Wood rot / fungus help please

[Me!]

Several of my window frames have started to grow what I think is some sort of fungus. On each of the frames where it occurs, it is in a similar bottom corner to the one in this picture -



The wood behind this one is completely rotten and will have to be cut out and replaced, but does anybody know what the rot is please and is there anything I can treat the sound wood with to stop it spreading?

Any help is much appreciated. I have about half a dozen frames like this now, and I really don't want any more to get infected.

 

[Schoolmarm]

Is that secondary double glazing to the right of the pic?

Can't help with fungus sorry, we need expert help QUICKLY!!!

 

[Lime]

Draughty windows can dry themselves out when made wet whereas enclosed windows cannot.
This is wet rot fed by condensation and damp in the air trapped between the double glazing.
It is a problem that any sort of extra insulation method can cause if vapour membranes and/or seals are not used.
This you can see, but it can happen in the trapped air space behind and between any type of insulation.
There is no simple solution if the window allows water in and/or the inner pane of glass allows damp air from the room into the air space.
Both have to be stopped and the air has to be dry.

 

[middi]

As Lime has said, water ingress( or exess moisture) and nowhere to go once trapped. Presumably it is an Oak frame, there are plenty oak frames totally exposed to the elements for hundreds of years an they show no sign of wet fungus growths because they are exposed to circulating air and fast drying cycles.

This sympthom never exists on internal or external oak frames where infills, walls or masonarry walls are built solely out of lime mortars and exposed to air.
Repair frames as required and try to emulate the above, if kept well ventilated you will have no more problems.

 

[Penners]

As Middi and Lime have said, the answer to this problem is fresh air. You need to keep the window frame ventilated. Personally, I would cut away any really rotten wood, and then allow the area to dry out thoroughly. If a fair bit of repair is needed, you'll have to make a decision as to whether you need to take out the window frame, in order to set in new wood.

 

[Xylophile]

That's a fruiting body of Donkioporia expansa, a white rot that specialises in attacking oak.

Looks like it's being caused by either water running around the windows due to a poor fit or condensation running to the bottom of the frames. Either way you need to dry the timber out and stop it getting wet again.

 

[Xylophile]

Just moved half-way down the country into a rented place with one remaining wooden sash window. Have convinced the landlord not to replace it on our account: I was online looking for like-minded individuals.

I know 'things' about 'stuff', so I'll chip in when I get the chance.

 

[MdB]

I'm sorry, do we know each other? This seems like a nice forum. Very friendly. .

;-)

 

[middi]

:wink: :wink: :wink: " donkiaporia expansa !!!! " :wink: :wink: :wink: of course it is, what is the matter with all of you.

( just as well we have been rescued again ). Thanks

 

[DaveBrigg]

xylophile - 'Insects or fungi that live, thrive, or grow in or on wood'. Bearing in mind that 'xylo' means wood, those who are scared into replacing wooden frames with PVC could be described as xylophobic, whilst Biff is a xylopolist. Add the Greek word for sound - 'phone' and you get the instrument with more than its fair share of attention in children's alphabet books.

 

[Me!]

Thank you all for the information.

To answer the earlier question, yes, that is secondary double glazing on that window. Most of the other frames that are infected also have similar secondary glazing but there is certainly one badly infected one that is only single glazed. One other possible factor that has just occurred to me is that all the infected frames are on the south-facing wall of the house. Could it be the extra warmth coupled with the damp that has triggered it just in these frames? The wall certainly is a bit damp, but I don't think it is any worse than the others.

I've been reading about Donkioporia expansa on the www, and found the comments that the mycelium doesn't have "strands". What I would really like to be sure about is does that mean that the hyphae and spores don't spread beyond what I can see as infected? I'd like to know that I've cut out enough wood when I do the repairs that I'm not leaving myself with a recurring problem. I'm worried that with residual spores, that even mild or localised damp in the future may trigger another attack?

 

[DaveBrigg]

Is it edible?

 

[Xylophile]

I'm worried that with residual spores, that even mild or localised damp in the future may trigger another attack?

It's a mushroom: it needs water. A spore will not germinate unless the moisture content of the wood is about 30%. In a lived-in building oak should be about 12%.

How long has the fungus been there? If no one removes the fruiting bodies they will stay there for a very long while. Those waindow frames are getting wetter than the others (or have got wetter in the past). Check the sills don't run backwards?

 

[Penners]

Bearing in mind that 'xylo' means wood, those who are scared into replacing wooden frames with PVC could be described as xylophobic, whilst Biff is a xylopolist.

Then may I describe myself as a xylophiliac?

 

[Goodboy]

If the frames are softwood then it isn't Donkioporia expansa.

 

[Me!]

Thank you for all the information. 30% moisture content obviously indicates a serious problem somewhere that I need to fix. I've found that these frames are only from the late 1960's or early 1970's, and I think the combination of bad design, poor quality timber and a previous owner who tried to grow more plants than Kew gardens up that wall have all contributed.

Time to sharpen up my chisels ......

 

[Schoolmarm]

So do you know what timber they are?

 

[Penners]

I have a knack of wrongly identifying wood types on photos in this forum, but I would bet as much as 10p that it's softwood with some sort of woodgrain finish on it.

OK Biff or middi - fire away.

 

[Me!]

I would bet as much as 10p that it's softwood with some sort of woodgrain finish on it.

Got it in one!

I hope that doesn't change the diagnosis. Despite being called an oak-rot fungus, I've read several articles that say it does also attack softwood.