OK - if your damp specialist said the efflorescence is due to condensation and not rising damp that's a good thing and it suggests that you do NOT after all need a damp proof membrane inserted under the floor. (So why, I ask, did he or she suggest that?)
What you need is a good passive ventilation system (i.e. one that doesn't have to be turned on to work!) In older houses, a permanently open wall vent would be the typical system. Period houses (including mine) were often built without these as there were plenty of other openings to do the job - fireplaces, loose-fitting windows and other sources of drafts!
Drying clothes on the clothes horse, along with normal cooking vapours, will contribute vastly to condensation unless you have good ventilation in place. Installing vents may solve your problem right away (any handyman should be able to do this for you, you shouldn't have to spend a lot.)
Unless the raised flowerbeds are on the kitchen wall you can stop worrying about them. Your post is ambiguous but I think you mean they are across the yard i.e. not in contact with the kitchen wall or any other wall of your house, correct?
If they ARE in contact with the house wall, I'd get rid of them. Ground level (including raised beds) should always be below your inside floor level - unless your kitchen is actually below ground (i.e. a cellar) in which special precautions (tanking) should be used.
Elaine, yes, I said I had chemical injection done in one property 10 years ago. There are signs of failure in a couple of spots (flaking paint about a foot above the floor level). I used the electro osmosis system in another house, working well but it's been in less than a year so can't comment on long term performance.
Yes, maintaining older properties has a learning curve and it's not for everyone (personally I think it's worth it but I understand why not everyone would!)
What you need is a good passive ventilation system (i.e. one that doesn't have to be turned on to work!) In older houses, a permanently open wall vent would be the typical system. Period houses (including mine) were often built without these as there were plenty of other openings to do the job - fireplaces, loose-fitting windows and other sources of drafts!
Drying clothes on the clothes horse, along with normal cooking vapours, will contribute vastly to condensation unless you have good ventilation in place. Installing vents may solve your problem right away (any handyman should be able to do this for you, you shouldn't have to spend a lot.)
Unless the raised flowerbeds are on the kitchen wall you can stop worrying about them. Your post is ambiguous but I think you mean they are across the yard i.e. not in contact with the kitchen wall or any other wall of your house, correct?
If they ARE in contact with the house wall, I'd get rid of them. Ground level (including raised beds) should always be below your inside floor level - unless your kitchen is actually below ground (i.e. a cellar) in which special precautions (tanking) should be used.
Elaine, yes, I said I had chemical injection done in one property 10 years ago. There are signs of failure in a couple of spots (flaking paint about a foot above the floor level). I used the electro osmosis system in another house, working well but it's been in less than a year so can't comment on long term performance.
Yes, maintaining older properties has a learning curve and it's not for everyone (personally I think it's worth it but I understand why not everyone would!)