Pressure Treated Deck Boards Rotting

Causes of rot in pressure treated wood.
Pressure treated deck boards rotting. There s no doubt that treated lumber rotting can lead to structural defects that cause decks to collapse. Pressure treated hem fir lumber is incised to increase penetration but often the colored preservative barely soaks in at all as is evident on this piece of blocking. The joists were pressure treated lumber so i was surprised at how badly decayed they were. Because dry rot is a fungus it can spread like a cancer throughout a deck.
The chemicals that are present in the wood react with the nails resulting in oxidation. Treated wood rot has spawned a new category of products to address the three things required to make wood rot. Galvanic rot occurs when galvanized nails or screws are driven into pressure treated lumber. Dry rot is caused by microorganisms that eat the cellulose from the wood leaving it brittle.
This leads to corrosion within the boards. The brown staining visible on the end grain is a sign of rot. If the existing decking is gray weather the new decking with a solution made from 1 cup of baking soda and 1 gallon of warm water. The first is what is called galvanic rot.
If your deck boards are rotting there could be a few explanations to this. On a deck that s going to be directly exposed to rain water can seep into the boards and cause them to swell. This causes the pressure treated wood to decay and soften which then turns into rot. If your deck boards are rotting there could be a few reasons why.
Cut replacement deck boards from matching lumber using a circular saw. But my friend wasn t. Any pressure treated wood rot is usually due to a fungal issue. Deck joists rotting from the top edge down because the deck boards and debris keep them damp for weeks after rain.
The end cut should have been coated with preservative. Moisture and pooling water on decks can lead to rot and decay. While the chemicals in pressure treated lumber prevent rot and ward off insects they don t prevent moisture from seeping into the wood. The fungi that cause this are very small organisms that move into the wood and feed on it over time.
As they dry in the sun they ll shrink. Rinse and let dry. Sometimes these stories make it to the news but my guess is you d have to dig deep into insurance industry records to see the extent of treated lumber structural collapse incidents that are the result of rotting wood. In certain conditions even pressure treated wood can rot and decay.
He sees it all the time. Wood water and the fungi that eats the wood. The first one could be due to what we call galvanic rot. The chemicals in the wood react with the nails causing oxidation.
So he has two rot fighting tips for deck owners and builders.