tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588408373722916436.post6012456140105291249..comments2024-03-25T23:53:09.151-07:00Comments on Surveying Property: Dry Rot – An ‘Intelligent’ Fungus requiring intelligent diagnosisGary O'Neillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15686620694822791314noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588408373722916436.post-63566339884555973502015-04-13T11:32:14.161-07:002015-04-13T11:32:14.161-07:00Stop all water sources well you better make the bu...Stop all water sources well you better make the building air tight, Dry rot can live of moisture and no matter how hard you try to banish it from a building you cannot eradicate it fully. Don't forget under a floor void the earth can be damp from the ground water.<br /><br />I am hands on and been doing this work for over 18 years now and dry rot is the toughest problem to eradicate in a building.<br />The stuff does not need a lot of water to survive and one of the main ways to stop it is ventilation more than anything.<br />I personally go over the top when treating it as I have seen other contractors fail because they think the magic spray cures all, yes you have to ensure the conditions don't exist for the dry rot to thrive, but you have to do it in a way that ensures no further outbreaks can happen.<br /><br />Don't forget dry rot can live of condensation as a water source, I have seen it growing on wall paper so it must have been absorbing the condensation.<br /><br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588408373722916436.post-293422805633054542014-05-01T07:29:06.292-07:002014-05-01T07:29:06.292-07:00Hi Gary,
On the whole a very good article and tha...Hi Gary,<br /><br />On the whole a very good article and thank you for using my little video, I am glad you like it.<br /><br />I'd say though, that the extent to which sound timbers should be removed is excessive and really, providing care is taken in diagnosis, including tracing the full extent, sound timber should be left in place and just treated topically.<br /><br />Tom,<br /><br />Whilst a purist will say 'just dry out the building and the rot will die', in practice that approach is rarely acceptable in every day situations IMHO.<br /><br />A home buyer, property developer or estate manager will usually want the dry rot damage rectified and will need some sort of guarantee that the problem will not come back any time soon. Dry rot stores a considerable amount of energy in it's strands and mycelium and once it is stressed, by having it's head cut off and the gutter fixed, it doesn't just give up the ghost immediately. During this period more growth will sprout from the walls and the odd spectacular fruiting body may emerge also. This impacts on the tenant, owner or 'god forbid' the buyer and all hell is let loose.<br /><br />Responsible application of safe and proven chemicals is a wise and proper thing to do and has it's place. Mass irrigation with hundreds of liters of water based biocides doesn't.<br /><br />All in all a good article Gary and, well done for taking the time and effort to put your knowledge on line for others.<br /><br />Cheers<br /><br />Bryan<br /><br /><br />Dry Rothttp://www.preservationexpert.co.uk/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588408373722916436.post-15402907167043238132014-05-01T00:31:13.561-07:002014-05-01T00:31:13.561-07:00I agree with Tom 100%I agree with Tom 100%Rob Anslownoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588408373722916436.post-86659615700951731392014-04-29T08:53:18.479-07:002014-04-29T08:53:18.479-07:00Thanks for the article which provides a good insig...Thanks for the article which provides a good insight into the key considerations regarding dry rot. If I may be so bold as to contend your comments regarding remedial action. From my experience of dealing with dry rot I have come to the absolute conclusion that as long as conditions are made impossible fir dry rot to exist then it will not. This may seem silly but I refer to your comment above about the need to apply chemicals in buildings. The dry rot always needs water to survive. Remove all water sources and the dry rot will not survive. For example, repair all leaking gutters/roof parts and the dry rot will not return. The remedial action that is needed is to firstly prevent all moist timber sources, then cut out and replace damaged timber and then ensure the building parts are sufficiently dried out. Adding chemicals means you are adding more water to the building fabric (bad), and then spraying chemicals everywhere (bad). If chemicals are sprayed everywhere, and subsequently the building is fully repaired and all moisture sources rectified then the chemicals serve no useful purpose as it is impossible for dry rot to exist.Tom Lord (MRICS)http://wsp.senoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7588408373722916436.post-60399324053977696552014-04-29T06:18:03.862-07:002014-04-29T06:18:03.862-07:00Excellent article and very informative.Excellent article and very informative.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com