Subject: Front porch Rot
Date: Thursday, August 27, 2020
Howdy Folks The first two pictures are of the second piller and porch floor 2x6. The 2x6 is rotted all the way through as you get closer to the porch piller. The knife blade is 2 &1/4 inches long. The third picture is at the front steps as you walk up onto the the front porch.
I hope the pictures help.
John
John,
They definitely help. In most cases, I like to dig out any really crumbly material. For this repair, though, I think I would leave everything, and treat it in place. It will take a little longer to cure, but should make for an easier repair. I would take a 3/16″–1/4″ drill bit, and drill holes, angled at least slightly down, about 1-2 inches apart, throughout the rot. Try not to drill all the way through any of the wood. Test what comes out of the drill bit, especially from the middle, for moisture. If it is damp, you will want to dry the wood out first. Either by preventing new moisture, and letting it air dry, or flooding the wood with denatured alcohol or acetone. I prefer acetone.
Once dry, the wood needs to be soaked with S-1 Sealer. Be aware that in doing this, there will almost certainly be drips coming out. Please protect anything below from this. Slow application can achieve full saturation with less run off of the S-1. This will need 1–2 weeks to dry.
The next step will be to fill up the drill holes, and any internal cracks, with General Purpose Epoxy. There are three temperature formulas, so use whatever is appropriate to the temps you are applying in. This should be dry within 1–2 days. The GP Epoxy can be thickened with sawdust or some other thickener to be used as a paste or putty filler. Or we sell pre-made paste and putty. The Sculpwood Paste or Sculpwood Putty.
Once the filling has been done, you can sand and paint. S-1 Sealer is a great primer under any paint.
Doc
