Damp on walls and ceilings can be expensive to repair, but it can also be the perfect environment for mould and dust mites that can affect your health.

Even when energy prices are high, not heating your home in winter can be damaging; worsening problems with damp, condensation, and mould.

Do you have dripping windows or, worse, dripping walls? Have you seen black mould growing around your window frames and on your walls? These are the tell-tale indicators that your house might be suffering from condensation.

According to a study by the Smithsonian Institute on average there are between 32 and 211 different species that live alongside us including dust mites.

As with most issues that can affect a home, prevention is better than cure, and in many cases, damp can be stopped by addressing the cause.

Solving damp issues caused by condensation in your home early helps you avoid expensive repair bills in the future.

Mould prevention is easier than cure in rental properties; limiting the quantity of mould and mildew that may grow makes clean-up easier and less expensive.

While different forms of damp may seem similar in your house, knowing how to distinguish between them is critical if you want to solve the problem.

Damp patches are caused when moisture is able to accumulate below the surface in materials throughout your home.

Damp can come in multiple forms and is one of the most common problems to affect homes in the UK – around 1 in 5 properties suffer from damp issues.

It is a worrying statistic for homeowners that 1 in 5 UK homes has problems with damp and knowing what to do to prevent long term damage to your health or property is essential.

Understanding the type of damp you have in your property is the first step to treating it and preventing it coming back in the future.