Subject: Wood rot in historic house
Date: Saturday, June 20, 2020
Hi,
Your company was recommended to me as a source of wood filler for water damaged structural wood.
The damaged building is located in the high desert of New Mexico. The damage was caused when a leaky roof soaked into fiberglass insulation. The damage wasn’t discovered until it had progressed. Some damaged wood will be replaced but I’ve been told some can be treated with your product.
The damaged wood is 100 year old pine. What would you recommend?
Kash
Kash,
The first product to apply is the S-1 Sealer. This doesn’t fill in the wood, but does an excellent job of strengthening the wood, so the fillers can make a strong, durable repair.
After the S-1 has time to dry, there are several fillers that are commonly used. General Purpose Epoxy Resin, Sculpwood Paste, and Sculpwood Putty. The main differences between them is the consistency. GP Resin is pourable, like honey. It needs to be used in a contained area, or it will drip out. The Sculpwood Paste is spreadable, good for filling narrow cracks and the like. It will hang on a vertical surface, but not too thick. The Putty can be packed in large quantities, but is hard to get into narrow areas. Use whichever is appropriate. Often, a combination is the most effective. Paste, followed by Putty, for example.
Doc
Would I need to scrape the dry rot off first. I’m enclosed a photo of an area that I want to fix.
Thanks.
Kash
Kash,
It is usually preferable to remove anything that comes away easily. The two exceptions to this are if it is some decorative trim, with an ornate profile that would be difficult to recreate, or if in digging the loose stuff away, you are left with nothing to rebuild with.
That being said, from the picture, it doesn’t look like your rot is bad enough to dig any out. If that is the case, just saturate with the S-1 Sealer.
Doc
