Actions, attitudes and beliefs of occupants in managing dampness in buildings

Dampness in buildings affects the health of occupants, structural stability and energy efficiency of buildings. Solutions to managing dampness focus on promoting the use of damp-proof construction materials, enhancing methods to avoid the introduction of moisture during construction and creating the awareness on the health effect of dampness. These solutions are incomplete without the identification of behaviours that occupants require to manage dampness. Given that dampness is characterised by the availability of a source, a route for the moisture to travel and driving force for moisture movement, the occupants can be said to play a significant role in contributing to dampness. As a result, this study seeks to examine the behaviours of occupants manifested to manage dampness in residential buildings. To achieve the aim, a qualitative research method was employed, under which interviews were carried out. Occupants in households in the northern and southern parts of England were interviewed to identify the actions, attitudes and beliefs in managing dampness. The findings revealed actions such as aeration and the use of anti-damp sprays. From the findings, dampness instilled attitudes such as anger, moodiness and unhappiness. In addition, dampness instilled cleaning habits in occupants due to the lack of comfort moulds create and the awareness of its health impact. The identification of these behaviours creates the awareness for occupants on their roles in managing dampness and how dampness affects their behaviours in addition to the health impact. This research also contributes to existing debates on dampness reduction specifically in residential buildings

Mechanisms for preventing rising damp in new building infrastructure

Purpose: Capillary rise of water in buildings has been an issue of concern among past and present researchers. Despite the research efforts devoted to the proper elimination of the problem in masonry construction, it still remains a challenge that needs to be addressed. This study explores treatment mechanisms that can be used to prevent rising damp in new building infrastructure. Methodology: Fourteen test walls are constructed, conditioned, subjected to various treatments, and monitored for four years. The treatments applied to the walls include the use of polyethylene damp proof courses, damp proof coatings, and dense concrete bases. The walls are then monitored with reference to the two climate seasons in Ghana. Findings: The results highlights that rising damp is present, as suggested by the constant increase and decrease in the height of the water levels in the walls during the rainy and dry seasons respectively. The findings further reveal that within the four-year period, the walls treated with the damp proof coatings, together with those with the dense concrete bases performed better than those treated with the polyethylene damp proof courses. Limitations: The economic and commercial impact of these preventive mechanisms were not considered in this study. A future research can be directed at these issues. Practical implication: The proposed treatment mechanisms highlights the effectiveness of some treatments applied to walls to prevent the capillary rise of water from the ground into the superstructure. Social implications: Building regulations, especially in Ghana and other tropical settings should be amended to include ways to prevent rising damp phenomena by including effective methods against rising damp during the building design or construction. Originality/Value: Series of studies worldwide have been conducted in laboratories to simulate the capillary rise of water in walls of buildings. This is among the few studies that look at how water rises from actual ground conditions into the walls of buildings