Dry Rot Help

[Hmmmm]

We are a terrace and our neighbours noticed some mould breaking there skirting board and lifted a floorboard to find what we think is dry rot. We have lifted ours and found the same.

We discovered their airbrick was blocked and have opened it now and both have dehumidifers on.

We have got some wuotes but will take at least a week for someone to come out.

My question is do i clean it off or not?
If i clean it am i just spreading the spores around my house? Or should i clean it in the meantime to try and stop the growth?

Cant seem to find any advice on how to handle it while you wait for professional to review.

Thanks for your help!!

 

[Matt Green]

My question is do i clean it off or not?
If i clean it am i just spreading the spores around my house? Or should i clean it in the meantime to try and stop the growth?

That does look like dry rot (Serpula lacrymans). I would clean it off, but more importantly, it looks like it has spread across the sub-site (earth in the sub-floor void) and I would certainly remove that. It doesn't seem to have damaged the timbers much, take the mycelium (white strands) off with a scraper and watch for fruiting bodies in the next few days. A scraper and wire brush will get it off the brickwork.

A blocked airbrick won't start a dry rot outbreak- what's the source of freshwater? Downpipe? Washing machine leak? Gutter overflow? Pipe leak? -and has it been fixed?

A dehumidifier is going to take a lot of water out of the sub-floor void and the earth beneath, a fan would be better unless you can tent the humidifier into the same airspace as the fungus. Getting a fan beneath the floor would be ideal.

We have got some quotes but will take at least a week for someone to come out.

• Do not pay for wall irrigation.
• Do not pay for plaster removal
• A surface spray of fungicide is reasonable here given that it's growing across the sub-site
• Put a hatch in the floor and check beneath periodically
• Remove as much debris from the surface of the sub-site as possible and the top few cm of soil too it you can.

M

 

[Hmmmm]

Thank you!

Is is best to turn the dehumidifier off then? It is filling with water.

We also had a drain pipe that was loose for around 2 months on that exterior wall which is now fixed?

We have lining paper on our walls but I’m also worried this is the same thing…

 

[Stevers]

The crustiness under the lining paper is typical of salts. So, assuming that this is an old house (no DPC, terrace etc.), that timber actually looks more recent. I'm wondering if there have been repairs made in treated timber after a previous outbreak, which might explain why they haven't been attacked.

 

[Matt Green]

Is is best to turn the dehumidifier off then? It is filling with water.

It's probably not doing a lot unless it's pointed directly at it

We also had a drain pipe that was loose for around 2 months on that exterior wall which is now fixed?

That would cause it. The whole area needs to dry out- that is the most effective remedial option at the moment and where all efforts should be directed

We have lining paper on our walls

As @Stevers replied that looks like salt efflorescence and not likely to be connected to the dry rot outbreak.

Do keep us updated.

 

[Hmmmm]

Thank you all.

So just time will dry out that wall?

it’s a good point about that timber being newer.
Us and our neighbours have lived in our houses only for two years and actually it is weird that the floorboards over this area are new and the area in our neighbours house is under a loose floorboard. So maybe this has happened before?

We have surveyors coming next week to see if anything further needs doing?

I’m worried it has spread under the floorboards where we cannot see without taking them all up or is that unlikely?

Thanks all so much for your advice

 

[Hmmmm]

Sorry what is this salts? Is that related to damp? Or is that not an issue