Help - advice needed

[kmcleod]

Hello,,

We have a stone building with a corrugated metal room, which doubles as a garage and also has workshop space with it.

trouble is - its damp !

we know there are some issues with the pointing on the building - someone used cement rather than line mortar on the pointing, so thats being re-done, (but we need to wait for the spring to finish the remainder), however, we need some advice on how to stop the damp issues and how to best maintain the building.

because it stone, and because we live in the west of scotland, rain and water are going to be ongoing issues which need to be managed, (knocking it down and building something modern is not an option)

any help/advice, direction would be gratefully received.

thanks

Kevin

 

[SammyQ]

Isolate the "room" (roof?) with some kind of waterproof barrier, with air circulation space between roof and barrier. Put insulation up, preferably tinfoil-faced stuff with seams sealed. That will stop condensation forming on roof underside.
I'll leave it to others to comment on walls and floor, though the answers are on this forum, just use the search function.

Sam

 

[kmcleod]

so we've been doing a lot of research.

the advice to put up a waterproof barrier works on modern brick construction, but not for stone buildings where the lime mortar is there to help the transit of moisture.

putting up a waterproof barrier and insulation will trap the moisture..

suspect the answer if ventilation, air flow, and heat....

 

[MikeG.]

.......We have a stone building with a corrugated metal room, which doubles as a garage and also has workshop space with it.........

Is "room" a typo? If so, just confirm that you have a workshop and garage in a single stone building which has a steel roof.

What is the source of the damp? Is there actual water ingress, or are you suffering condensation? Do you have any heating, and if so, how, and how often? Is the roof insulated? What is the floor made of, and what is the relationship of the external ground level to the floor level? How much activity happens in the room? Describe the doors and any windows. What sort of stone are the walls made from?

 

[clogs]

apart from the above.........
decent ventilation is also required.......
depending on the type of damproofing (wall's + roof) natural ventilation is a must......

also...
I lived in a 17th Century watermill and nothing could be damper than that.......
all my machines got an 11watt curlywhirly bulbs under the covers from Sept - March -April...
thety were on 24/7 except when in use.......the covers were old blankets and Duvets......plenty get thrown out and hence free......
these ranged from a full Wadkin joiners shop of machines to Milling machines and metal lathes.....
My MIG welder also got a bulb holder fitted inside the wire spool compartment, stopped the wire going rusty between jobs....
the cost of electric is minimal compared to the damage rust does......
None of the machine had any spray used (WD 40 or like) for protection....no rust ever was experienced........
and remember the metal machine have a soluble oil coolant inuse......