ADDIS ABABA UNIVERSITY

ADDIS ABABA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

DEPARTEMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

BUILDING CONSTRUCTION (CENG 3103)

CHAPTER-5.8
DAMP PREVENTION

FASIL T.
CONTENTS
 Introduction
 Source of dampness
 Effects of dampness
 Method of damp proofing
 Materials used for damp proofing course
 One of the basic requirements of a building is that it should remain
dry or free from moisture passing through walls, roofs or floors.
 Dampness is the presence of hygroscopic or gravitational moisture.
 It leads to unhygienic conditions affecting badly the health and
comfort of the inhabitants.
 It also seriously deteriorates the stability of the building.
 Damp prevention is, therefore, one of the important items of
building design.

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 The following causes are considered to be the main sources of
dampness in buildings
I. Moisture rising up the walls from the ground
 All the structures are founded on soils, and the substructure is
embedded into it. If the soil is pervious, moisture constantly
travels through it.
 This moisture may rise up into the wall and the floor through
capillary action.
 Ground water rise will also result in moisture entry into the
building through walls and floors.
II. Rain travel from wall tops
 If the wall tops are not properly protected from rain penetration,
rain will enter the wall and will travel down.
 Leaking roofs will also permit water to enter.

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III. Moisture rising up the walls from the ground
 Heavy showers of rain may beat against the external faces of walls
and if the walls are not properly treated, moisture will enter the
wall, causing dampness in the interior.
 This moisture travel would completely deface interior decoration of
the wall.
IV. Condensation
 Due to condensation of atmospheric moisture, water is deposited on
the walls, floors and ceilings. The moisture may cause dampness.
V. Miscellaneous causes
 Moisture may also enter due to the following miscellaneous
causes
 poor drainage at the building site,
 Imperfect orientation: walls getting less sunlight and heavy
showers may remain damp,
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 Imperfect roof slope: specially in the case of flat roofs,
 Defective construction: imperfect wall jointing, joints in
roofs, defective throating etc.,
 Absorption of water from defective rainwater pipes,
 water introduced in the building during construction,
 shrinkage of wooden frames permits an entry of rain,
 Poor material choice, e.g. use of porous bricks in chimneys.

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 The following are some of the ill effects of dampness in buildings:
A. Dampness gives rise to breeding of mosquitoes and crate
unhealthy living conditions.
B. Travel of moisture through walls and ceiling may cause unsightly
patches.
C. Moisture travel may cause softening and crumbling of plaster,
especially lime plaster.
D. Wall decoration (i.e. painting, etc) is damaged, which is very
difficult and costly to repair.
E. Continuous presence of moisture in the walls may cause
efflorescence resulting in disintegration of bricks, stones, tiles,
etc., and consequent reduction in strength.
F. The flooring gets loosened because of reduction in the adhesion
when moisture enters through the floor.

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G. Timber fittings, such as doors, windows, wardrobes, etc., coming
in contact with damp walls, damp floors, etc, get deteriorated
because of warping, buckling, dry-rotting, etc. of timber
H. Electrical fittings get deteriorated, giving rise to leakage through
electrical fittings and consequent danger of short-circuiting.
I. Floor covering are damaged. On damp floors, one cannot use
floor coverings.
J. Dampness promotes and accelerates growth of termites.
K. Dampness together with warmth and darkness breeds germs of
dangerous diseases. Occupants may even be asthmatic.
L. Moisture causes rusting and corrosion of metal fittings attached
to walls, floors and ceilings.

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 The following methods are used to make a building damp proof :
A. Use of damp proofing course (D.P.C): membrane damp proofing
B. Integral damp proofing
C. Surface treatment
D. Cavity wall construction
E. Guniting
F. Pressure grouting
A. Membrane damp proofing: use of D.P.C

 This consists of introducing a water repellent membrane or damp

proof course (D.P.C) between the source of dampness and the part of
building adjacent to it.
 D.P.C may consist of flexible materials such as bitumen, mastic
asphalt, bituminous felts, plastic or polyethylene sheets, metal sheets,
etc.

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A. Membrane damp proofing: use of D.P.C
 Damp proofing courses may be provided either horizontally or
vertically in floors, walls, etc.
 The following general principles should be kept in mind while
providing D.P.C.:
i. The D.P.C. Course should cover the full thickness of
walls, excluding rendering.
ii. The mortar bed supporting D.P.C. Should be levelled and
even, and should be free from projection, so that D.P.C. Is
not damaged.
iii. D.P.C. Should be so laid that of a continuous projection is
provided.
iv. At junction and corners of walls, the horizontal D.P.C.
Should be laid continuous.

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A. Membrane damp proofing: use of D.P.C
i. When a horizontal D.P.C. (i.e. That of a floor) is continued
to a vertical face, a cement concrete fillet of 7.5cm radius
should be provided at the junction.
ii. D.P.C. Should not be kept exposed on the wall surface
otherwise it may get damaged during finishing work.

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B. Integral damp proofing
 This consists of adding certain water proofing compounds of materials
to the concrete mix, so that it becomes impermeable.
 This water proofing compounds may be in either of the following
forms:
1) Compounds made from chalk, talc, fullers earth, which fill the
voids of concrete under the mechanical action principle.
2) Compounds like alkaline silicates, aluminium sulphate, calcium
chlorides, etc. Which react chemically with concrete to produce
water proof concrete.
3) Compounds, like soap, petroleum, oils, fatty acid compounds
such as stearates calcium, sodium, ammonia, etc. Work on water
repulsion principle. When these are mixed with concrete the
concrete becomes water repellent.
4) Commercially available compounds like Publo, Permo, silka, etc.

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C. Surface treatment
 The surface treatment consists of application of layer of water
repellent substances or compounds on these surfaces through which
moisture enters.
 The use of water repellent metallic soaps such as calcium and
aluminium oletes and stearates are much effective against rain water
penetration.
 It should be noted that surface treatment is effective only when the
moisture is superficial and is not under pressure.
 Sometimes, exposed stone or brick wall face may be sprayed with
water repellent solution.

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D. Cavity wall construction
 This is an effective method of damp prevention, in
which the main wall of a building is shielded by
an outer skin wall, leaving a cavity b/n the two.

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E. Guniting
 This consists of depositing under pressure, an impervious layer of
rich cement mortar over the exposed surfaces for water proofing or
over pipes for resisting water pressure.
 Cement mortar consists of 1:3 cement sand mix, which is shot on the
cleaned surface with the help of a cement gun, under high pressure.
 The mortar mix of desired consistency and thickness can be
deposited to get an impervious layer.
 The layer should be properly cured.

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E. Pressure grouting
 This consists of forcing cement grout, under pressure, into cracks,
voids, fissures etc. present in the structural components of the
building, or in the ground.
 This method is quite effective in checking the seepage of raised
ground water through foundations and sub-structure of a building.

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 An ideal damp proofing material should have the following
characteristic:
1) The material should be perfectly impervious and it should not
permit any moisture penetration or travel through it.
2) The material should be durable, and should have the same life
as that of the building.
3) The material should be strong, capable of resisting
superimposed loads/pressure on it.
4) Material should be flexible, so that it can accommodate the
structural movements without any fracture.
5) The material should not be costly.
6) The material should be such that leak-proof jointing is
possible.
7) The material should remain steady in its position when once
applied. It should not allow any movement in itself.
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 The following materials are commonly used for damp-proofing
1. Hot bitumen
 This is a highly flexible material, which can be applied with a
minimum thickness of 3mm.
 It is placed on the bedding of concrete or mortar, while in hot
condition.
2. Mastic asphalt
 Mastic asphalt is semi rigid material which is quite durable and
completely impervious.
 It is obtained by heating asphalt with sand and mineral fillers.
However it should be laid very carefully, by experienced persons.
 It can withstand only very slight distortion. It is also liable to squeeze
out in very hot climate or under heavy pressure.

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3. Bituminous or asphaltic felt
 This is a flexible material which is available in rolls of various wall
thickness.
 It is laid on a levelled flat layer of cement mortar.

 An overlap of 10cm is provided at joints and full width overlap is

provided at angles, junctions and crossings. The laps should be sealed
with bitumen.
 Bituminous felts can not withstand heavy loads, though they can
accommodate slight movements.
4. Metal sheets
 Sheets of lead, copper and aluminium can be used as D.P.C. These
sheets are of flexible type.
Lead sheets
 Lead sheets are quite flexible. They are laid similar to the bituminous
felts.
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Lead sheets
 They have advantages of being completely impervious to moisture,
resistant to ordinary atmospheric corrosion, capability of taking
complex shapes with out fracture and resistant to sliding action.
Copper sheets
 Copper sheets of minimum 3mm thickness, are embedded in lime or
cement mortar.
 It has high durability, high resistance to dampness, high resistance to
sliding and reasonable resistance to ordinary pressure.
Aluminium sheets
 If used it should be protected with a layer of bitumen.
 It is not as good as lead or copper sheets.

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5. Combination of sheets and bituminous felts
 Lead foil sandwiched between asphaltic or bituminous felts can be
effectively used as D.P.C.
 The combination, known as lead core possesses characteristics of
easy laying, durability, efficiency, economy an resistance to cracking.
6. Bricks
 Special bricks, which have less water absorption capacity, may be
used as D.P.C. in locations where damp is not excessive.
 This bricks are laid in two to four courses in cement mortar.
7. Stones
 Dense and sound stones, such as granite, can be laid in cement
mortar (1:3) in two courses or layers to form effective D.P.C.
 The stones should extend to the full width of the wall.

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8. Mortar
 Cement mortar (1:3) is used as bedding layer for housing with other
D.P.C. materials.
9. Cement concrete
 Cement concrete of 1:2:4 mix or 1:1½:3 mix is generally provided at
plinth level to work as D.P.C. The thickness may vary from 4cm to 15
cm.
 Such a layer can effectively check the water rise due to capillary action.

 Where dampness is more, two coats of hot bitumen paint may be applied
on it.
10. Plastic sheets

 This relatively a new type of D.P.C. Material, made of black

polyethylene, 0.5 to 1mm thick in the usual walling width and wall
length of 30m.
 The treatment is cheaper but is not permanent.

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THANK YOU!

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