SCIENTIFIC EXPLANATION OF RISING DAMP
For a convincing scientific explanation of rising damp we
have to refer to a specific physical phenomenon: the pole
difference between upper (dry) parts and lower (damp) parts
of masonry.
The two poles generate what we call a “magnet effect”: the
pole inside the dry masonry attracts water in the foundations
of the building, which has an opposite pole, thus causing
water to rise up, molecule by molecule, through the porous
materials the masonry is made of.
Also, rising water molecules cause the mineral salts that
are naturally present in the ground and in the construction
materials to move and deposit inside masonry. Those salts
remain dissolved until they reach the evaporation zone.
Once they have reached the evaporation zone, these salts
will deposit on the wall surface and will crystallize, causing
the formation of wet stains and wall degradation; the salts
themselves will enhance rising damp, thus contributing to
the formation of a vertical electric potential difference in
the wall structure and the consequent polarization of water
molecules.
A 104,5° angle forms in the water molecule (H2O) between
hydrogen atoms and the oxygen atom: the positive field is
generated between the two hydrogen atoms, whereas the
negative field is generated on top of oxygen.
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SCIENTIFIC
EXPLANATION
OF RISING DAMP