Wood expert witnesses may write reports and opine on lumber, plywood, saw mills, pressed wood products, and related topics. The Wood Shop Consultancy offers ways to avoid disputes in Wood: Avoiding the pitfalls – How a basic understanding of timber technology can help to avoid problems in use:
One other significant factor related to moisture content is the susceptibility of timber to decay. Wood destroying fungi, often responsible for timber decay in buildings and wooden structures, require timber to have a moisture content in excess of 22% for a prolonged period in order for them to become established and sustain their attack. However, a higher moisture content is one of the factors required by the fungi for optimum growth. For example, the true dry rot fungus, Serpula lacrymans, favours a moisture content of around 30-40%, while many of the wet rot fungi require a moisture content of around 50%.
Moisture content is of course just one factor when considering using timber. There is a wide range of industry standards and guidelines relating to timber specification to ensure that the correct timber is used in respect of durability, strength, appearance, movement characteristics etc.
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