On 23/06/2012 17:37, Phil L wrote:
> gremlin_95 wrote:
>> <snip>
>>
>> Thanks everyone, we have stripped the lino back and there isn't any
>> sort of growth underneath, the wood floor seems to be slightly damp
>> on the surface so we have left it without the lino to allow it to dry
>> out and see if anything happens after this.
>
> It's Serpula lacrimans, IE dry rot, and the fact that you've seen the
> fruiting body, means that it's already well established.
It is the sort of thing that you really need to get specialists in to
deal with if you want any kind of guarantee. They can use far more
aggressive chemicals than are available to DIYers.
Basically though it is physical removal of large amounts of affected
wood, plaster and possibly even bricks to zap every last trace and then
powerful chemical antifungals. ISTR they come with a 25 year guarantee.
The neighbour ended up with their entire ground floor ripped out and
replaced. Everything under the floor had a layer of mycelium on it. They
only realised there was a problem when the fruiting bodies appeared. It
appears that putting down parque flooring had trapped enough moisture in
the wood to allow the rot to get a foothold.
>
> The dry rot won't be visible on the surface of the floorboards, but when you
> take them up, you'll see white 'roots' growing in every direction, over the
> underside of the floorboards, joists, backs of skirtings and architraves,
> door frames etc, and the longer you wait, the further it's spreading.
> If this is a downstairs bathroom, the rot will be spreading to the first
> floor joists and upwards (it can go through and along brickwork joints for
> several metres without the requirement of timber) if it's a 1st floor
> bathroom, the rot will be spreading both upwards and downwards.
>
> It starts off in wet timber but soon spreads to normal, dry timber and
> leaves it totally dried out and cracked - it resembles a crocodiles back,
> like a cubic pattern, and you can poke a finger straight through what was
> originally a 8 X 3 timber joist.
Yes. It is scary stuff and not something you want to leave untreated.
Question is where did it get started ?
--
Regards,
Martin Brown