Anti-Damp Aust P/L

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Got a Damp Problem? Anti-Damp Australia has been supplying houses in the Sydney area for over 25 years with traditional and chemical damp course, under floor ventilation, and dehumidifiers to prevent problems caused by rising damp (or Salt Damp), condensation, mould, mildew and fungus.
Musty smells, stuffiness, mustiness, and health problems such as allergies, asthma, respiratory infections, sinus problems can all be linked with the effects of damp. We believe that with proper ventilation many damp situations can be alleviated before they cause major problems. There are several methods of ventilating a building, such as sub floor air vents / fans, and we design the ventilation system to suit the building or home in question.

If you are getting condensation in the house, on the walls, and windows you may need one of our highly efficient dehumidifier units. Dehumidifiers are a great way of removing vast amounts of excess moisture (water vapour) from the air and require no modifications to your home.

Rising Damp can cause very serious structural problems to you property and it needs to be identified and cured as soon as possible. We can help identify rising damp and suggest the best solution to prevent further problems.

What is Rising Damp (Salt Damp) ?

Rising damp (or Salt damp, as it is known in many parts of the world) is not the most common form of dampness encountered in buildings; this is left to condensation. However a high proportion of older buildings are affected by rising damp to some degree or another. In general, walls prior to the 1970`s did not have Damp Courses or inferior ones, which allowed the damp to rise in capillary action. In many cases of Rising Damp in more modern walls the causes are often traced back to bridging/ breaching of the D.P.C. (Damp Proof Course).
Rising damp in buildings may be defined as the vertical flow of water up through a permeable wall structure, the water being derived from ground water. The water rises through the pores (capillaries) in the masonry by a process loosely termed "capilliarity." In other words the masonry acts like a wick

By natural evaporation from the surface of walls, Rising Damp seldom occurs above a height of 1.5 metres unless forced higher by being sandwiched between two impervious layers of render, gloss paint or wall paper. Temporary measures, like cleaning the surface, replastering or just repainting can actually make the situation even worse.

The Rising Damp also carries with it hydroscopic salts (nitrates and sulphates) and as dampness evaporates from the wall surface the salts are deposited in the plasterwork, which build up into a concentration, that can absorb moisture from the air making the situation critical.

Raising Damp can be more serious than just causing aesthetic damage, structural damage to the base of the wall can also occur which if left unchecked could lead to dire consequences.

So How Do You Treat IT ?

There are two methods of tackling Salt Damp or Rising Damp. The removal and replacement of old affected bricks and or stone with new ones with a new plastic damp course underneath, called 'Undersetting'. This method if done correctly will solve the problem, but is usually more costly, messy, time consuming and can compromise the structural integrity and the originality of the building. The other alternative is to place a chemical damp course at the lowest point of the wall, to create a barrier preventing any more rising saline water entering the wall above this point. We are one of the few companies in Australia who offer both physical and the chemical pressure injected damp proofing methods. We believe the chemical pressure injection method, which has been perfected over many years, is far superior to any other type of damp proofing solution but are happy to discuss both solutions with the customer.


Home inspections

This is for people who are thinking of a new property and require a pre/purchase verbal inspection by someone with 30 years experience. With this amount of experience we can point out the good and bad points of the building very quickly with the interested party. With this very long term investment good practical down to earth advice is essential and @ $150.oo for a verbal up to date information is great value. Written reports are usually around $700.oo and are usually phrased to protect the company who provide it. Most reports tent to mention menial problems as many as possible to justify the very expensive cost. If the person decided to buy the property we can also give quotations at the time of inspection, Any work we get we deduct the original inspection fee from the price.