I've just found a small leak in my tiled roof, after heavy rain one of the timbers in the loft is damp & the same ceiling area in the back of a fitted wardrobe has signs of some damp, probably over some considerable time. The roof will be fixed ASAP, but i'm more comcerned about the roof timbers & the effects of the damp. Once dried out should i be applying something to preserve the timber/reduce the risk of any rot/kill off any possible fungus, or am i being paranoid?
thanks
DD
timber/reduce
I'm no expert but have had a similar situation recently myself (a major beam had been subject to many months, possibly years of water penetration through a hole in the roof). The beam was significantly softer as a result of the water saturation (not so soft as to be useless but soft enough to be cause of concern).
Anyway, the roof's fixed now and after about 4-5 weeks the beam dried out naturally and you'd never know there'd been a problem - it seems just as solid as all the other beams.
Based on this, and advice given by professional joiners, providing it's now dry and there's plenty airflow around the timber in question I'd just leave it to dry out naturally. I'd be wary about applying any form of preservative at this stage in case it actually inhibited the drying process? As I say, no expert though...
Andy
thanks, i'm going to let it dry out, i just wondered if fungicide would be beneficial. I'll keep an eye on it for any rogue growths.
DD
Let it dry and if ou acre enough, spary on some wood treament gunk. Smells teriible, but a hand sparyer (like the things that cleaing gunk comes in) is good fr getting into corners.
It will help prevent problems later, but it sounds like you got there in time on this one.
To rot, wood needs to be permanently damp. If it dries out periodicially, the fungus all dies off, and thats that.
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