I’m about to treat all the wood in my house. We’ve had a few water leaks over the 15 years we’ve lived here. There are a few old water stains on the beams in the loft. I’ve taken the floorboards up upstairs and there’s a lot of staining on the joists. It’s also a little bit musky. I think the smell is probably a bit of dry rot. Nothing too serious. All the leaks were fixed ages ago. I’ve been recommended this stuff. Any tips or advice appreciated. Thanks
By staining do you mean black mold? If so then you should really stabilise the mold spores first. Something like hydrogen peroxide would work. There are loads of home recipes on the internet to sort black mold. It can lay dormant and also cause health issues.
Musky, or musty? (musky suggests animal activity to me...) A quick look at what the Everbuild Triple Action does would suggest that it will be fine to take care of routine fungal/mould problems. "Wet rot" is something which is dealt with mainly by removing the source of the dampness. "Dry rot" on the other hand is something else. You really don't want that going on in your house! It can spread without moisture once it's got going - you'd see spores building up as red dust and damaged wood that can really crumble to dust. I'd do a bit of research on dry rot, but it doesn't sound to me as if you're likely to have that going on, or you might have put a foot clean through a board by now.
Thanks for replies. We had a big leak under the floor boards about 3 months ago. All fixed and dry now. Since then we’ve had a funny smell in two of the bedrooms. I assume that some sort of water damage occurred somewhere thus causing the smell. There are water marks and white spots on some of the joists. As I’ve just bought such a big tin of the stuff, I’ve decided to treat all the joists. My questions are, am I just about to waste my whole bank holiday weekend doing this ? Has anyone used this product and does it work? Should I seek expert advice ? Thanks
As it's recent water leakage I'd have thought the main thing is to make sure everything is now really dry - maybe consider using a dehumidifier if you still think there are signs of damp. It can be a pain to hide water damage to ceilings; even once they are dry it can take a number of coats of paint to cover stains, although I know there are some special paints available which may make that easier. If the property is modern, then I should think the wood has probably already been treated against insect and fungal attack, but another dose shouldn't hurt?
Air is your friend I had a similar issue which led to a mess of the living room ceiling. It didnt need to be taken down but i did have to drill a few holes to let the water escape. Aside from the cosmetic damage all is fine now How long did you leave th floor boards up once the leak had been cured. Whatever the smell is i think its unlikely to be the joists.
The floor boards were put straight back down after the leak was fixed. I’m redecorating upstairs at the moment and replacing some of the floor boards. So I’m going to leave them up for a few days. RC1 I’m hoping you’re right.
Stopping water ingress is most important, remove the decaying timber and treat the area with a liberal application of ethylene glycol (antifreeze) make sure its not Polyethylene glycol (PEG). It will penetrate paint harmlessly so splash it on. There is no such thing as dry rot, there has to be moisture, food and oxygen for the fungi to live.
Hello. After enduring a life changing experience that nearly bankrupted me at the time, caused by an extensive dry rot fungal attack, following a leaking water main and poor air circulation in the underfloor space, I strongly recommend getting a specialist to take a look while the affected area is revealed. Most specialist companies will provide an initial inspection either free or at a modest price that can then be offset against any treatment cost should it be needed. The advantage of this is that if its OK, you have peace of mind, and if it requires attention the specialist will advise what is needed. Some of the usual indications are: Signs of dry rot include: damaged or decaying timber. damp or musty smell. deep cracks in the timber grain. brittle timber or timber that crumbles in your hand. concentrated patches of orange–brown spore dust. grey strands on timber. fruiting bodies that look like large mushrooms. Good luck and I hope it isn't too serious. Tom. PS. As Recidivist said, I did "put a foot clean through a board", and several in fact!
