Attic Room Chimney Damp?

smashpotato · 19 Jun 2023

Good evening,

I’ve an attic room that’s got the chimneys coming up through it. The top plaster went flaky and started to go yellow.

We had a damp company out they investigated and said it was condensation. My wife he attempted to fix the damaged area and it’s just starting cracking and yellowing again.

She tried to use interior ready mixed smoother rough surfaces from B&Q.

Could anyone offer any advice on the best way to tackle this? We’d just like a nice tidy room and this is an eyesore.

Thank you.

foxhole · 19 Jun 2023

Damp company probably didn’t want the job, more likely the chimney or lead work around it has leaks .
Is the chimney capped , ventilated?

smashpotato · 19 Jun 2023

foxhole said:
Damp company probably didn’t want the job, more likely the chimney or lead work around it has leaks .
Is the chimney capped , ventilated?

Thank you for the reply. They did an investigation cut a hole in the ceiling and looked it’s all bone dry. We had a new roof in September last year, and this has been checked since.

We had the chimneys capped when we bought the house as it was a issue on the survey. We’ve had had the pointing done on the chimney too.

The staining was there before the new roof.

smashpotato · 19 Jun 2023

Sorry just to add we do leave the velux vents open and the window when possible.

foxhole · 20 Jun 2023

smashpotato said:
Sorry just to add we do leave the velux vents open and the window when possible.

The chimney itself need vents ideally at each level to dry the chimney internally . What method was used to repair damage .How long since the repairs .

hotdog6660 · 20 Jun 2023

Vent probably the best way forward. When decorating scrape old flaky stuff away and sand smooth. Use Zinnsser primer then your emulsion. Follow the guide for Zinnsser.

blup · 20 Jun 2023

smashpotato said:
Sorry just to add we do leave the velux vents open and the window when possible.

The damp is from within the chimney flue, that’s what’s needs venting

Blup

smashpotato · 20 Jun 2023

Thank you for the replies.

How would I vent it? The right hand side has a flue liner in for a log burner, 1st floor bedroom has a vent.

The left side chimneys removed below.

opps · 20 Jun 2023

In easter 2021, I decorated a seldom used attic room for a customer.

The paint on the chimney breast had cracked pretty badly. I applied a coat of SBR and filled over it. I then lined all of the walls. During winter, the customer noticed damp marks appearing on the breast. Earlier in the year he had the whole house re-pointed, largely because of the occasional damp patch on the chimney breast.

He phoned a damp specialist that had been recommended to him. The guy on the phone could have charged him to swing by and assess it. Instead the guy explained that some chimney breasts are so full of soot that the soot soaks up damp air and that during the winter months it dumps that moisture through the brick work. His advice was to use sand and cement on the chimney breast.

Have a read through the following

Why Is There Damp on Your Chimney Breast? | Direct Stoves

Have you noticed damp on your chimney breast? We explain some common causes for damp chimneys and how to fix them. Read now >>

www.directstoves.com