampness can be of the following three
types.
1. Rising or capillary dampness.
2. Falling or penetrating dampness.
3. Condensation dampness.
Causes of Dampness

• Following are the main causes of dampness in

a building
1. Rain penetration
2. Level of site
3. Drainability of the Soil
4. Climatic conditions
5. Defective Orientation
6. Entraped moisture in the building
7. Defective construction material
8. Defective construstion
9. Moisture originates in the building.
Causes of Dampness
1. Rain penetration
• It is the main source of dampness. Heavy rain of short
duration is less dangerous. rain water enters through joints,
cracks and porous bricks or stones.
1. Level of site
• Low laying building sites are effected by the depositing
surface water and underground water.
1. Drainability of the Soil
• Course grained soils like Sandy or gravely soils provides
good drainibility conditions and fine grained soils like clay
retain water and cause dampness.
Causes of Dampness
4. Climatic conditions
• In cold climatic condition dampness causes due
to condensation of water vapors.
4. Defective Orientation
• If building is exposed to direct rain showers and
less sun rays then it cause dampness.
4. Entrapped moisture in the building
1. Due Over soaked bricks and use of salty or
alkaline water results dampness in building.
Causes of Dampness
7. Defective construction material
• Porous bricks, soft stones, alkaline water etc.
cause dampness of building.
7. Defective construction
• Through defective joints of parapet, copping and
masonry joints moisture can enter in the building.
7. Moisture originates in the building.
• It is due to the leakage through water supply or
sanitary system of building.
Effects of Dampness
• Following are the harmful effects of dampness in
buildings.
– Building become esthetically poor.
– It cause dry Rot to the wooden members provided in the
building.
– It cause corrosion of metals used in building.
– Plaster peels off.
– Paint blistered and bleached and the surface disfigured.
– Holes and pits are formed in topping of floors.
– Efflorescence occurs and bricks disintegrate and turn in to
powder.
– Un hygienic conditions in building.
Remedial Measures

• By Damp Proofing Courses (DPC)

• By surface treatment
• By water proofing construction
• By special devices/techniques
 By
Damp Proofing Courses
DPC
Damp proofing material

• Classification of Damp proofing material

• Qualities of a good Damp proofing
Material
• Important places for Damp proofing
materials.
Classification of Damp proofing
material
• Flexible Materials
• Material which do not crack and deform
due to loadings.
– Bitumen Mastic (Mastic Asphalt)
– Bitumen felt
– Hot Bitumen
– Metal Sheets

• Rigid Materials
• Materials that cannot resist transverse
stresses.
– Rich Concrete
– Mortar
– Bricks
– Stone Slabs
Flexible Materials
– Bitumen Mastic (Mastic Asphalt)
• Hot Bitumen or Asphalt + Sand
• Applied in hot state in 1” to 2” (2 cm to 5 cm)
– Bitumen felt
• 6 mm thick bitumen sheet available in roll form
– Hot Bitumen
• It is sprayed at @ 1.75 kg/m2
– Metal Sheets
– Lead, copper, Aluminum sheets can be used
• Lead can react chemically with cement so should be laid in
lime mortar.
• Minimum thickness of copper sheets should be 3 mm .
Rigid Materials
– Rich Concrete
• 1” to 2-1/2” thick layer of P.C.C (1:2:4) painted with hot
bitumen is applied
– Mortar
• Rich or fat cement mortar CS(!:3) is laid in ¾” thickness (2
cm) as vertical DPC.
• Painted with bitumen
– Bricks
• Over burnt bricks are used in two layers in CS(1:3) mortar
– Stone Slabs
• Two layers of stone slabs in lime cement and sand mortar
(1:1:6) is provided in areas where stone is easily available.
Qualities of a good Damp proofing
Material
1. Impervious
2. Durable
3. Non disintegratable
4. Stable under the loading
5. Level finish
6. Full coverage of wall thickness
7. Availability
8. Economical
Important places for Damp proofing
materials
• At Plinth Level (in walls ) (external &
Internal)
• Parapet walls
• Window sill
• Basements and Under ground Floors
Back
Back
Dampness in buildings is a
risk factor for health effects
Associations found with cough, asthma,
tiredness, airway infection
– Increased relative risk 1.4-2.2

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Ozone-generating O3 “Air Purifiers”

• Portable electronic appliances

• Release ozone gas by design or as a by-
product (“ozone generators” versus
ionizers & electrostatic precipitators)
– Ozone generators 300 - 400 ppb
– Personal air purifiers ~ 100 ppb

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 What is condensation?
Condensation is the formation of liquid drops from water
vapor.

More Details
It is the process which creates clouds, and so is
necessary for rain and snow formation as well.
Condensation usually occurs when a parcel of rising air
expands and cools. If it cools enough, some of the water
vapor molecules clump together faster than they are torn
apart from their thermal energy. A very important part of
this process is the release of the latent heat of
condensation. This is the heat that was absorbed when
the water was originally evaporated from the surface of
the Earth. The heat removed from the surface through
evaporation is released again up in the atmosphere when
clouds form. This process keeps the Earth's climate
cooler that it would otherwise be if there were no water.
Another way in which condensation occurs is during the
formation of dews.
Typical section of Wall

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DPC at different locations
3- At Window Sills

1- At Plinth Level

4- Basements & Under Ground Floors

2- At Parapet Walls

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Difference of Bitumen and Asphalt

• Bitumen can be found in Nature.

• Asphalt is a manufactured product,
produced by refining crude oil by heating
at 300 oC in a distillation column.
• Naphthene base crude oils are suitable
Naphthene base crude oils

• Crude oil containing asphaltic materials

but very little or no paraffin wax. This type
of oil is suitable for making gasoline,
lubricating oil and asphalt. It is also called
asphalt-base crude.
Practical Advice for
Reducing Excessive Moisture*
• Fix roof and plumbing leaks right away
• Check for standing water (e.g., basement & refrig drip pan)
• Make sure rain drains away from house (& irrigation)
• Vent clothes dryer to the outside
• Ensure adequate ventilation (from outside) and
circulation (inside). Use fans that vent air to the outside
when bathing, showering, and cooking
• After flooding, remove any wet or damp material right
away and start drying (with fans). Pull up carpets.
* Mold in My Home: What Do I Do?, CHDS 2004