rotton wood

[thirteen]

My dad will get this when he gets back but I have an out building that was built 30 years ago ?? and they never put any support except for the dirt for the back part of the storage building to sit on.  The joists 2X6 sit on the ground.  I am digging it out for a foundation but the wood is rotton about 12 inches under the floor and about 4 inches up. I have about 12 inchs of dirt before hitting solid rock. I am using treated lumber for the replacement boards.

I am cutting out most of it and glueing and nailing new wood along each side of the rotted pieces. Once started is there any recomended way you guys would recomend to stop the wood from rotting more.  I would just like some ideas. Thanks Steven  

[vawtman]

maybe you could dig out the 12in of dirt and replce with gravel.Make sure everything slopes away from the structure.

[kitno455]

as long as there are no termites in it, once it dries out, the rotting will stop, as it is basically a microbial/fungal action that requires water. once started, the termites dont care if its dry, they go back into the ground when they get dehydrated.

put a layer of galv metal flashing on top of the block foundation if you are likely to have moisture wicking up thru the block.

its best to cut/break away the worst of it before you sister the treated lumber up, just so you can see solid areas to use screws, and see bugs/continuing damage if it gets wet again later.

allan

[Scotth]

I have restored a couple wooden cruisers (boats) and am working on a house with the same rot problems,all due to some donkey neglecting to install vents in the crawlspace.Anyway,you have to remove all the rot you can and make sure there is no moisture contacting untreated wood,otherwise it'll just keep rotting.There is a product that you can get in the States,the name which escapes me,that will soak into the rotton wood and cure rock-hard.I think your best bet would be cutting out all the rot,maybe treating the untreated wood with some Jasco copper clear or similar,then sistering some new joists to what's left of the old ones with lots of screws and construction adhesive.

Good luck,

 Scotth

[electrondady1]

i'm doing the same thing to a little cabin (10x12)

it was on blocks, two high, but over 60 years sunk into the ground till the joists were on the sand.

ive jacked it up and am in the process of diging it out.for a basement.

replaced all the rotten stuff and scabbed on new wood were required.

i was thinking of treating the old wood with something to stop the carpenter ants.

will this copper stuff work?

[srimes]

check this out:

Chemotherapy for Rot

http://www.angelfire.com/nc3/davecarnell/rot.html#Top

It's from a boatbuilding perspective.  Hope this helps.

Sean

[Scotth]

Im not an expert by any means,but if you check out the Jasco website there are full descriptions of all their products that should help you out.I've had good luck pickling old mahogany boats with copper napthate based products.Probably a tad on the carcinogenic side (maybe not?),but so is the air we breath so what the heck.I think as long as you let it soak in good and top coat the treated wood with something the hazards are minimal.As far as the carpenter ants,we're battling them yearly and I'd love to hear from someone who can tell me how to execute the little buggers.I've heard that if there is the slightest bit of damp or rotton wood in your dwelling,you won't be able to get rid of them-period.

[jmk]

  The only way to get rid of ants and termites is to fix the water problem. They need a certain amount of moister to live in. In the fall they swarm as flying insects. This is nothing to panic about even if they get into the house. I just let the birds have a feast, and sometimes they make it through the door wall so I just vacuumed them up! Going crazy with Raid or chemicals will just cause bad odors stains or more damage to the house.

 I build houses and we put foam sill seal on the concrete first. Then a 2 by 6 on the flat. Then set the floor on top. The bond or rim board has to be covered with plastic, and now they make us lay the brick right on top of the plastic as it folds a crossed the concrete brick ledge.  This seems crazy to me because the brick wont be bonded to the foundation. The plastic on the rim board or bond as they call it here in Michigan is a great way to keep moisture from getting on the rotten boards you speak of. Just make sure you tuck the top of it behind the wall sheathing or house wrap so it sheds the water as it comes down the wall.    

[electrondady1]

my little cabin was always a favorite place for ants.

i used to store some of my guitars in there .

one winter i needed a fretless base to to a gig.

i brought it into the house to warm up and change strings

when i opened the case i didcovered several hundred carpenter ants wintering over inside.

[thirteen]

thanks good idea i'll use it

[thirteen]

THANKS FOR THE INFO

[icicle]

to keep bugs away from the wood is to pour old motor oil around the post then refill the hole

[Experimental]

  The product used for "saturating" rotten wood, is called "Get Rot" and often used in boats !!

   The only real way to do rotten wood, is to remove it, but "Get Rot" does help in instances where removal is not possiable!!

    This product, is actually just a thin epoxy resin, used to saturate the old wood, but the wood must be completely dry to work effectivly and usually holes are drilled into the wood, then the get rot is forced into the holes with a "squeez bottle", saturating the old wood..

   Termites and carpenter ants are quite different from rot but both need moisture, insects are pretty easy to get rid of , by saturating the wood with a product containing Cuprous oxide, this being the green coating..

   There used to be a product called "Termin-8" and another called "Cuprinol" but I,m not sure if either product is still available, as the EPA has outlawed many of these products..

    Good luck with your indevour, Bill H...

[shagy]

I was told by a former exterminator that if you spray your wood at the foundation with a mixture of laundry detergent it will kill the termites since they have to go through it to get to the ground

[GeeMac]

Yikes!! I hope they weren't expensive guitars. I put all the violins and guitars I make, up high so ants and cat won't get to them.

[framistan]

I have had good success getting rid of carpenter ants

by placing some of those ANT-RID baits.. They are made

to get rid  of REGULAR ants but I think  all ants are

attracted to them because they have some kind of sweet

tasting poisonous food in them.  I noticed my carpenter

ants were very attracted to fruity sugary things left

in my sink.  I had many many of the LARGE carpenter ants

walking around my house for 5 years. Visitors thought we

had roaches... but we didnt.   I didn't know what to do.

 Finally,  I just put out some of those regular ant-baits

around various cabinets and where they seem to often be.

What the ants do is bring it back to their nest and feed

it to all the other ants.  It only costed a few bucks but

it took a few months to work.  I havent seen any more of

them for about a year now. I think any of those kind of

plastic baits would work that are made for regular ants.

... such as the one called "terro-ant".  The little plastic

case they come in help keep pets safe but I placed them

where the ants could go and my pets couldn't. Hope this

helps.