High level of moisture in sub-floor

Hi everyone,

I wish to ask for opinions regarding this. My IP is in Brisbane and the building is brick veneer with timber flooring. Lots of moisture have been found in the sub-floor of my IP which has caused lots of problems such as termites, timber floor popping out and moulds inside the house.

I search through the internet and could only found doctordamp (http://doctordamp.com.au/index.html). They recommended me to clear up the moisture and install sub-floor ventilation which will cost me one-off $6100. Is this price reasonable? I have a feeling it is a bit too costly, so can anyone please recommend me companies who are expert in sub-floor ventilation? Or if you ever had the same problem, please share with me...

Much appreciated.

Muli
 
First things first, have you identified the source of the moisture? That is your number 1 priority, once yo have found and stopped the moisture ingress you can start the rectification program.
 
First things first, have you identified the source of the moisture? That is your number 1 priority, once yo have found and stopped the moisture ingress you can start the rectification program.

Yes absolutely agree here.

In general terms without knowing your IP situation, you'd go for drainage to stop water getting under the building in the first place. Also get the sub-floor ventilation thing happening with extra vents - they knock out a few bricks and install them, and get the extractor fan (solar powered) installed.

$6K does sound like a lot but more info on your specific situation is needed.
 
Check that your downpipes have not filled up with leaves/soil and confirm that they are connected to your stormwater pipes. If your stormwater flows out to the street, check whether there are leaves/soil in the pipes. Check your gutters for leaks and seal them if necessary.
 
Yes absolutely agree here.

In general terms without knowing your IP situation, you'd go for drainage to stop water getting under the building in the first place. Also get the sub-floor ventilation thing happening with extra vents - they knock out a few bricks and install them, and get the extractor fan (solar powered) installed.

$6K does sound like a lot but more info on your specific situation is needed.

Have installed one before? How much did it cost you? My subfloor area is roughly 110 sqm. and doctordamp quoted 150sqm for $6100.

Btw, would it affect if I install the sub-floor ventilation before I fix the drainage?

Check that your downpipes have not filled up with leaves/soil and confirm that they are connected to your stormwater pipes. If your stormwater flows out to the street, check whether there are leaves/soil in the pipes. Check your gutters for leaks and seal them if necessary.

Downpipes and gutters have all been replaced with new and bigger ones recently. I will get my plumber to check whether they are connected to the stormwater pipes.

My IP is sloping downwards towards the front of the house. I suspect the drainage at the back of the house is inadequate to keep the water away from the house. How much does it cost roughly to get the drainage around the house done? The house is roughly 7.5 m wide and 15 m length.

Amtark, great video, but I live in Melbourne and I am too occupied with work right now that I won't be able to fix it myself.

Great replies, thanks. Keep it coming.
 
Here are some pics, please have a look. Cheers
 

Attachments

  • back near.jpg
    back near.jpg
    20.1 KB · Views: 258
  • back far.jpg
    back far.jpg
    28.1 KB · Views: 244
  • subfloor 1.jpg
    subfloor 1.jpg
    30.4 KB · Views: 351
No, not personally. One of my criteria is I don't buy IPs on a sloping block unless mine is on the top of the slope and running off water into other other ppl's properties. :p

No, that's not a problem

Smart *** hehe... I need to find more quotes to install the sub-floor ventilation. Any ideas? I search through the net and can't find another company to do it. My PM is a dud. IP is in Brisbane btw.
 
In the first pic it appears that the wall is rendered and lifting at the bottom, which could be caused from excess water pooling on the path.

There seems to be a drain on the lawn side of the path, does the path fall towards this drain, and can the water flow away correctly?

Also if it is rendered they may have rendered over vents in this area, although one can be seen in the last pic.
 
Hi battler,

Yes I think it can drain the water away from the building but probably not enough when the rain is too heavy. I can't confirm this yet as it wasn't raining when everytime I visited my IP. Do you know the labour cost to widen the drainage?
 
Do you know the labour cost to widen the drainage?

Simple answer, no, and it's very hard without being onsite but one thing I would look at is leaving the path as is and trenching across the lawn, above it, to create an agi drain. This would need to be deep enough to catch any ground water, but still have fall so it can drain away from the house.

I could be very wrong but the rear wall in the first pic looks like an addition to the original house and if so, this could be covering existing vents and allowing underground water to come in.

Keep in mind that vents are for ventilation and this can help keep underneath dryer but won't fix water leaks etc.
 
no weeping now

Excuse the pun,
The render looks lovely, unfortunately it seems to have blocked up all your weep holes. Couldn't see a single weep hole in any of the pics. Subfloor vents also seemed to be missing.

As previous posts have mentioned, get the subfloor venting back in order, and you may find most of your issues fixed.
 
the home is rendered , and there are no sub floor vents, it looks like an old clad home thats been re done on blue board, ????
timber floor will fall apart in 5 years with out subfloor ventelation, either somone covered them up, or the home was free standing and timber claded , once upon a time , the rendered finnish was recently taken to the ground , you must rectify this or you will be demolishing it very soon, :confused:
 
Back
Top