We would like to know what are the various precautions to be taken in a house during rainy season, in particular, during monsoon to prevent damp patches on wall and other leakages.

Saloni Tripathi, New Delhi

Certain precautions should be taken in a house before the onset of monsoons to prevent leakages, rain water coming in through doors and windows and damp patches on walls. Window, doors and their frames should be water tight and sealed.

Correct slopes ought to be maintained for terraces and they should be sloped towards ‘khurras’ or rain water outlets. The ideal slope for a terrace is between 1:100 to 1:150 towards the rain water outlets. The khurras should be waterproofed to avoid leakage. These pipes must have minimum bends and must be connected to the storm water drain. The skirting around the perimeter also helps to protect the waterproofing. Ideally, at the junction of the parapet wall and the horizontal floor finish a cement concrete ‘gola’ should be given to avoid seepage at the junction of the two, that is, the parapet wall and the horizontal floor finish. The gola is a very important element in preventing the leakage of rainwater to the surfaces below when rainwater collects on the terrace. All horizontal surfaces such as chajjas or overhangs should be waterproofed, correctly sloped and proper rainwater pipes should be installed.

In addition to water seepages during the rains through terraces, and overhangs, there is capillary action that takes place through walls, shafts and construction joints. Therefore, maintenance of the building is very essential. Ideally one should paint the exterior of the building every five years. Nowadays many waterproof emulsions are available. Check for structural weaknesses every four to six years, incase you discover any problem or there are major cracks on the surface of the building, engage a professional, in particular, an architect or structural engineer to look into the problem. Even if there are small repairs to be done attend to them quickly before they develop into a bigger problem.

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