Dampness in buildings conference 2015

[jackpoint]

Clicky click click

Just in case anyone is interested in going

 

[Flyfisher]

I wonder if they'll publish the proceedings online?

 

[MatthewC]

It's a bit sad that the flyer also advertises their practical courses on waterproofing, damp-proofing and damp basement conversions. I know there are ways of doing these things almost sympathetically, but it rather sounds a bit too much like DPC salesmen (check up the employer of the first speaker...).

 

[formerly known as]

“Rising Damp in Historic Buildings in Italy” - Dr. Elisa Franzoni, University of Bologna, Italy

oh dear - rising damp ...................

 

[formerly known as]

http://www.konrad-fischer-info.de/2auffen.htm

worth a look.

 

[malcolm]

Rising damp in Italy? Who will be the first to post a photo of Venice?

 

[TheRoost]

Damp proofing company experiencing quiet period attempts to boost sales by enticing people in with a free lunch and the promise of 'top industry experts' :lol:

I wonder if any of the attendees will pipe up 'this is absolute b**locks!'

They sell a product that allows plasterboard to be directly affixed to a 'rising damp' affected, damp wall, just 24 hours after 'treatment'. Need I say more? :twisted: :twisted:

 

[Flyfisher]

http://www.konrad-fischer-info.de/2auffen.htm

worth a look.

Interesting read, though there seems to be a lot of confusion between rising damp, as in water actually travelling up walls, and water being present high up, possibly due to all manner of reasons. The whole topic seems to be almost 'religious' for many, though Herr Fischer is doing his best to cut through the anecdotal experiences with some convincing arguments, despite some posters seemingly confusing plain damp - which certainly does exist - with rising damp. So no signs of general agreement breaking out anytime soon, unfortunately.

On that basis, I rather liked this explanation for the whole phenomenon:
Rising damp was invented by the CIA in the 1950s to counter communist insurgents living in low-cost terraced accommodation in pinko land. J Edgar Hoover commissioned Howard Hughes to design and build a gravitational satellite that would hover over western Europe in a stationary low-Earth orbit sucking damp up from the ground into the walls of these terraced houses. It was expected that the detrimental health effects of living in these damp homes would prevent the communists from breeding or attaining high office. CIA agents posing as damp-proofers were able to divert funds away from the communists by offering rising damp treatments in exchange for cash. This money was then used to finance a failed execution attempt on Fidel Castro using an exploding cigar. This scheme proved so lucrative that the CIA soon branched into other areas of operation such as selling "traditional" lime-based building products.

Even after the end of the Cold War, the US Government has continued to deny responsibility for rising damp, claiming that it is a natural phenomenon affecting old houses that were built without damp-proof courses. But they would say that wouldn’t they. Just like they deny that their space programme was built on alien technology acquired from Hitler (who was actually a lizard from space that had sworn allegiance to the All Seeing Eye of Lucifer).

Seems just as reasonable as some of the other arguments :lol: