Valuation of the capillary uptake phenomenon in the wall of the historic building using the surface TDR probe

Article discusses measuring potential of the TDR (Time Domain Reflectometry) technique for terrain measurement of moisture in the masonries of the historical buildings. For the measurements it was applied modified TDR probe which enables noninvasive moisture detection in building materials, thus enables its application for in-situ measurements, especially in old, historical objects. Terrain measurements were realized on the external masonry made of red ceramic brick, being the part of the historical hospital located on the area of the “Wojewódzki Samodzielny Psychiatryczny Zespół Publicznych Zakładów Opieki Zdrowotnej im. prof. dr Jana Mazurkiewicza” in Pruszków. The masonry is stricken with capillary rise phenomenon by the water coming from the ground, which is also visible by visual observation. Conducted measurement enabled quantitative estimation of the phenomenon which threatens to the discussed object. Within the research, reflectometric measurements were conducted using the prototype surface TDR probes. Measurements were repeated to verify moisture changes in time. First series of measurement was conducted in summertime, in July 2010. The second one was conducted in November of the same year. Then, with the obtained data there were drawn moisture maps of the masonry, which indicated horizontal and vertical variations of moisture and interpretation of the obtained results enabled to confirm capillary uptake process in the examined masonry.