Author Topic: rain coming into granite house (Read 3743 times)

Scotsdumpy · « **on:** September 25, 2017, 04:40:02 pm »

We have a 1 and a half storey traditional granite house - and it lets the rain in..... To be specific, the gable end of the house. The rain only comes in when the wind is in a specific direction and horizontal so direction and speed are factors. The wall has a chimney that conects to a woodburner and when the rain comes in it comes down the chimney into the fire, around the chimney liner and onto the register plate then from somewhere behind the woodburner at floor level. The rain also comes in through the top of a window also on the same wall. To address the problem we have had the whole side of the house re- pointed, the skews have been re-pointed, the chimney has a new cowl and while the sweep was up there he checked the liner was still in place.
Has anyone else had similar problems with this type of house?
oh, forgot to say that the amount of rain coming in isn't just a little puddle it's an absolute deluge... it takes weeks to dry the carpet.
Any suggestions on a remedy would be greatly received before the winter storms begin!!

Fleecewife · « **Reply #1 on:** September 25, 2017, 05:00:10 pm »

You've done the stuff I was going to suggest. What about the roof? Is it slated? Does it have a waterproof membrane under the outer? Is there a way for rain ingress where the roof meets the top of the walls, and the chimney meets the roof? Has your roof been retrofitted with air vents (hateful and useless things in a slate roof)?
If it's not slate, what material is it?

Foobar · « **Reply #2 on:** September 25, 2017, 05:07:55 pm »

Check your roof, esp chimney flashing.

CarolineJ · « **Reply #3 on:** September 25, 2017, 07:15:32 pm »

Is it definitely all granite? Ours is a mix of granite and sandstone and the sandstone, being porous, lets water through. We've had four coats of a sealant made by Thompson's applied by our builder and no more problems.

valmet10 · « **Reply #4 on:** September 25, 2017, 07:55:09 pm »

try waterproofing the wall with a silicone waterproofer , how about spraying the wall with a hose pipe starting at the bottom working ur way up and watch for water coming in may show where its coming in

Scotsdumpy · « **Reply #5 on:** September 26, 2017, 08:47:12 am »

Thanks for all your replies! The roof is slate with no vents. The guy who repointed the wall is a roofer and checked
and repaired the roof ridge and skews so we think/hoped that eliminated a problem there. The house is granite with no mix of sandstone. I don't think there's any waterproof membrane under the tiles just the sarking. I might try the hosepipe idea - just that it takes a wee while for the rain to get in so might be difficult to identify exactly where it enters. I'm reluctant to spend anymore money on this before I identify the problem. I've convinced myself that it must be the chimney or its liner and im even thinking to have a cement liner fitted but would hate to go to all that expense to have it happen again. I think we will have to start at the top again and check the chimney more closely.
Thanks again!!

Foobar · « **Reply #6 on:** September 26, 2017, 10:03:02 am »

Would a smoke test from the inside work - see where it leaks out?

My neighbour had a leaky chimney once - they spent loads on trying to get it fixed but could never find the source. They removed it in the end!

Fleecewife · « **Reply #7 on:** September 26, 2017, 12:12:42 pm »

What construction is your wall? You know the rain is coming in at the top, but you also mentioned some coming in at the bottom. Could it be running down inside the wall and some emerging into your house at the bottom? Our walls are double sided with rubble infill and I can imagine that happening here.
Also, our chimney had an access door outside (now filled in), halfway up the wall, for hanging joints to smoke. If yours has that, then it's another possible entry point for water.

Scotsdumpy · « **Reply #8 on:** September 26, 2017, 01:27:35 pm »

FW ours is as you describe but without a door on thd outside. The water must be coming from further up thd wall as it comes through above the window. It also comes from behind the woodburner at floor level.