The Science of Dry Rot: Why It Spreads and How We Remediate It
Living in the Pacific Northwest, moisture is a constant. But rainwater isn’t the ultimate enemy—it’s the biological response to it. When water breaches your home, it wakes up *Serpula lacrymans*, commonly known as dry rot. This isn’t just “wet wood”; it’s an aggressive fungal infection that eats timber framing from the inside out.
By the time you see a mushroom or crumbled wood, the damage is likely deep within your walls, affecting structural load-bearing capacity. Dry rot destroys wood’s strength, causing “Cubical Fracture” where studs crumble to dust.
Perhaps its most terrifying “superpower” is creating its own water through hydrolysis and growing root-like *rhizomorphs*. These strands transport moisture to dry timber, penetrating masonry and insulation, allowing the infection to spread meters beyond the initial leak.
Visible signs are just the “tip of the iceberg.” Microscopic hyphae extend far beyond visible decay, meaning a simple patch will only leave the problem to fester. Cutting into dry rot without proper remediation can even trigger it to spread more aggressively. Professional remediation involves removing wood 24 to 39 inches beyond the last visible sign and sterilizing the structure with borate-based fungicides. Don’t settle for a surface-level patch; your home requires a comprehensive building envelope inspection.
