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How to completely weatherproof and waterproof a house

With the amount of rain we get in the UK, some would suggest we go and live in boats, but we have another solution to protect your home from the rain, the cold and the damp, and get it all the repairs done, AND get it painted with a long life wall coating!

All for a price that is wallet-friendly

No matter what type of house you live in, the experts at NPA can take care of all the problems and issues related to your home, improving it, adding value to it, and keeping the contents in tip-top condition!

Keeping the house in good order but not having to spend out ever-increasing amounts to a stream of fly-by-night builders, gets harder and more expensive as the years go on.

Damp can appear when and where you least expect.

It is not just poor quality, or badly maintained houses that suffer from damp and water ingress, it can happen to good quality homes too, houses built using the best materials and finished to a good standard.

The problem with water, the very source of damp, is the fact that it’s a liquid and finds its way in through the most remarkable and obscure places, and once it’s in, it’s hard to get rid of.

Waterproofing and weatherproofing a house

There are some things you can do yourself in relation to waterproofing and weatherproofing to avoid damp getting into the house, however unless you are your local areas “DIY guru”, you may need to dip in your pocket and get a specialist tradesman around to have a look.

They are generally not as expensive as you first think, and can save you a small fortune if problems in your home are spotted, quickly sorted out.

We can take steps to alleviate the potential for damp to enter, for sure, but even the best will in the world sometimes just can’t stop it.

In fact some times it takes freak weather, such as flooding or storms, to reveal a weak spot in your house, and that’s where the damp gets in.

So what parts of the house should we look at, in order to make sure damp doesn’t get a chance to enter our homes, and ruin our carpets, fabrics, paint, wallpaper, floorboards and plaster?

Things that should be weatherproof.

Your roof MUST be watertight, that’s a foregone conclusion

Your roof is a very important part of the overall structure of the house and it is essential that this is kept in good order.

It may be wise if you have doubts, to get a qualified roofing inspector to take a look at your roof, only every 5 years or so, just to make sure no tiles have slipped, no moss is growing on the roof, and inside, the roof should be well insulated.

This is because a massive amount of heat from your house will be lost if you roof space or loft is not fitted with insulation.

There are various grants and schemes that help people get their houses insulated.

You can save a small fortune on heating costs too, plus of course the house will be much more cosy and warm come the winter months.

If you do go up and check the loft, make sure you take a torch with you if it is not well lit, and check for any leaks, and damp spots on wood etc, plus make sure there is nowhere that you can see daylight.

If you can, this maybe a slipped or broken tile and needs your attention if you want the roof to remain waterproof.

Basement or cellar waterproofing is essential

If your home has a cellar, this is somewhere that is prone to damp, condensation, mould, algae and of course, flooding, by it’s very nature, being underneath the ground.

Basement waterproofing is something that should be done in any case, to avoid the water seeping through the walls or floor into the space itself.

In addition, the space needs to be ventilated, but make sure if heavy rain occurs, the ventilation shaft or outlet does not allow water to pour into the room. In worst cases, this has to be pumped out by the fire brigade.

There are various ways to damp proof a basement, the most common of which is known as “Tanking” and involves the application of a waterproof and durable material or liquid to the walls.

This can be a great way to open up the space as an extra part of your living area, or even just a storeroom, but as long as it is dry and ventilated, it should be a space that is used, not left to rot!

Doors and windows need attention too.

a WINDOW THAT NEEDS PAINTING

If water stains or patches of mould are appearing around your windows, you can be sure that is where the problem lies and not perhaps, with the exterior walls, but a simple external visual check should ascertain if your windows are keeping the weather at bay.

If they are wooden, check the fames are not rotting, and check that the panes of glass are sealed in well with the putty or beads that should be in situ around the windows, the above photo is a prime example of what happens when windows are left to the elements.

Wooden windows must always be well painted to repel the rain and frost etc, but if they are too bad, why not consider UPVC replacement windows instead?

These are things that need to be sorted, and especially if you plan to put your house on the market some time soon.

….and finally, the most effective means of weatherproofing and waterproofing your home.

Weatherproofing your exterior walls is very important.

Regular readers may think I’m going to launch into a sales pitch again for our textured masonry wall coatings service (!) LOL, but nope, this is a general piece of advice on making sure the walls of your house, the surfaces that mother nature chucks her worst at, are in good condition and I’ll tell you why…

The walls of ANY house, old or new, have a very important function to do, and that does not include holding the roof up!

The outside surface of your home must be weatherproof, in fact it’s ESSENTIAL that is repels the weather, because if that fails, the home owner is in for a big shock, AND a big bill at the end of it.

Luckily most people know that if the outside of the house has loads of cracks in it, or the walls are covered in moss etc, it doesn’t take the appearance of a tree growing out of the wall to entice people in to thinking , …

…….”hmmm, perhaps now is the time to get the exterior of the place done up eh?!”……..

Wise words indeed.

If your home has cracks outside, or loose rendering, bald spots where pebbledash used to be, then it is going to let water in, and therefore is no longer waterproof, OR weatherproof either.

cottage in hertfordshire showing repairs to cracks in the walls

Once the weather starts to attack the walls of the building, it will introduce wet into the walls, will freeze at night, and then will expand and cause more fissures and hollow areas, some won’t even be apparent until the render falls off.

 If you give us a call and leave some basic details of what’s wrong with your house, then we will get a surveyor to call you back with some free advice.

Dial 0800 970 4928

You can also send the team an email by going to the customer contact page here.

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