Question 1

Why is the outside wall below my gutter damp?

Accepted Answer

A gutter that is blocked, dropped or leaking puts a continuous curtain of water down the wall all winter, and a saturated wall shows as damp inside. The other common cause is a split at the back of a downpipe, which sprays into the masonry every time it rains and is invisible from the front. This is one of the highest-value things a homeowner can spot, because the cause is cheap and the consequences are not. The first suspect is the gutter. Blocked with moss and leaves, or dropped so it no longer falls to the outlet, it overflows — and a curtain of water down a wall for four months of the year saturates it. A saturated wall means damp showing on the inside, mortar joints perishing faster, and frost damage to the masonry face. On most local roofs the material blocking the gutter is not leaves at all; it is moss shed off the covering. The second is the downpipe, and this one hides well. A split at the back of a downpipe — the side against the wall — sprays into the masonry every time it rains and cannot be seen from the front at all. A narrow vertical damp stripe on an internal wall with a downpipe on the other side is the classic signature. Cast iron corrodes at the same place for the same reason. The third is the eaves felt rather than the gutter. Roofing underlay should overhang into the gutter so water running down it discharges correctly; when the drip edge has rotted away, that water goes behind the gutter instead — straight onto the fascia and the rafter feet. Eaves support trays fix it, and it is a small job compared with the joinery it prevents. The fourth is where the downpipe ends. A pipe discharging onto bare ground beside a wall puts the entire roof's rainwater into the soil next to the foundations, and that is a frequent cause of damp at ground-floor level. It should go into a gully or a proper drain connection. There is a local reason to take rainwater seriously beyond your own wall. Cheshire East attributes Macclesfield's flooding record — the borough's only designated Flood Risk Area, with 47 internal flooding incidents since 2011 — partly to an ageing network of unmapped, culverted watercourses under the town. Keeping your own run clear is a small but real part of the answer.

Question 2

Green stripe down my wall

Accepted Answer

A gutter that is blocked, dropped or leaking puts a continuous curtain of water down the wall all winter, and a saturated wall shows as damp inside. The other common cause is a split at the back of a downpipe, which sprays into the masonry every time it rains and is invisible from the front. This is one of the highest-value things a homeowner can spot, because the cause is cheap and the consequences are not. The first suspect is the gutter. Blocked with moss and leaves, or dropped so it no longer falls to the outlet, it overflows — and a curtain of water down a wall for four months of the year saturates it. A saturated wall means damp showing on the inside, mortar joints perishing faster, and frost damage to the masonry face. On most local roofs the material blocking the gutter is not leaves at all; it is moss shed off the covering. The second is the downpipe, and this one hides well. A split at the back of a downpipe — the side against the wall — sprays into the masonry every time it rains and cannot be seen from the front at all. A narrow vertical damp stripe on an internal wall with a downpipe on the other side is the classic signature. Cast iron corrodes at the same place for the same reason. The third is the eaves felt rather than the gutter. Roofing underlay should overhang into the gutter so water running down it discharges correctly; when the drip edge has rotted away, that water goes behind the gutter instead — straight onto the fascia and the rafter feet. Eaves support trays fix it, and it is a small job compared with the joinery it prevents. The fourth is where the downpipe ends. A pipe discharging onto bare ground beside a wall puts the entire roof's rainwater into the soil next to the foundations, and that is a frequent cause of damp at ground-floor level. It should go into a gully or a proper drain connection. There is a local reason to take rainwater seriously beyond your own wall. Cheshire East attributes Macclesfield's flooding record — the borough's only designated Flood Risk Area, with 47 internal flooding incidents since 2011 — partly to an ageing network of unmapped, culverted watercourses under the town. Keeping your own run clear is a small but real part of the answer.

Question 3

Damp patch under the gutter

Accepted Answer

A gutter that is blocked, dropped or leaking puts a continuous curtain of water down the wall all winter, and a saturated wall shows as damp inside. The other common cause is a split at the back of a downpipe, which sprays into the masonry every time it rains and is invisible from the front. This is one of the highest-value things a homeowner can spot, because the cause is cheap and the consequences are not. The first suspect is the gutter. Blocked with moss and leaves, or dropped so it no longer falls to the outlet, it overflows — and a curtain of water down a wall for four months of the year saturates it. A saturated wall means damp showing on the inside, mortar joints perishing faster, and frost damage to the masonry face. On most local roofs the material blocking the gutter is not leaves at all; it is moss shed off the covering. The second is the downpipe, and this one hides well. A split at the back of a downpipe — the side against the wall — sprays into the masonry every time it rains and cannot be seen from the front at all. A narrow vertical damp stripe on an internal wall with a downpipe on the other side is the classic signature. Cast iron corrodes at the same place for the same reason. The third is the eaves felt rather than the gutter. Roofing underlay should overhang into the gutter so water running down it discharges correctly; when the drip edge has rotted away, that water goes behind the gutter instead — straight onto the fascia and the rafter feet. Eaves support trays fix it, and it is a small job compared with the joinery it prevents. The fourth is where the downpipe ends. A pipe discharging onto bare ground beside a wall puts the entire roof's rainwater into the soil next to the foundations, and that is a frequent cause of damp at ground-floor level. It should go into a gully or a proper drain connection. There is a local reason to take rainwater seriously beyond your own wall. Cheshire East attributes Macclesfield's flooding record — the borough's only designated Flood Risk Area, with 47 internal flooding incidents since 2011 — partly to an ageing network of unmapped, culverted watercourses under the town. Keeping your own run clear is a small but real part of the answer.

Question 4

Wall wet where the downpipe is

Accepted Answer

A gutter that is blocked, dropped or leaking puts a continuous curtain of water down the wall all winter, and a saturated wall shows as damp inside. The other common cause is a split at the back of a downpipe, which sprays into the masonry every time it rains and is invisible from the front. This is one of the highest-value things a homeowner can spot, because the cause is cheap and the consequences are not. The first suspect is the gutter. Blocked with moss and leaves, or dropped so it no longer falls to the outlet, it overflows — and a curtain of water down a wall for four months of the year saturates it. A saturated wall means damp showing on the inside, mortar joints perishing faster, and frost damage to the masonry face. On most local roofs the material blocking the gutter is not leaves at all; it is moss shed off the covering. The second is the downpipe, and this one hides well. A split at the back of a downpipe — the side against the wall — sprays into the masonry every time it rains and cannot be seen from the front at all. A narrow vertical damp stripe on an internal wall with a downpipe on the other side is the classic signature. Cast iron corrodes at the same place for the same reason. The third is the eaves felt rather than the gutter. Roofing underlay should overhang into the gutter so water running down it discharges correctly; when the drip edge has rotted away, that water goes behind the gutter instead — straight onto the fascia and the rafter feet. Eaves support trays fix it, and it is a small job compared with the joinery it prevents. The fourth is where the downpipe ends. A pipe discharging onto bare ground beside a wall puts the entire roof's rainwater into the soil next to the foundations, and that is a frequent cause of damp at ground-floor level. It should go into a gully or a proper drain connection. There is a local reason to take rainwater seriously beyond your own wall. Cheshire East attributes Macclesfield's flooding record — the borough's only designated Flood Risk Area, with 47 internal flooding incidents since 2011 — partly to an ageing network of unmapped, culverted watercourses under the town. Keeping your own run clear is a small but real part of the answer.

Why is the outside wall below my gutter damp?

Got a roofing job in Macclesfield?

Got a roofing job? Let's get it sorted.