Field Procedure for Detecting Early Decay

This paper describes a technique for detecting early decay in wood members that is a useful tool for periodic inspection and maintenance of timber structures. The surface of the member to be inspected is swabbed with alcohol at the point of sampling to remove surface contaminants. A 1/4-inch long plug is then removed with a leather punch for further protection from contaminants and to facilitate starting an increment borer. A 6- to 8-inch core is removed and transferred to a sealed glass tube for transportation to the laboratory. The hole is flooded with preservative and a treated wood plug is driven into it. At the laboratory, the core is transferred to malt agar, suitable for wood-destroying fungi, and placed in incubation at 72?F. Fourteen days are usually sufficient to produce growth by wood-destroying fungi that are readily visible. All stages of the procedure require aseptic conditions. Tools and glassware must be sterile. Any portion of an increment core that contacts a non-sterile surface should be discarded. The method is primarily qualitative. That is, it is used to indicate the presence or absence of fungi. If a number of cores are taken and each core is examined along its length for fungal growth, the extent of the infection can be determined.

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