Abstract
This study focuses on the monitoring of rising damp, a widespread phenomenon that causes moisture-related damages in existing construction. Diagnosing moisture-related damages in construction can be difficult due to the many potential causes of moisture accumulation. The study aims to contribute to the understanding and diagnosis of moisture sources by evaluating and comparing different monitoring techniques for the diagnosis of rising damp in different types of masonry (brick, stone, and reinforced concrete). Five methods were evaluated and compared: gravimetric test, wall weighing, temperature and humidity sensors placed inside the wall, microwave instrumentation, and thermographic images. The results of the study showed that the gravimetric test is the only method that provides reliable and quantitative data, but it has limitations such as the need to ensure that the extracted powders consist of a single material and the potential for heat to cause moisture to evaporate quickly. The weighing method is time-consuming and limited to lab settings, and the use of sensors placed inside the wall is semi-invasive but has important limitations such as sensor reliability and different results in masonry with heterogeneous composition. The data obtained with microwave instruments cannot be easily correlated with the amount of moisture, and the method proposed for the analysis of thermographic images allows for the assessment of the evaporation area over time but has greater uncertainty in some replicas. As a result if the study, a combined approach with complementary methods is suggested to reach more accurate results.