What we get called out to here
- Salt attack on coatings and fixings. Chloride-laden air degrades coatings faster and corrodes fasteners, flashings and balustrade fixings. Systems that give twelve years inland give notably less within a kilometre or two of the water.
- Wind-driven rain on south-west elevations. The single most common cause of penetrating damp here. Water is driven through porous plaster and hairline cracks that would never pass water under vertical rain.
- Estate balcony detailing. A great deal of newer Helderberg stock has balconies and planter boxes with thin or absent membranes. Damp on the wall below a balcony is the standard presentation — see balcony waterproofing.
- Sloped sites. Ground water runs downhill through the properties on the mountain side and loads uphill walls. Usually a drainage problem first.
- Retaining walls. Common on the terraced sites, and frequently built without weep holes or a drained backfill, so they hold water against the structure.
Specifying for a coastal site
On a property within a couple of kilometres of the coast we specify differently: UV and chloride-stable membranes, stainless or hot-dip galvanised fixings rather than plated, generous laps at every termination, and breathable repellents on exposed elevations so salt-laden moisture in the wall can still escape.
It costs a little more up front and it is the difference between a system that lasts and one that needs attention in five years.
Areas covered
Somerset West, Strand, Gordon's Bay, Sir Lowry's Pass, Firgrove and Croydon.
Common questions
Does coastal air really affect waterproofing?
Yes, measurably. Chloride-laden air accelerates degradation of coatings and corrodes fixings, flashings and balustrade fittings. Within roughly two kilometres of the water we specify UV- and chloride-stable systems with stainless fixings as standard.
Why is only one side of my house damp?
Almost always because that elevation faces the prevailing wind-driven rain. In the Helderberg that is typically the south-west face. The rain is arriving sideways, so it enters through plaster and cracks that vertical rain would never reach.