We live in a 1900s Victorian semi detached house in the UK, we get a lot of rain. The basements long had a damp issue and we're tackling it in a variety of ways - I've scraped off the old paint that had moisture trapped behind it, we're adding two more airbricks this weekend and added insulation to the coal Shute which stops the condensate collecting there and running back into the basement.The biggest problem I think is with the ground moisture coming up through the floor and through the walls after heavy rain. Bricks above the original DPM are much lighter in colour than the ones under it so I'm taking that as the dpm/dpc is still OK. In the front yard area (only 5m by 2.5m) we have concrete that's been laid in patches, which tilts slightly down to the street so theoretically the rain water should run away from the house. That's not what's happening, the concrete is broken extensively in places, and the rain is running straight into the gap between wall and the concrete, and where it is falling on the concrete its then running into the gaps rather than out to the street.I'd like to take the concrete up and lay gravel or slate, plant some thirsty plants and just run a small solid path to the door, but I don't know if this would have a potential positive or negative effect on the drainage. My neighbours all have a mix of both, though for kerbside appeal the plants & slate looks much better. via /r/DIY https://ift.tt/2NAYNNj
