Do you notice a white deposit on the walls? Then you probably have a problem with hygroscopic salts. These are salts from the subsoil that have made their way into the bricks of your home. This indicates rising damp. So your biggest concern is not so much the white deposit, but the underlying moisture problem. Below, we’ll tell you how to combat these hygroscopic salts and the moisture in the walls.
What Exactly are Hygroscopic Salts?
Hygroscopic means moisture-attracting. So hygroscopic salts are salts that attract moisture. These types of salts occur naturally in the soil and are not dangerous in themselves.
However, when your home is dealing with rising damp, these hygroscopic salts can end up in the walls. They then manifest as a white deposit on your walls, which we also call salt efflorescence. They are no longer harmless, as they exacerbate the existing moisture problem. This can occur up to about one and a half meters above the ground, as high as the moisture can rise in your home.
It’s a myth that only old houses can be affected by rising damp. In most cases, this moisture problem does indeed occur when the damp proofing of old houses no longer works as it should. But new buildings can also suffer from hygroscopic salts. These are salts that were already present in the building material itself and have made their way to the surface. In that case, fortunately, it’s enough to simply brush off the salts.
Why are Hygroscopic Salts Dangerous?
If rising damp is the cause of the hygroscopic salts, as in almost all cases, then you should indeed be concerned. Hygroscopic salts are then anything but harmless. As we said earlier, these salts attract moisture. Those salt crystals on the walls will therefore only make the moisture problem worse.
What can you do against hygroscopic salts? Brush them off. This way, you continuously remove the hygroscopic salts from the wall surface, and they can no longer attract moisture from the ambient air. It goes without saying that this is not a structural solution. The rising damp, the cause of the problem, continues to bring new hygroscopic salts from the soil. It’s like mopping the floor with the tap running.
The Big Problem behind Hygroscopic Salts is Moisture
That’s why it’s of great importance to tackle the real moisture problem at its root. Not only because it’s the only way to drive the hygroscopic salts out of your home, but also because the rising damp itself is particularly harmful.
- You should always drive out rising damp from your home as quickly as possible. On the one hand, because it affects the stability of your home . Wet, moisture-saturated bricks become brittle and porous. They crumble more easily, which is not good news for the stability of load-bearing walls.
- On the other hand, those damp walls create a particularly unhealthy living environment. The relative humidity will be higher, which promotes condensation and mold problems, and you will experience health issues.
- Moisture problems in the home are linked to respiratory problems, asthma, increased dust mites, throat and headaches, and fatigue.
- Molds, which go hand in hand with moisture, also reproduce with harmful spores. These are toxic when inhaled. In short, tackling rising damp is the only way to get rid of hygroscopic salts.
What then is a Structural Solution for Hygroscopic Salts?
How do you tackle rising damp? In the best case, wall injections are sufficient. This involves drilling holes in the damp wall that are filled with a moisture-repellent agent. This product hardens and thus forms an impenetrable barrier for moisture and hygroscopic salts from the subsoil.
When the moisture problem spreads over several walls or is too severe, we may need to undercut the walls. In this process, we excavate the house down to the bottom of the walls. At the bottom, we then apply a new damp proofing, a foil that blocks water. This way, you are guaranteed to prevent moisture as well.
Solusio Treats your Walls against Hygroscopic Salts
Have you noticed hygroscopic salts in your home? Then it’s important to remove them and also eliminate the underlying moisture problem. Fortunately, Solusio’s experts can relieve you of moisture and hygroscopic salts with a professional treatment.
We’d be happy to visit you for a free moisture diagnosis. This way, we can quickly determine what’s causing the moisture problem and propose a tailored treatment to definitively eliminate moisture in your home.