Damp Surveys Avis 36

Simon has just completed a damp survey at my Victorian house that is suffering from damp issues with answers to problems that have baffled other surveyors. If you are looking for someone with a depth of knowledge and understanding of the science of damp, you need to get Simon in!

Really comprehensive assessment and recommendations for our flat. With enough science and data and practical pointers.

Exceptionally professional, helpful, and insightful surveys and reporting. I have used these services more than once and have every time always been absolutely satisfied with their feedback, reports and suggestions. I would highly recommended their services.

Simon provided a clear and thorough survey of our property identifying any potential issues and talking us through causes and remedies. We would highly recommend.

Simon came to my property and did a thorough review of the damp issues making a series of measurement.
Simon gave detailed causes of the damp and how best to remedy each cause. This I found to be very useful and practical to implement

Prior to the appointment, communication from the Damp Surveys team had been excellent, so we knew what to do so as to prepare for the visit. Simon arrived on time and, from the get go, was very friendly and thorough. He gave my wife and I space to voice all our concerns regarding possible damp issues in our property. As he investigated the causes, he was keen to explain what he was doing, and to make sure we had understood his diagnosis, and what we needed to do next.
His follow up report was equally helpful.

I moved into a property beset with mould and condensation problems. I had little understanding of the issues and how to solve it. After Simon's visit I have a full understanding and armed with his detailed advice, feel confident to tackle the problem.
Simon is punctual, friendly and efficient. He has a wealth of knowledge, which he is keen his clients also understand, so he takes time to explain clearly. He also videos as he works so you can watch again, in case you miss or forget something.
He thoroughly investigates each area using meters and thermal imaging, even checking the external walls and my flat roof. The suggestions made were clear, detailed and manageable.
The best advice I’ve paid for. Absolutely worth it for his brilliant independent advice and the confidence and understanding I gained, and a clear action plan. Thank you Simon!

My wife discovered Damp Surveys via the Which Magazine trusted traders service. Our first attempt to contact was made when Simon was elsewhere on job, so I visited the website and discovered an AI consultant which was surprisingly human in terms of seeking clarification from me and responding in detail to my information. The AI was very thorough and generated a substantial report. However, we soon contacted DS Ltd and were offered an appointment. Simon arrived punctually and proceeded with his examination of our large kitchen which has numerous signs of damp, both black and white mould. Simon very systematically inspected all of these manifestations and gave me an extremely clear and detailed account of what was going on with the moisture level in our kitchen and also how that related to other parts of the house, especially "wet" rooms. He was fastidious in his examination of the relevant parts of the property and gave us clear recommendations on how to proceed. His findings were actually very good news as we had been imagining rising damp and damp penetration from outside but it was all arising from the internal moisture level that we were generating in the house. As a result we have purchased a 20 litre dehumidifier which, although placed in the kitchen, will draw moisture from every part of the house as long as doors can be left open! We were astonished at the amount of moisture this device extracted over 2 nights (some 20 hours). We do have extractor fans in critical places, but these clearly do not deal sufficiently well with the atmospheric moisture in the kitchen.
Final note: I strongly recommend Simon's services. Prior to his visit he recommended our purchasing 2 hygrometers (moisture measurers) which come with an APP to install on a phone. These track both humidity (dew point) and temperature in a room which are critical factors for Simon to work with. I can now also continue to track both dew point and temperature in the relevant rooms. The devices' batteries can be replaced.

Used Rowallan Timber and Damp Surveys. No fuss but very thorough and professional service. Paid £145 for independent surveyor to ascertain cause of damp on internal wall in our kitchen. Thorough survey including surveyor going underneath the house whereby he found source of damp - a leaking pipe under floorboards. Written report received the next day.

Simon Hichens was commissioned to conduct a general damp survey in our Victorian property as we wanted to refurbish.
Simon provided us with a very comprehensive and detailed survey and used various techniques and tools to identify the root cause and reason for moisture readings on meters. He used 2 moisture meters, hydrometer, ai data loggers, thermal imaging equipment,extraction fan meter and provided us with an effective and accurate remediation solution that made Sense.
While generally most damp survey companies I recon would summarise moisture reading as Rising Damp without a reason ; Simon identifies the root cause with a holistic assessment.

I highly recommend his services and I must say that he is very very experienced and knowledgeable in the area of Damp and building surveys

All the best

Simon arrived at the specified time and did a thorough and professional investigation into our concerns re: damp in the ground floor of our house. During this survey, Simon explained carefully the problems that we needed to address and how to proceed. At all times he was polite, friendly and engendered confidence. His feedback was prompt and immensely helpful; we are starting to implement his recommendations and are glad to have procured his services.

Simon was diligent, thorough and knowledgeable. He spent much longer than his allocated time slot exploring and carefully considering the likely causes of several different damp issues in our property. He has recommended several actions to address these issues which we are currently implementing. Excellent service and highly recommended.

I was so relieved to find Damp Surveys after a lot of researching online about rising damp and causes of damp. I’d had 2 damp surveys from damp contractors which were a lot of money and just seemed to be covering the walls in plastic.
When Simon came round it was fascinating to hear what he had to say about a lot of the different areas I asked him to look at. I’ve gained some really useful technical knowledge and also saved a lot of money. He was great at talking me through each area he looked at around the house. It was a bit tricky on the day as my 3 year old was extremely interested in the survey and was a bit distracted - having the video to go back to is very helpful. I think the work Simon has been doing is fantastic and would recommend to anyone who doesn’t want to just say yes to paying a lot of money to cover up damp and wants to understand their home and how to manage the issues and try and get to the route problem.
I’d been very anxious about the damp issues since moving into the property last
Summer and now I’m not worried about it all anymore and know the minor issues are all sortable.

I had a damp survey in November 2023. On the day Simon seemed friendly and knowledgable but as my damp problems developed it became clear that much of the advice he gave was not correct. I was also really disappointed that he didn't seem to really properly acknowledge the mistakes that he made (which were not minor things).

For one of the issues it became clear around a year after the date of the survey that he had completely misdiagnosed one of my damp issues and had given me incorrect advice. He didn't even respond to my email pointing this out. He was previously very slow to reply to my emails but this last one has gone unanswered for months now and at this point I don't have the motivation to keep chasing him.

Very happy to recommend Damp Surveys LTD. Simon diagnosed the cause of damp patches on the walls in my property and gave me recommendations to resolve them. Helpful website, videos and other tools alongside the report.

Contacted Simon to deal with a damp problem after receiving various different diagnoses from different tradesmen and a 6k quote from one builder. Simon carried out a thorough survey of the house, diagnosed the cause of the problem and gave us a clear set of instructions to remedy it that didn't involve the need for any building work. Not only is the damp now clearing up but we now have the tools to make sure it never returns and haven't wasted money on works that wouldn't have dealt with the root cause.

We have a few patches of what appear to be damp. Previously I have asked advice from builders, all of whom have come up with different ideas and have suggested different costly solutions. Given that none of them have agreed on a diagnosis or solution, I decided to seek the advice of an expert, and to pay for a damp survey from Damp Surveys Ltd, reasoning that the fee was a good investment in relation to the amount I might otherwise pay on a "repair" that was of no use. Simon visited, conducted a careful investigation of the house, interested not only the state of the walls but also our use of the property - do we use the extractor fan when cooking, how do we dry clothes, etc. Afterwards, he sent a long and detailed report, with recommendations which focused not on costly building work, but on ventilation and condensation. Yes, we're going to install new extractor fans and buy some dehumidifiers, and yes we intend to be more careful about how we dry clothes etc. But these costs are minor compared to the amounts we might have ended up paying. We feel this damp survey was a really good investment in the maintenance of our property, and it has set our minds at ease.

Have a complex damp issue in my flat. Kenwood conducted a free survey and advised me to take up the flooring in the whole flat and quoted £8k for extensive subfloor work (which wouldn't have actually treated the problem) The cost of redecorating would have been around another £8k.

Simon is very thorough and takes time to explains things. He is very knowledgeable and uses logical reasoning to establish the root cause of the problems. His solutions to the root cause will cost a fraction of what I was quoted by Kenwood and will tackle the root cause so the problem doesn't resurface. I'm only sad I didn't discover him earlier.

Competent and thorough.

Called them few times for a survey to our basement area.They told me they do not do this kind of service. I have to call a lick specialist ,like a plumber really that will sort out my damp and ground water that is coming through the wall.Just to let you dear damp proof specialists we do not have water pipes in this basement.With other words they couldn't be bother to have a survey done to my property.What sort of company is this , I'm my experience a cowboy one