Garage bedroom conversion and dampness problem

[powlesY]

I made a topic about this before but this weekend i plan to do something proper about it. In the other topic i didn't explain it well enough straight off so to save people from reading it again i'm going to be a bit more descriptive.

Basically if i'm not running a dehumidifier, i'll wake up with a lot of condensation on my phone etc. There's strong damp odours in my room but nothing (like clothes etc actually get damp). My cigarettes taste horrible when left in my room for any period of time.

The walls seem fine, as do the windows (apart from a very little amount of condensation every now and again, not enough to be an issue). The floor however is very wet. The floor is made up of concrete, a protect membrane and a carpet. As far as i can tell the carpet isn't damp but smells a fair bit and under the membrane the garage floor is soaking.

Can any of you with any experience give me some solid advice on how to fix the problem? The cheaper the better but i want some solid advice. Many thanks in advance.

 

[gary996]

Dig the floor up. Lay a DPM then concrete. Put some 100mm kingspan down then 50mm of screed. Job done

 

[Macky]

Dig the floor up. Lay a DPM then concrete. Put some 100mm kingspan down then 50mm of screed. Job done

Easy as that ey..

 

[j.col]

is this the guy sleeping in a prefab garage?
if so, i told you the walls are just sitting on a concrete base, with surface water soaking underneath the prefab walls.
that is why the floor is soaking wet under the plastic under the carpet.

if you got some silicon sealant and seal all the joints along the ground and every joint between the sections, you should stop some of the damp.

Living in a prefab concrete garage is not fit for human habitation.
you will end up with respiratory problems

 

[Raymond Lin]

Dig the floor up. Lay a DPM then concrete. Put some 100mm kingspan down then 50mm of screed. Job done

To be blunt, if there isn't a DPM down and sufficient insulation, with the difference in room temperature to ground temperature you will get this until the house fall apart.

 

[powlesY]

is this the guy sleeping in a prefab garage?
if so, i told you the walls are just sitting on a concrete base, with surface water soaking underneath the prefab walls.
that is why the floor is soaking wet under the plastic under the carpet.

if you got some silicon sealant and seal all the joints along the ground and every joint between the sections, you should stop some of the damp.

Living in a prefab concrete garage is not fit for human habitation.
you will end up with respiratory problems

What exactly is a prefab garage?

I said i'd be descriptive but i guess i missed out the fact that it's properly insulated etc.

 

[haaammit]

Get your own house?

/edit - oh yeah - give up the tabs

 

[powlesY]

The tabs?

Getting a flat is looking like the only option unless a proper solution can be sorted it out.

 

[haaammit]

Tabs = cigarettes

If you've lots of condensation, only a fairly major rebuild will sort the problem out mate

 

[Maccapacca]

What natural ventilation have you got
what heating

 

[Biohazard]

is the garage at the bottom of a hill?

 

[drunkenmaster]

Just having concrete isn't enough, there needs to be drainage underneath the concrete aswell or you'll continually have soaked concrete and frankly that will find a way up the walls and to be damp elsewhere most likely, bad drainage is not good, and in stupid heavy rain if the ground isn't running the water off, I can see the water rising high enough to be a problem.

Get a professional in, though thats hard to do, maybe its something along the lines of all the house guttering is routed to come down right next to the garage, maybe the roof needs more downspouts and you'd be better off having them go to another side of the house and routed into a drain elsewhere to stop so much water hitting the ground around the garage.

You shouldn't live in a mouldy garage, its just plain bad for you, depending on the type of mould and how bad it is it can cause SERIOUS health problems and very easily minor health problems.

As before, pics would go a long way to working out what needs doing, is it a brick walled garage, whats on the inside, wall paper, plasterboard/drywall type stuff, plaster over brick, or plain brick. Mould could be traveling all up the walls which is more likely if its got any kind of paper as mould loves to eat paper.

Are you sure the carpet is completely dry, is it damp in a corner under a cupboard or anything, have you moved every item of furniture away from the walls to check for damp/mould in corners.

It sounds like its not properly done and other factors, location, ground water, drainage under the concrete haven't been taken into account at all. If its in a poor drainage area it should probably have a decent area underneath the base dug out and have hardcore/drainage tubes to help shift ground water, then maybe a concrete base and a floating floor above that to allow circulation underneath and lift the floor away from a waterlogged area.

 

[powlesY]

What natural ventilation have you got
what heating

At the moment it's a case of having the windows open. I don't know a lot about ventilation though. I can only wish an airbrick was put in.

is the garage at the bottom of a hill?

No. Although i have been told that next doors connected garage which is slightly higher could be, or is causing some of the problem.

 

[powlesY]

Just having concrete isn't enough, there needs to be drainage underneath the concrete aswell or you'll continually have soaked concrete and frankly that will find a way up the walls and to be damp elsewhere most likely, bad drainage is not good, and in stupid heavy rain if the ground isn't running the water off, I can see the water rising high enough to be a problem.

Get a professional in, though thats hard to do, maybe its something along the lines of all the house guttering is routed to come down right next to the garage, maybe the roof needs more downspouts and you'd be better off having them go to another side of the house and routed into a drain elsewhere to stop so much water hitting the ground around the garage.

First of all i'd like to say a big thanks to the very informative reply you've put together. I'm fairly sure the drainage isn't a huge issue although it'd be great if you could be the judge from the pics that i'll show you nearer the end of this post.

You shouldn't live in a mouldy garage, its just plain bad for you, depending on the type of mould and how bad it is it can cause SERIOUS health problems and very easily minor health problems.

There's not much mold if any growing at all, only a few dark spots on the bottom of the one wall so i'm doubting any serious health problems although i'm very aware of the minor health problems it may be causing me and it's one of the main reasons i want to get this sorted as soon as i can.

As before, pics would go a long way to working out what needs doing, is it a brick walled garage, whats on the inside, wall paper, plasterboard/drywall type stuff, plaster over brick, or plain brick. Mould could be traveling all up the walls which is more likely if its got any kind of paper as mould loves to eat paper.

https://picasaweb.google.com/113348454444230499774/DropBox

Are you sure the carpet is completely dry, is it damp in a corner under a cupboard or anything, have you moved every item of furniture away from the walls to check for damp/mould in corners.

I couldn't tell if if it's completely dry, all i know is that when i touch it it feels that way and it doesn't seem any less so anywhere.

It sounds like its not properly done and other factors, location, ground water, drainage under the concrete haven't been taken into account at all. If its in a poor drainage area it should probably have a decent area underneath the base dug out and have hardcore/drainage tubes to help shift ground water, then maybe a concrete base and a floating floor above that to allow circulation underneath and lift the floor away from a waterlogged area.

See what you can advise from reading this post and looking at the pics. I am hugely grateful, not only for the post but to hear from someone who genuinely sounds like they know what they're on about and is willing to try to help. Hope to hear from you again.

 

[Brian8bit]

Where is the downspout emptying from the guttering?

 

[powlesY]

Where is the downspout emptying from the guttering?

It goes about 3 metres and out onto the garden at the moment. There was a drain directly underneath but in case of a lot of rain it was thought it'd be better to do it this way.

 

[Dr House]

dude man up and pitch a tent in the garden = Job done

 

[powlesY]

Believe me, i've been tempted.

 

[powlesY]

bump in an attempt to hear from drunkenmaster.

 

[LOAM]

You ask for a “proper” solution and they have already been given. You are living in an un-insulated box. The ground, despite the warm weather cools down over night. Moisture laden air will condense on cool surfaces IE your floor and walls. In a normal garage this is rarely apparent because A. There’s not someone living in there breathing out moisture rich air and B. They aren’t that air tight around the up and over door so air doesn’t tend to sit around condensing.

Your options are simple, either move or look at ways to prevent warm air making contact with cool surfaces. As pointed out above you need to insulate the place. The lack of DPM is also a factor if ground moisture is penetrating the garage slab.

It’s a bit like starting a thread entitled “when I sleep out side, what’s all this water on the grass in the morning”.

If you are renting this place and its been marketed as a habitable room, you should consider making huge amounts of noise about now.

**For the record, you “rarely” have land drainage under a concrete slab. If you have an absolute sodden site then you would tank it and use a higher grade concrete with an additive and a better gauge DPM.