Treating leak affected joist ends

[Pickwickpick]

Went to quote on a job last night where a bath was fitted few years back with no frame and only 3 of the metal feet actually connecting to the floor. Needless to say it's not been stable and the silicone seal around the edge failed and has been slow leaking water at good couple of years.

The bathroom is not in the best of states and floor board adjacent to the wall under the bath is missing meaning I could see 2 of the joist ends and they were sodden and it looks from the bit of access I have with bath still in place, like the very early stages of wet rot might have started.

I think the safest bet is to treat with something along the lines of Ronseal wet rot treatment/hardener either way to make sure there isn't a problem brewing under there once I reboard and sort the bath out.

Can you guys recommend any specific products to treat them or should the ronseal do the trick?

 

[Ric2013]

I suppose a hardener will stop the wood flaking apart but my feeling is that the rot will stop once the wood stops getting wet so chemical treatment is not necessary. If I understand correctly, the point of a hardener is to help filler have something resonably solid to adjere [EDIT adhere] to before painting.
If the joists are severely weakened, though, then they need cutting out and replacing, or, more likely, reinforcing in some way.

 

[Pickwickpick]

Yep agree the hardener side of it is of no use in the case, it's too get a sound solid surface for wood filler when dealing with e.g. rotten window frames. I always assumed that as well as hardening it also had chemicals to halt any further spread of rot, but could be wrong on that.

 

[Welder]

Went to quote on a job last night where a bath was fitted few years back with no frame and only 3 of the metal feet actually connecting to the floor. Needless to say it's not been stable and the silicone seal around the edge failed and has been slow leaking water at good couple of years.

The bathroom is not in the best of states and floor board adjacent to the wall under the bath is missing meaning I could see 2 of the joist ends and they were sodden and it looks from the bit of access I have with bath still in place, like the very early stages of wet rot might have started.

I think the safest bet is to treat with something along the lines of Ronseal wet rot treatment/hardener either way to make sure there isn't a problem brewing under there once I reboard and sort the bath out.

Can you guys recommend any specific products to treat them or should the ronseal do the trick?

If this were my job, I think I'd be working with the homeowner to get insurers involved. This is 'consequential damage' so generally covered under their 'fabric' policy.

The reason I'd choose this route is that simply the unknown. YOU are the last person to work on this. This means YOU Take responsibility for what happens for quite a while into the future.

My experience, FWIW, is that no matter what you do in the short term, these joists will end up moving as they shrink as their water content reduces. Whatever you put on top of a swollen joist WILL move as its support shrinks...

IMHO better to do it right, for yourself AND the customer, than face the nonsense that may follow.

 

[townfanjon]

Theres a product called solignum ( think thats the correct spelling) that would work , I haven’t seen any for years though , it absolutely stinks the house out , try the old google mate

 

[Chuck]

Repairing rotten joists is not, IMO, a job for a plumber. The householder needs to get that part of the problem fixed properly first, i.e. probably an insurance claim, then a building surveyor or structural engineer to inspect and specify method of repair.

Once the floor is sound and level again, it's over to you to reinstall the bath properly for them.

 

[Pickwickpick]

Thanks for all ideas and sorry about the delay in replying, computer at home went down for a while and the touch screen on my phone is beyond infuriating to type on after being dropped god knows how many times!

I took your advice @YorkshireDave and tried to convince them to get in touch with their insurers, but they wouldn't budge on it. Between that and a general gut feel that was developing I walked away, pretty sure they would have been a nightmare to work for if nothing else!

 

[Welder]

Between that and a general gut feel that was developing I walked away, pretty sure they would have been a nightmare to work for if nothing else!

The very best thing you could have done IMHO in the circumstances and I'm chuffed you listened to your instincts.
Glad to have (almost ) been of some assistance

 

[Pickwickpick]

The very best thing you could have done IMHO in the circumstances and I'm chuffed you listened to your instincts.
Glad to have (almost ) been of some assistance

Listening to my instincts has been one of hardest but most important lessons to learn in the 6 years or so I've been self employed!