When Mrs. Henderson contacted us about suspected rising damp in her Victorian terraced house in Broughty Ferry, she was already clutching a £4,800 quote for chemical damp-proofing treatment. Another company had recommended stripping all wall plasters to a height of 1.2 metres and injecting a new chemical DPC throughout the ground floor.

During our independent survey, we quickly identified the real culprit. The original slate damp-proof course was perfectly intact, but years ago, someone had plastered directly over it – creating a bridge for moisture to bypass this crucial barrier. This common issue often gets misdiagnosed as rising damp.

Our solution? Simple, targeted removal of the bridging plaster and replacement with a properly detailed render. Total cost to Mrs. Henderson: £680. Not only did this save her over £4,000, but it also preserved her original walls and solved the problem without invasive drilling or unnecessary chemical treatments.

“I’m so grateful I got an independent opinion before committing to such expensive work,” Mrs. Henderson told us. “The solution was far simpler and cheaper than I’d been led to believe.”

This is why independent surveys matter. Sometimes the simplest solution is the right one – if you know where to look.