Mold and Mildew Effects on Wood?
Mold and Mildew Effects on Wood?
(OP)
Are there structural effects on untreated wood by mold and mildew?
Is there an effective means to remove the growths?
Is there an effective means to remove the growths?






RE: Mold and Mildew Effects on Wood?
Never, but never question engineer's judgement
RE: Mold and Mildew Effects on Wood?
The conditions that allow mold growth (high moisture, food supply (the wood))will cause wood to deteriorate at the cellular level. This will, obviously, affect the structural integrity of the wood.
You can remove the mold/mildew with chlorine bleach, but you need to be sure you have stopped any moisture intrusion or accumulation on the wood, as mold and mildew will return.
Check the vapor drive through the wall. Make sure you don't have a vapor barrier in the wrong place. There are lots of myths considering moisture intrusion, vapor drive and permeance of the materials. Even though theoretically materials may be designed to "breathe" and release moisture accumulations, in reality that doesn't work well at all. If water gets into a wall cavity, there is nothing that will drive it back out in any reasonable time frame. It stays and does huge amounts of damage.
RE: Mold and Mildew Effects on Wood?
Other than feeling obvious softness in the wood when probed, what other ways are there to access if the organisms are destroying the material?
RE: Mold and Mildew Effects on Wood?
If you are showing any white staining in a black background, you probably need to look at replacing the member. That's reasonably advanced.
RE: Mold and Mildew Effects on Wood?
As noted above, the conditions for mold and mildew is the same to produce 'dry rot', or more correctly brown rot. Moisture conditions upwards of 20% will cause this.
The problem with dry rot is that by the time it is noticed, you may have lost 20-25% of the material strength.
Dik
RE: Mold and Mildew Effects on Wood?
Ripping out the bad wood, mildewed inside walls and sheetrock, loss of use of building, allergies and lawsuits due to "loss of diligence in protecting the building from water" .... Those will be expenses coming back across your desk.
In the long run, you can't afford to just paint over the bad wood.
RE: Mold and Mildew Effects on Wood?
RE: Mold and Mildew Effects on Wood?
http://www.wbdg.org/ccb/NAVFAC/OPER/mo111_1.pdf
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RE: Mold and Mildew Effects on Wood?
If it is structure, you have to provide temporary support if required. It is then a matter of reinforcing the damage in a manner that is cosmetically acceptable.
Reinforcing can be done with RFP, epoxied steel dowels, etc.
Dik
RE: Mold and Mildew Effects on Wood?
RE: Mold and Mildew Effects on Wood?
Dik
RE: Mold and Mildew Effects on Wood?
Photo #1 Water damage from roof leaks resulted over time in the growth of the "mushrooms" in this picture. The top cord member is a 8x6 and the diagonal is a 8x4 and the large mushroom in the middle is the size of a man's fist!
Photo #2 Shows a technitian using a Resitograph to NDT check the interior integrity of a heavy timber truss member. Basically it is an ordinary hand drill attached to a roll-chart recorder. As the long thin drill bit goes into the wood, the chart recorder graphs the drill resistance which gives a visual printout of the wood condition for the full thickness of the member. Areas of dry-rot have less resistance than solid wood, so the graph line drops.
RE: Mold and Mildew Effects on Wood?
RE: Mold and Mildew Effects on Wood?
RE: Mold and Mildew Effects on Wood?
Mike McCann
MMC Engineering