Water Ingress

[IdoraKeeper]

Well, naturally we all need something to do as the days shorten up and Idora has provided me with a challenge. I have discovered some dry rot in the aft end of the dog house and the cockpit combing. I grabbed the necessary tools and started the demolition. I have discovered that water has wicked into the end grain of several pieces and the area around the rot is wet internally. Naturally I cannot splice or scarf in replacement wood till I can get things dried up. I decided to fabricate a boat cover that should help. Any ideas on speeding up the drying out?

Todd

[zeehag]

i found tarping and plastic to be a good method, although not pretty. i tarped and plasticked my formosa and made sure wind and air could get to the wood part in question. i dont know how long it took to dry, as i ran away from home for a while, but when i was ready to address the problem with replacement wood and supplies, the area was ready to fix.
make sure there is no way for condensation to aggravate matters...

[vintageray]

If the wood is wicking water and wet internally you probably need to replace a little more than what you're seeing as rotten. If it's still pretty solid you might save it with CPES. The PO of my boat replaced a lot of the deck, but only the soft areas. Now, after six years, the rot has progressed in the places that weren't replaced. It's been explained to me that it's a kind of life form and you need to be pretty aggressive in killing it. I hate the comparison, but it's sort of like cancer in humans. I prefer to think of it as more like rust in metal. I'm sure you know what type of wood to use for your repairs and have a source. Also to eliiminate the source of water gettting to the wood. I'm doubtful of the accuracy of your diagnosis of, "dry rot".
Anyhow, I'm fighting the same battle and having to deconstruct a lot more than I'd like.
Living the dream.