Why fix seepage before you start interiors

After years of EMIs and rent, most buyers want to start interiors the week they get the keys. The carpenter is booked, the modular kitchen is ordered, the paint colours are chosen. Seepage is the one thing that can undo all of it, and the order in which you do things decides how much it costs you.

What interiors do to a damp wall

Interiors cover exactly the surfaces where damp shows first. A wardrobe goes against the wall that backs onto a bathroom. Panelling goes on the external wall behind the TV. Kitchen units sit against the sink wall. Once they are fixed, you cannot see the wall, and nobody can take a reading on it without taking them down.

A new flat also has a timing problem. If you get the keys in the dry months, the building may not have been through a monsoon with you watching. A bathroom whose waterproofing has a gap leaks only when the shower is used for weeks, and an unsealed window frame leaks only in driving rain. Interiors finished in March can sit in front of a wall that first gets wet in July.

• Plywood and laminate on a wet wall swell and delaminate, usually at the bottom edge first.
• Closed wardrobes trap moisture, and clothes and shoes inside start to smell.
• New paint over a wet wall peels and bubbles within one monsoon.
• False ceilings hide a patch under a bathroom until it stains through or drips.

Why the builder cares about the order too

Under Section 14(3) of the RERA Act, 2016, the builder has to fix defects notified within five years from the date of handing over possession. But once your interiors are in, the repair means removing them, and the builder may argue the damage came from your contractor's work. A defect recorded before interiors, with a date, a photo and a reading, removes that argument.

Who pays for taking down and refitting your wardrobe is also far less clear than who pays for fixing the bathroom waterproofing. Avoid that question by fixing first, and keep the builder's written acknowledgement with your interiors paperwork.

A sensible order

1. Inspect at possession, before you sign the possession letter if you can.
2. Give the builder a numbered list and get an acknowledgement.
3. Let the builder complete the repairs, especially bathroom waterproofing and window sealing.
4. Re-check the repaired spots. A wall that was soaked takes time to dry even after the source is fixed.
5. Start interiors on the walls that are confirmed dry, and leave the ones still drying until last.

What to tell your interior designer

Share the findings with your designer or contractor. They need to know which walls were wet, so they can keep a gap behind units, avoid sealing panelling directly to a suspect wall, and leave access to concealed plumbing and shaft walls. A good contractor would rather know now than be blamed for swollen units in August.

If you have already started

If interiors are already under way, it is still worth checking the walls that are not yet covered, and any ceiling under a bathroom before the false ceiling is closed. Record what you find with dates. A re-scan after repairs compares the same spots against the original readings, so you can see whether a wall is drying before anything goes on it. One reading shows direction, not a final answer, so do not rush the last coat of paint.

For new flats, the possession check is built to happen before the interiors team arrives.