Dry Rot: Is It Hidden Behind Your Siding?

Many Bartow homes with siding are deceptively beautiful. A durable, sided home can often hide ugly, insidious dry rot in the home’s wood structure. Here are some things to know about rotting wood that’s hiding behind siding:

What Is Dry Rot?

Actually, it’s the opposite of what it sounds like—as dry rot problems don’t happen when wood is dry. Instead, they happen when wood gets wet—and the moisture allows for fungus to eat away at the wood. So, when the wood structure becomes moist, either due to poor installation of the siding or an issue inside the home, the rotting process begins. Left unchecked, a home can become unstable, depending on which part of the wood structure is rotting.

Finding Rotted Wood

Get a professional to help assess the condition of the home’s wood structure. Wood rot is an issue in homes that aren’t protected by roof overhangs as well as those that don’t have a comprehensive gutter system. For example, a home may be prone to rot if a portion of it is continuously exposed to water (in places where the gutters are damaged or flashing is missing).

Fixing the Problem

If a contractor finds rotted wood, the problem will need to be fixed quickly. The process usually involves these steps:

• Expose the wood by removing the siding and water barrier (if there is one)
• Replace the rotted wood with new wood. The contractor will cut away damaged wood or replace portions that are integral to the structure.
• Treat the remaining wood that isn’t damaged, yet looks like it was exposed in some way to the fungus that caused the dry rot.
• Properly dispose of the damaged wood.
• Reinstalling the siding with the proper water-resistant barrier underneath it.

Even though vinyl siding is durable, it isn’t immune to water intrusion. Vinyl siding isn’t waterproof; therefore, the home must have a tight water-resistant barrier underneath the siding to prevent water problems such as dry rot. Get in touch with Findlay Roofing today to schedule a free home consultation and talk to them about the home’s susceptibility to dry rot.

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