Winter Worries: Penetrating Damp

It is an interesting fact of chemistry that water, though such a common element on Earth, has the almost-unique property among liquids of expanding in volume when frozen. Outside of the laboratory, this fact quickly ceases to be interesting and quickly becomes damaging, frustrating and costly!

The tiniest cracks in masonry can become filled with water. When temperatures fall low enough, this water freezes and, due to the aforementioned expansion, causes cracks to become slightly larger. The next time the masonry is exposed to water, these larger cracks fill once again with more water than before; when this water again freezes, the cracks become even larger.

This is the dreaded freeze/thaw cycle. Masonry will quickly begin to spall due to the damage, with the cracks becoming visible to the naked eye and damp patches appearing on the inside of solid walls.  Cavity walls, filled with insulation, can also be badly affected as the ingress of water can soak the insulation and deprive it of its thermal properties.

Twistfix offer an immediate, lasting solution to the problem of penetrating damp.  First, the cracks must be repaired using a deeply penetrating filler such as our Crack Injection Mortar; there are 11 brick-coloured mortars to chose from.  Once the cracks have been filled, a coating of our Masonry Water Repellent Cream protects porous brickwork, preventing any further water ingress and the frost damage potential occurring from it.

Find out more about these highly-effective products on our website.