Damp survey & inspection across Merseyside, done properly the first time
A correct diagnosis is the whole job. Rising, penetrating and condensation damp are treated completely differently — get the diagnosis wrong and you can spend thousands on a fix that was never going to work. Every survey is carried out personally by a Federation of Damp certified surveyor, with a full written report.
Three different mechanisms — three different fixes. A survey tells you which one you actually have.
Rising, penetrating & condensation damp aren't the same problem
They're frequently confused — including by some remedial contractors offering a "free survey" that always seems to end in the same £2,000+ chemical damp-proof course. Here's how each actually behaves, based on BRE and Property Care Association diagnostic guidance.
Ground moisture, capillary action
- Moisture drawn up through masonry from the ground, same principle as a sponge soaking up water
- Almost always stops at or below 1–1.5m — damp upstairs is never rising damp
- Usually linked to a missing, damaged or bridged damp-proof course
- Tide-mark staining and white powdery salt deposits (efflorescence) at low level
- Present year-round, doesn't track with recent rainfall
A defect letting water in
- Water entering through a specific fault — cracked render, failed pointing, a damaged roof or a blocked gutter
- Can appear at any height, upstairs or down, close to the actual defect
- Gets visibly worse during and after heavy rain, dries out somewhat in between
- Irregular, spreading patches rather than a clean horizontal line
Moisture already inside the home
- Everyday water vapour from cooking, bathing and breathing meeting a cold surface
- By far the most common cause of "damp" reported in UK homes
- Black mould around windows, corners and behind furniture; droplets on glass
- Worse in cold weather and in poorly ventilated rooms
What's causing my damp?
Tick anything you're seeing. This points you toward the likely cause — it's a starting point, not a diagnosis. Only a proper survey with a calibrated moisture meter and salt analysis confirms it.
Damp symptom checklist
Select everything that applies to your property.
Booking a survey is straightforward
Call, WhatsApp or book online
Tell us what you're seeing. A photo over WhatsApp often helps us prepare before we even arrive.
On-site survey
Full visual inspection, calibrated moisture meter readings and, where relevant, salt analysis — carried out personally, not subcontracted.
Written report & honest advice
A clear written report setting out the actual cause and what — if anything — genuinely needs doing about it.
This is a starting price. The exact price depends on the property's size, accessibility and the scope of survey you need, and we confirm it with you before anything is booked.
What to expect before, during and after
- Before you book, we confirm the price and tell you which areas of the property the survey will cover.
- Any destructive or invasive inspection — for example lifting floor coverings or boards, opening up plaster, or drilling masonry samples for testing — is only carried out if it has been agreed with you separately.
- Areas that are inaccessible, concealed or unsafe to reach cannot automatically be inspected. We will tell you which areas could not be inspected.
- Your written report records the visible findings, the testing carried out, our diagnosis and proportionate recommendations.
- The expected report-delivery date will be confirmed when the survey is booked.
- We cannot guarantee that a lender, solicitor, insurer or other third party will accept the report, as each sets its own requirements.
Surveyed to a recognised standard
Diagnosis is where most damp problems actually go wrong — not the treatment. A moisture meter alone isn't designed to confirm rising damp in masonry; used without proper interpretation, it's the single biggest cause of chemical DPCs being sold for problems that were never rising damp.
Federation of Damp Certified Surveyor
Federation of Damp Certified Surveyor (FODCS) — City & Guilds Assured and CPD-certified training. Every survey is carried out personally to this standard.
BS 6576:2005+A1:2012
Code of practice for diagnosing rising damp in walls of buildings and installing chemical damp-proof courses — applied only where a damp-proof course is genuinely needed.
PCA Codes of Practice
Investigation and control of dampness (2017/2023) and of wood-destroying insects and fungi (2016) — the Property Care Association's recognised diagnostic framework.
BRE 453 guidance
Building Research Establishment guidance on recognising wood rot and insect damage, used alongside the visual survey.
Landlord? Awaab's Law now sets legal deadlines for damp and mould
Since 27 October 2025, social landlords must investigate reported damp and mould hazards within fixed timeframes — as little as 24 hours for an emergency hazard — with Phase 2 widening the rules further from 30 November 2026. A dated, written survey report is the clearest way to evidence that you've met your obligations. Read our landlord guide →
Damp survey & inspection, town by town
Based in Formby, covering the whole of Merseyside and West Lancashire. Not sure if we cover your area? Just call — we likely do.
Damp survey FAQs
Most residential surveys take between 45 minutes and two hours on site, depending on the property's size and the number of areas being investigated. The written report follows separately.
No. The survey exists to find the actual cause. If that's condensation or a penetrating defect, that's what the report says — a chemical DPC only gets recommended where the evidence genuinely points to rising damp. See our full answer to why you can trust that, including the fair question of how we stay accountable when we also carry out the remedial work.
A moisture meter is one part of the survey, but it isn't designed to confirm rising damp in masonry on its own — it's a screening tool. A proper diagnosis combines meter readings with a visual inspection, salt analysis where appropriate, and the pattern of staining, following BS 6576 and PCA guidance.
Awaab's Law currently applies to social landlords, with fixed timeframes for investigating and resolving damp and mould hazards. A dated, written survey report is a practical way to evidence that an investigation has taken place and to identify the true cause quickly.
We're based in Formby and cover the whole of Merseyside and West Lancashire, including Southport, Crosby, Liverpool, Ormskirk, Maghull and the surrounding areas. If you're not sure, just call.
Yes, and it's genuinely common — a property with penetrating damp from a failed gutter can also have condensation in a poorly ventilated bathroom, or hygroscopic salt contamination left over from historic rising damp that was never fully treated. A proper survey identifies each cause separately rather than assuming there's only one.
Usually because one survey relied on a moisture meter reading in isolation, while the other combined it with a full external inspection, visual pattern, and environmental assessment. See our guide to damp misdiagnosis for the full explanation of why this happens so often.