Not All Damp Is the Same: How to Diagnose and Treat the Three Types of Damp in Your Home
Recently, while visiting with the Kalas—longtime home improvement service clients and, more than that, spiritual siblings—for property repairs and maintenance assessments, the issue of damp came up. We were standing in their kitchen, and beneath the sink unit, right inside the cabinet, there was an unmistakable odour of dampness. That particular smell—musty, earthy, slightly sour—that anyone who has dealt with moisture in a home will recognise immediately. But here is the thing: there was no visible stain. No dark patch on the cabinet back. No peeling paint. No white, powdery salt deposits. No sign of water penetration anywhere. Just the smell. That quiet, persistent olfactory evidence that something was not right, even though the wall looked perfectly sound. That moment made me think about the different types of damp, and how—in my experience—most homeowners are aware of rising damp, and very little else. It is the form of damp that has entered the public consciousness, the one people...