Help! We're new here and we have damp!

[JudithJourneys]

Good morning all,

I am new here and am posting for advice, hopefully reassurance or, failing that a hand hold and a large glass of wine!

This weekend after a long search we bought our first caravan from a private seller. We are not new to touring as we previously had a motorhome which we sold in March having had a little boy at Christmas and sadly she just wasn't big enough anymore.

We didn't consider ourselves naive buyers as we were when we bought our motorhome and then spent a large amount making her roadworthy before tackling the internals!!

So for six months we searched and read up on what to look for until finally finding our perfect van this weekend. She is immaculate inside and out despite being 16yrs old, everything works. Checked as best we could for damp around windows etc and all looks marvellous, no signs of damp (although we didnt test with a damp meter). She towed home lovely and just feels perfect. A second home already.

However, on giving her a spruce up yesterday I have found damp around the toilet. I am gutted and tearful and feel so stupid! It's clearly coming in from the dodgy seal in the toilet cassette locker but the wall is spongy and I'd say rotten and as is about 2in sq of the floor immediately below the damp bit which itselfis about 2in wide x 4in long but probably goes behind the toilet too. I am so angry for not having spotted this particularly as it's where our motorhome had a damp problem and am dreading the cost of putting it right. It's taken the shine and excitement right off our new purchase.

Does this sound as horrendous and expensive situation as I fear? Is it fixable? We don't have a lot of DIY skill to do it ourselves and nor do we really have the time. We had hoped she'd last us a good 5 years but now I'm thinking we've wasted our 'holiday home fund'.

I hope to hear stories of hope but fear the worst.

Many thanks.

 

[jamestaylor18]

First off, don't panic and don't be disheartened. We bought a van privately, had 12 months out of it, and then had a service which showed 80% damp to both rear corners. I was wet behind the ears when I bought ours, didn't check for damp and got stung. The rear corner has soft wall board. Took it for a quote and ended up paying just shy of 2k to get it fixed. It turned out it was in both rear corners and the frame was rotten along with a section of the floor.

I weighed up part exchange vs getting it fixed. Px value was 2k for the van, with no damp and private sale I could easily get 4-5k, so worth getting it done. Now its done I am more than happy with the repair and back in love with the van again.

If its behind the cassette and like you say from the cassette door seal, i doubt it will over 1k to have done professionally. They can put a join in the wall and replace the section of soggy wall board. You could try DIY if its a relatively easy place to access, but ours was not so was not an option. Just be aware, if the floor or frame is damaged, that bumps up the price. I think the tip is act now or pay later when things get worse.

The company i used said they had newer vans than mine with much worse damp than mine, which was reassuring, and mine was pretty bad!

 

[otherclive]

Sorry to hear of your damp problem. Every caravan we have owned has been affected by damp to some extent or other. Have a professional damp test carried out over the affected area and the rest of the unit as often damp is starting but gives no visible signs.
The test will tell you if you are likely to have serious degradation of wall board or wooden structure. If you don't have that then having the toilet compartment seal replaced may be all that's required and the unit should start to dry out even in winter. You may have other near sources of leak such as lights, reflectors, low level awning strip, toilet flush tank inlet. Have everthing checked. If there's no structural damage and the floor doesn't fully regain its original stiffness then there are resin injections that may improve it. But first of all you have to stop water ingress.
I know it's horse and stable door stuff but even buying privately I would recommend a damp test before buying. I have always had a damp test done before trading in a caravan or buying privately. Most other things can be fixed by DIY but damp is the unknown as it often is not visible or smell able until too late. Good luck for a successful outcome.

 

[Parksy]

It's a long shot I know, but have you considered contacting the person who sold the caravan to you?
Was it advertised as being free from damp, and what method of payment did you use?
The vendor has no legal obligation but they might do the right thing and if you don't ask you won't get.
If all else fails there is a wealth of technical advice available on this website.

 

[JudithJourneys]

Thank you for your replies. We have it booked for a service in two weeks but that seems forever to hold our breath waiting for further news. I could just cry.

We paid cash for it. I don't think I could face calling them but the other half might. It was sold as damp free.

 

[audiorob]

It is possible for the vendor not to have known about the damp in the toilet area - usually the problem has been there before any visible signs. The only way to be able to declare a caravan free from damp is for them to have had a damp check (often included in a service) which would produce a pictorial report with % damp marked in many places where checked with a meter. Best bet might be to contact vendor now with a view to further negotiation depending on the outcome of your own damp test and service. Good luck!

 

[Parksy]

If the caravan was advertised publicly as being free from damp then the vendor has misrepresented the goods, knowingly or unknowingly.
I'm sure that forum members who know more about the subject than I do will be able to advise you, but I'd have thought that if goods are not described accurately and they are not up to the standard that was stated on the advert there ought to be some way of negotiating some compensation or cancelling the sale.
Did you buy from eBay?

 

[Jaydug]

The caravan I bought in 2011 also had damp around the toilet. Mine also had four years worth of service reports where the damp test was ticked and marked OK. I wrote an account of my repairs on my blog which you can see at https://jondogoescaravanning.com/modifications-additions-to-my-rialto/

 

[Parksy]

I've found some further information via Google which might be of some use to you Judith.
Although you have fewer rights to protect you when you buy privately as opposed to from a dealership, this doesn't mean that you have no rights at all.
Any sale between private individuals represents a contract, so a lot depends on the terms under which this contract was agreed.
Did you ask the vendor if the caravan had any damp before you paid for it?
If you did ask the question and were informed that the caravan had no damp did the vendor provide any evidence to back up his claim that the caravan was damp free, such as evidence of regular servicing or a recent damp test?
If the vendor asserted (or advertised) that the caravan that he was selling to you was damp free (or any other term to suggest that no damp was present) the contract between you was agreed on that basis.
Click Here to read advice from the Which consumer rights organisation about different types of misrepresentation and what solutions are available to you.
It's entirely possible that the vendor had no knowledge of this damp issue, so I'd suggest a polite and civil discussion to set out the problem initially.
If the vendor has, in your opinion, misrepresented the terms of your mutual contract either negligently or innocently you have a good basis for negotiation, with the final sanction of a county court claim for you to use as a last resort if necessary.

 

[welshti]

You are not alone, we did the same 2 months ago and as others have mentioned, things are not visable with the eye but everything can be fixed if you have a useful other half or handy at DIY. We had the same leak from the toilet filler housing and door seals >>> topic here

 

[JudithJourneys]

Thanks for the posts showing how you've managed to tackle this. We're going to await the results of the service on Monday and then as my other half has his first couple of weeks off since spring, hopefully enjoy a couple of nights away in her (if I can take my mind away from the diapppintment) whilst deciding the best course of action.

What is the situation with rotten floor? I guess that's worrying me more than the soft wall! How is that repaired? I'm hoping we might be able to tackle the jobs ourselves but equally we are not knowledgeable DIY enthusiasts. However nor do we have a spare couple of grand sitting around!

 

[otherclive]

Re the floor as with the walls it will all depend on the outcome of the damp readings. If they are high where the level has caused or could cause structural damage the action would need to be discussed. The leak source would be tackled and then the van dried out. After which the floor softness may have reduced or gone. Then if it’s reduced resin injection might be a DIY option. Alternatively the technician doing the damp test may recommend further intrusive examination to assess the floor. You will have to be guided by the professional judgement of the technician.

 

[Raywood]

Sorry to hear of your problem. Basically if the caravan was advertised as damp free then this appears to have been an incorrect statement that induced you to buy and legally you can now ask for your money back. Enforcing your legal rights against an individual rather than a dealer is far more difficult in many cases though, but I would contact the vendor and tell him what you have found and see if he is willing to do anything. Unless the caravan had been damp checked before the sale I do not see how the vendor could say it was damp free so you might ask on what basis he made the statement.
If you are having the caravan serviced then the engineer should include a damp check and the extent of any problem should then become clear and he should be able to give you an idea as to the cost of any repair. Possibly then is the time to review your options as to how to proceed.
It is too late now, but unless you know the subject it is probably worthwhile getting an engineers report on a caravan before buying privately.

 

[ProfJohnL]

The Consumer Rights Act (CRA) does not differentiate between dealers and private sales, the same basic liability lies with the seller to accurately describe the gods in the contract. It is the buyers responsibility to make sure the goods being considered are fit for intended purpose, and to make all appropriate enquiries before the contract is agreed. However it would inappropriate for potential buyers to dismantle a product before purchase in every case, so it is there is some latitude which is judged on an individual basis where hidden faults may not be the judged the liability of the seller in second hand goods.

So if the potential buyer asks a pertinent question such as "Has this caravan ever suffered with damp?" the seller is legally obliged to answer accurately. If they seller says "No it has not" then it is a clear breach of contract if there is or ever has been damp, but if the seller responds with "Not as far as I am aware" then the buyer should look carefully and establish the fact before purchase. So questions and answers are particularly important.

This will be a civil matter, and if it goes to arbitration or court, the judgement will be be based on the balance of probabilities, so it will be up to the buyer to evidence the fact the seller was actually aware of the problem before they sold the goods, and thus lied in their description of the goods.

If it were a dealer sale, the court will assume the dealer will have some expert knowledge of these things and should have been have found the such a problem before the caravan was offered for sale. A private seller who is not a recognised trader or dealer, may be able to sustain a plea of ignorance, but it is not certain and would depend on the individual circumstances.

 

[Raywood]

My point on this one was that the caravan was apparently advertised as damp free which was clearly a misstatement. On that basis the claim against the seller should be well founded but pursuing a private seller is often far more difficult but it should not stop the OP trying but what he does might depend on he extent of the problem.

 

[Beachball]

Welcome to the forum I hope you enjoy