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Independent Dampness & Timber Surveyors
Independent Cavity Wall Tie Surveys
North West & all areas of UK
Cavity Insulation Surveys & Photography
Expert Witness Reports
Laboratory Analysis
Quantity Surveying
Thermal Imaging
Project Management
Wall Tie Photography & Testing |
Aldred Limited, Trunnah Cottage, Occupation Road,
Thornton Cleveleys, Lancashire. FY5 4PR
Tel/Fax 01253 858784 Mobile 07746 005720
Web www.aldredltd.com E-mail aldredltd@yahoo.co.uk |
Drawings For Planning
&
Building Control Approval |
David Aldred of Aldred Limited
CSRT, MIWSc, AInstSSE, CSSW, Freelance Surveyor BWPDA / PCA |
WHAT DO WE DO ?
Aldred Limited as indicated above, provide our clients with specialist surveys & architectural drawings. Details of our drawing services are given later within this web site.
These specialist surveys require qualified knowledge usually
outside
the scope of expertise of a general building surveyor.
ARE WE A CONTRACTOR ?
No we are an expert surveying and architectural drawing practice only.
WHY EMPLOY A QUALIFIED INDEPENDENT SPECIALIST SURVEYOR ?
The client may have been asked to obtain a specialist dampness, timber or wall tie report, or may have noticed a problem themselves regarding these matters or require advice on basement design. They may also be in dispute with a contractor or other surveyor. Aldred Limited provide specialist investigation of such matters and also general building defects. We do not sell treatments, we are employed only to give unbiased qualified expert advice. Our client base includes private individuals, Housing Associations and Local Authorites. We survey and crucially have many years experience in doing so, all types of properties, be they domestic housing stock, commercial buildings, or those of special historic interest. |
Wet Rot
or
Dry Rot ?
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WHY NOT ASK A DAMP / TIMBER CONTRACTOR OFFERING A 'FREE' SURVEY ?
Contractors offering ‘free surveys’ have to sell their treatment on the back of their advice, to make a profit, to stay in business. In the same way you wouldn’t ask a double glazing salesman if you needed new windows; asking somebody who is trying to sell a damp proof course, woodworm spray, or wall ties, whether such work either actually is necessary, or is truthfully the cause of the problem is a system open to abuse.
Anyone can call themselves a ‘specialist’
contractor without any qualifications. The majority of contractors remain unqualified. As such they can only be insured to undertake actual work but cannot obtain insurance, or indeed legal credibility to advise, or write reports that clients may be relying upon when appraising property
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HOW COMMON IS DAMP PROOF COURSE FAILURE?
Although many damp proofing contractors would
have people believe
otherwise, it is a fact that
failure of an existing damp proof course is rare.
Only 10% of all damp problems are to do with
rising dampness and these include ancient houses
never built with a damp proof course.
This means
90% of unwanted dampness is nothing to do with
failure of
the damp proof course and should
be the last thing to be considered.
Rising dampness cannot be proven by electrical meters alone.
Such meters are a useful tool only in helping identify areas requiring
further investigation. Contractors who state otherwise are misleading
their client.
To prove rising dampness would require laboratory
analysis of wall samples.
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Electrical meters cannot,
on their own, prove rising damp |
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