Dry rot support group

[Flyfisher]

Posh frocks.
http://www.hobbs.co.uk/

And available at three stores in Naarch. You should get out more, Moo. :wink:

 

[worms]

Off topic, perhaps, but I am currently reading a biography of Sir Richard Burton (the Victorian explorer, linguist and ethnographer not the actor). Apparently having been dragged round various properties in Trieste by his wife, Burton (whose taste ran to somewhat racier pleasures) described them as "Dry rot, dry rotter and dry rottest"!

Seemed appropriate to this thread!

 

[Michelle73]

Still waiting for quotes to come in, haven't got round to buying a wire brush either so came in from work and decided to take the Dyson to the wall and ceiling....evil spider web looking rot sucked up an gone...had smile on my face and then the heavens opened
Obviously I am to blame and should've left well alone and gone shopping instead as advised.
Dog has been banished to sleep on the stairs for the night while I use her bed to catch surprisingly large volumes of rain water from hitting the wooden floorboards beneath leaking rooflight. Wonder what new nightmares I'll have tonight...sigh....pour large glass of wine and breathe....

 

[JoceAndChris]

Poor Michelle, what a nightmare. Don't blame yourself, not your fault - any of it.

A big glass of wine is definitely needed.

Those buckets of water in the house to catch leaks are pretty useful though, house plants, washing, cat control.

Hope it gets sorted soon.

 

[Michelle73]

cat control

??!!

 

[JoceAndChris]

I should explain - all sorts of strange cats are trying to move in. Can't think why.

 

[Moo]

Posh frocks.
http://www.hobbs.co.uk/

And available at three stores in Naarch. You should get out more, Moo. :wink:

NW3 Grandad T Shirt £45.00 !!!

Way out of my price range, Fly. I think I'll stick to good old TKMaxx for the foreseeable future.

 

[JoceAndChris]

Mmm, it does seem pretty pointless to spend that sum on an item that will undoubtedly get splattered with paint and wood stain and have its bottom hem used to wipe up OneFill.

TK Max has just got in a shipment of the softest, fluffiest knitwear - I'm stockpiling for winter.

 

[Moo]

Thanks for that, Joce. It just so happens that I'm about to pop down the road to the shops.......

 

[Michelle73]

Wise old men been and gone with their tutting and shaking of heads.
I'll be receiving a quote from them next week which will
a)remove all plaster from the walls,
b)will spray walls with something to kill the Myceleum,
c)will insert chemical rods into wall from outside,
d)will not be allowed back into house for 48 hours after spraying though the chemicals aren't really that bad..,
e)will remove half of the flat roof and replace felt and
f)replace the ceiling joist which has fallen to bits.
g)replace kitchen window and frame which I agree really are beyond repair
Advice given for free
I should switch off my dehumidifier as I'm just throwing good money after bad.
The 'Cancer' must be contained and can't be killed, condensation alone could cause it to come back.

Lets take some guesses as to how much we think this quote is going to be.....

 

[Stephen]

Matt will no doubt have a view and his comments should be given more weight than anyone else here.

For what it is worth my views are:

a)remove all plaster from the walls,
OK if there is some evidence of timbers embedded in wall or spread of the rot to areas where there are vulnerable timbers. Otherwise this could be a bit excessive.

b)will spray walls with something to kill the Myceleum,
Why? Brush off and remove yes, but no need for checmicals. The only situation where I believe chemicals might help is when there are timbers that must remain (or new timbers installed) and for a period the area/wall may remain wet (while drying out) and the timbers need a bit of temporary help in protection against the rot germinating before the areas has dried out.

c)will insert chemical rods into wall from outside,
Why? See above comments.

d)will not be allowed back into house for 48 hours after spraying though the chemicals aren't really that bad..,
Hmmm .......

e)will remove half of the flat roof and replace felt and
This and associated works to prevent ongoing water ingress, etc are probably the most important works mentioned in this list.

f)replace the ceiling joist which has fallen to bits.
Again - sensible to repair damaged areas.

g)replace kitchen window and frame which I agree really are beyond repair
Again - very sensible as this seems to be a source of water ingress. Make sure you deal with all and any areas of water ingress.

Advice given for free
Hmmm ............

I should switch off my dehumidifier as I'm just throwing good money after bad.
Depends. If they simply store water in the unit you are not really getting rid of the water. If they discharge externally they could be doing some good.

The 'Cancer' must be contained and can't be killed, condensation alone could cause it to come back.
It will die out if it is starved of water and nutrients that it needs to survive. Any source of water in future could trigger an outbreak, but if the works you undertake now minimise the risk of water ingress and/or serious condensation you should not be at any significant risk of a future outbreak.

Stephen

 

[worms]

If they simply store water in the unit you are not really getting rid of the water. If they discharge externally they could be doing some good.

:?
Even if it doesn't have a permanent discharge pipe, you still empty the water, taken from the air, down the drain...

 

[Flyfisher]

I'm certainly no expert but my instincts agree with Stephen's post. I certainly don't like the idea of splashing around anything that would require me to vacate the place for two days. FWIW it seems that water is the problem; get rid of that (via all the sensible-sounding repairs mentioned) and the problem should go away without all that chemical warfare. After all, if dry houses could be attacked by such organisms the housing stock would be overrun with the stuff.

 

[Michelle73]

Picture of the same wall, exposed birck side was t&g - t'other side is new plaster.
Contractor guy wants to remove all plaster from floor to ceiling on all walls shown.
There are 2 bits of embeded timber so does this mean it is necessary to apply some chemical although wall will be watertight once leaky windows are replaced and doesn't feel damp at all right now? I need to ask these questions that may sound silly to you but I have one set of joiners who will replace windows, joist and roof and thats it then on the other hand is a firm who want to remove everything including me, my family, dog, ducks and fish!

 

[JoceAndChris]

Poor Michelle, I think you need another big glass of wine!

I know absolutely nothing about dry rot but I do know that when a company can put fear in your heart, play on your ignorance, smash up your house and rebuild it and charge you a premium for the experience they'll do it.

Hopefully Matt will be along shortly to advise more specifically.

 

[Michelle73]

Thanks for the support Joce. No wine tonight but a fish finger sandwich & mug of tea will be along shortly
Are you any closer to finding out the reason for the cat invasion? Could they be attracted by your Chickens or their feed?

 

[JoceAndChris]

I think they smell Muggins who'll give the food off her plate to any old cat who passes by...

I meant to say above that only unscrupulous companies would do that to you, there are of course lovely people out there who tell the truth - it's just so hard to find them! And truth is often so much a matter of opinion anyway. I'm sure there are damp injection men who genuinely believe their product is good, and perhaps these people really believe that stripping out your house in the manner you describe is the best thing for it. But, with everything, I'd try the more conservative repair - and if that didn't work after a year or so, move on to more desperate remedies.

Enjoy your fish fingers - yum!

 

[Matt Green]

Picture of the same wall, exposed birck side was t&g - t'other side is new plaster.
Contractor guy wants to remove all plaster from floor to ceiling on all walls shown.
There are 2 bits of embeded timber-

Two bits. That's no worth stripping the walls of plaster for, it's overkill. The ONLY reason to use chemical treatment to kill dry rot is if you cannot deal with either the water of the timber. You can deal with the water: you know where it's coming from and what you need to do to fix it.

I need to ask these questions that may sound silly to you but I have one set of joiners who will replace windows, joist and roof and thats it

Use them. Make sure they isolate all new timber from the surrounding masonry, it will take a while for it to dry.

then on the other hand is a firm who want to remove everything including me, my family, dog, ducks and fish!

Anyone who says stuff like "The 'Cancer' must be contained and can't be killed, condensation alone could cause it to come back." doesn't know what they are dealing with and shouldn't be anywhere near your house. It's really, really easy to kill dry rot and as long as there is no timber, there is nothing for the fungus to eat while te walls dry. Air moisture loading in a sealed room at 100% RH results in a timber moisture content of 23% in softwood. This is towards the lower limit for dry rot growth, spore germination requires >30% moisture content. Once the masonry has dried, the fungus will die unless you hermetically seal the area.

I'm not a massive fan of dehumidifiers, but they are part of the solution rather than the problem. In this case, it's not making the wall any wetter is it. Empty it regularly and for better effect cover the wall and the dehumidifier in a tarpaulin to stop you pulling the water from all the air in th eroom/house, just from the area you want to dry. Cold air blowers pointed at the affected walls work better at drying them (from limited experience, it's certinly easier to misuse a dehumidifier or not get the right results).

Matt

-edited for spelling and grammar, crushing headache earlier.

 

[Michelle73]

Its like a soothing balm....calm, sensible advice that I can understand and agree with. Thank you Matt

Yesterday I asked the wise, tutting old man ''Could you explain why you need to remove the plaster please?'' Response...''you just think I'm trying to rip you off''.....you said it not me!!

The calm, sensible joiners are returning tomorrow with a sensible roofer and I will ask them to crack on as soon as they can unload their tools.

Thanks to PPUK members I have dodged at least 2 rotten quotes, avoided chemical warfare and am likely to come out t'other end with a smile

 

[Michelle73]

Dry Rot update :
T'other half has been up a ladder in a fetching white all in one suit, with goggles and mask.
Pulled down half of the tongue & groove ceiling and found...nothing...No mushroom, no wet timber, no rot strands.

Looked down instead and pulled off skirting board from interior wall and found lots more red dust spores, removed skirting board from adjoining external wall and found foul smelling fungus Ughhgh...

Well i was just about to post some pictures but was called back into the room where i was shown more horrible beasties living in the roof above the bay window.

I'll be bundling myself and child into the car quite soon and doing a runner i think!!