What kind of rot is this?

[lc155]

Hi all.

Took some pieces of 2x2 wood lying around I had in order to cut out noggins when removing an old fireplace hearth that then had a bit of cut chipboard flooring placed down and some framing on top.

I then discovered the end of that wood (I don't know how I missed this) appeared pretty rotted. Initially I presumed that the end had been subject to constant damp and woodworm had gotten in (as you can see), however the presence of very brown-orange dust when I tapped the wood of a surface confused me. Isn't that a key sign of dry rot? I can see zero sign of fungus (ignore the white on the picture, that's old silicone I pulled off, not cotton fungus) and there isn't a strong smell to it either.

I have pictures, but unfortunately I thought to take them *after* I launched the wood out of the window after discovering it, so it got rained on (and thus no more dust). The dust I have pictured has dulled a bit since it got damp with the rain, the original colour was much bolder.

The woodworm infestation appears to be quite old as I couldn't find any larvae. The wood is about 300mm long from the end of the rotted part, so I'm hoping the noggins I made from it don't need to be hauled back up, as it would be a bugger to dismantle it now. I couldn't see any woodworm holes that I recall, and the wood was very solid when cutting and screwing it down in between the joists.

Am I fine or maybe buggered?

 

[Koolpc]

Woodworm i would say...

 

[StephenStephen]

The dust is woodworm poo

 

[lc155]

The dust is woodworm poo

I always thought that dust was supposed to be lightly coloured like sawdust, and not a very rust coloured brown.

 

[Koolpc]

I always thought that dust was supposed to be lightly coloured like sawdust, and not a very rust coloured brown.

Depends on the wood..

 

[lc155]

Depends on the wood..

This piece of wood is just a standard off the shelf untreated softwood as far as I know.

 

[conny]

Even without the dust, the small holes are a tell-tale signature of woodworm that has left the wood.
Inside of the wood will be channels/tunnels that have severely weakened it's structure.
There may even be fresh grubs still in there chomping away at any remaining good stuff.
If you intend to keep the bulk of the wood, (because it looks sound), you will need to cut it right back past the last indication of infestation and thoroughly treat it with woodworm killer. Also treat any surround areas with WW killer to make sure.
Personally, I'd get shut of the whole lot and replace with treated new wood. The old stuff should really be burnt on a bonfire/brazier.

 

[lc155]

Even without the dust, the small holes are a tell-tale signature of woodworm that has left the wood.
Inside of the wood will be channels/tunnels that have severely weakened it's structure.
There may even be fresh grubs still in there chomping away at any remaining good stuff.
If you intend to keep the bulk of the wood, (because it looks sound), you will need to cut it right back past the last indication of infestation and thoroughly treat it with woodworm killer. Also treat any surround areas with WW killer to make sure.
Personally, I'd get shut of the whole lot and replace with treated new wood. The old stuff should really be burnt on a bonfire/brazier.

Funny you say that, as I have good and bad news.

Bad news is, I took a saw to the wood and cut into it. Yep, it is a live infestation, as I could see the little bastards. They looked a bit like giant corn lice, and some googling tells me that they're very likely to be Wood Boring Weevils, meaning the bottom of the wood was likely damp/rotting and they attacked it.

The bulk of the infestation appears to be in the corner pictured, but I did find one or two tunnels all the way to near the end of where I cut fresh wood from (!), but nothing beyond there it seems.

The good news is, apparently there's no treatment needed for Wood Boring Weevils, they simply won't infest dry wood. So it is either likely that they didn't reach the dry, sound parts I used, or if one or two of them did, they will just leave now that the wood will be dried out under the floor.

It doesn't seem worth ripping everything up for Weevils as far as I can see?

 

[Koolpc]

I would still treat the good wood

 

[StephenStephen]

I'm no expert, this is what I've always used - it's a lot less toxic than other treatments: https://www.boron.org.uk/boron_in_water.htm