Timber decay and woodworm
Air bricks are only on the front and the rear void has none the surveyor could see. What ventilation of the floor has not been shown?
Cross-ventilation of the floor has not been shown. Air bricks only on the front, with none the surveyor could see at the rear, do not demonstrate that air can cross the void under a suspended timber floor. One elevation can let air in and still leave the back of the void stale if there is no way through. The survey recorded the front bricks and the absence it could see at the rear. It has not measured airflow, has not opened the floor, and has not said the joists are decayed. The missing path is what has not been shown.
Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Written for buyers in England and Wales unless this answer says otherwise. No named surveyor has signed this page. It is general guidance, not a report on your house, and not legal advice.
What is the fuller explanation?
Suspended timber floors rely on air moving through the void, in at one side and out at the other, so the joists and boards stay drier. Bricks on a single elevation may ventilate the front bay and nothing beyond a sleeper wall. The surveyor could not see rear air bricks, which is not quite the same as proving none exist under a deck or behind render, but it does mean the path was not shown. No airflow was measured. The note is an incomplete ventilation picture, not a condemned floor.
A builder or timber specialist can look for sleeper walls, blocked openings and any hidden rear vents, and can say whether new air bricks are needed at the back. Tell the solicitor the survey has not shown cross-ventilation and has not diagnosed rot. The report has not specified a new floor. If a deck or paving is what hides the rear wall, that is the place to look first. Do not assume the front bricks are enough because the rooms smell fresh on a viewing day.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Where were air bricks seen, and where could you see none?
- Did you measure any airflow, or only record the bricks?
- Have you left cross-ventilation of the floor as not shown?
What are the typical next steps?
- Record that cross-ventilation of the floor was not shown.
- Check the rear wall for missing or hidden air bricks.
- Do not treat front air bricks as a complete floor ventilation path.
Costs vary with the building and with who you instruct. Where this page does not cite a published figure, ask the surveyor, a relevant specialist, or your solicitor for a written quote. Do not treat a forum average as the price.
Also asked about this
If the front bricks are clear, is the void ventilated?
Clear front bricks only show a front opening. The rear void had none the surveyor could see, so air across the floor has not been shown. One clear elevation is not a through-path. No later decision about the frontbrick was made, and this visit did not supply one.
Does a solid floor in part of the house change this note?
Only for the part that is solid. Where the floor is suspended timber, the survey still has not shown cross-ventilation. A solid area elsewhere does not ventilate the void that lacked rear air bricks. What happens next for the solidpart is outside this note and was not settled here.