Dealing with Wood Rot and Excess Moisture

Do you suspect that the timber in your property is affected by dry rot or wet rot? Both these types of woodrot love damp and can cause serious structural damage to your property.

On this page I have shared some of the symptoms and treatment.

Dry Rot

Dry rot is a wood-destroying fungus that is found all over the world.

It will affect timbers more aggressively with the correct conditions with 20% moisture in the affected timbers, damp and warm areas being the ideal place for dry rot to manifest.

(insert photos of dry rot and mushrooms)

Dry rot also has the ability to travel through other building materials and is not only limited to timber which gives outbreaks the potential to spread quickly through a building.

It can move as much as 20 inches in all directions per month.

There are several indications of dry rot, those being:

Darkening and shrinking of the wood
Cuboidal cracks appearing
Mycelium can develop which is white and fluffy, almost a cotton wool type fungus
A Mushroom type fungus can breakout which is usually grey in colour with lilac and/or yellow patches

I have personally witnessed a particularly large mushroom in a cellar measuring close to 30 inches. These are by no means uncommon.

One way you can prevent a breakout of dry rot in your property is ensuring all your pipe work is securely fitted and tightened.

Dry Rot Treatment

The removal of all affected timbers and plaster can, in some cases, involve replacing window frames, door frames.

All plaster on infected walls should be removed to ensure the treatment is carried out as thoroughly as possible. Once the bare brickwork is visible we then sterilise it with a special fungicide and allow to dry.

The most common step after this is to proceed with the rising damp procedure.

After treatment we will check that the area is ventilated well enough and will be kept dry in the future.

Wet Rot

There are several types of wood rot but by far the most common is Coniophora puteana. It required a regular source of moisture to manifest.

Early signs of wet rot include:

Discoloured and weakened timbers
Musty damp smells
Small fugues growth around infected area

The risks for living in a property with dry rot or wet rot are limited but it has been known on rare occasions for flooring to collapse and people fall through it if not treated.

Wet Rot Treatment

Treatment for wet rot is a replacement process in which we cut away all affected timbers and replace with treated timbers.

We also protect all timbers from coming into direct contact with damp surfaces by plastic damp proof membrane application.

Please note: we do not cut corners during this process by then installing cheap chipboard to cover the area. We use a specially treated floorboard called Vac Vac flooring to ensure the most professional job possible.

All timbers, once replaced, would then be sprayed with a suitable fungicidal/insecticide chemical to further protect the whole area.

After allowing sufficient time for the treated areas to dry out you can re-enter your home.