Floorboard Rot and Neighbor negligence?

SeaVixen

Hi all

We noticed one section in our laminate floor dipping when walked on, so I went under the floorboards and discovered the area has a foam all over it - Google thinks it could either be wet or dry rot. 

It's not covered by the insurance, and internet estimates suggest it could be in the £4K-£8K realm to fix, depending on the level of structural damage done. 

Went round to let the neighbors know, as it's next to the joining wall and might have impacted them too, only for them to tell me that they've had rot in that spot for months. Their skirting board has rotted away, floor isn't far behind, and they're cleaning up red dust daily. They've asked a family member to come round to fix it when they have time. (Not a pro, just handy with DIY)

I cant help but feel this whacking great bill I'm probably going to be stuck with is partially their fault for not dealing with the issue in a timely manner. If they'd even just let me know at the time I could have taken steps to prevent/check things on my side of the wall and caught it earlier to reduce the chance of structural damage. 

Am I right in my anger?
Have I got any kind of case to try and make them help to cover the cost of the repairs? 

FreeBear

Wood does not rot unless it is damp, so you probably have a shared damp problem. It will have been going on for a lot longer than a few months (a couple of years at least). So the first thing to do is take a look around the outside of the property.

Is the ground level higher than the DPC - It should be ~150mm below (75mm min).

Any leaking/blocked gutters or downpipes ?

Is there a leaking water pipe (either CH or cold feed) ? - That one might be covered under your household insurance.

Keep_pedalling

Although they were the first to notice the rot it does not mean it started there and spread to your home, and it would be impossible to know.which of the two it started, so I think you are on a loser trying to claim negligence. Also I doubt that they are experts in the spread of fungi so they could easily claim they had no idea it could spread. Being an idiot does not automatically.

Both wet and dry rot need one thing to thrive, and that is damp timber, so one or more likely both of you have a damp problem which also needs sorting out. Ideally you need one specialist company to fix this, which might prove difficult especially if you have already accused them of negligence. 

FreeBear

Keep_pedalling said: Ideally you need one specialist company to fix this

But not one of these companies that will want to sell you chemical injected DPC, waterproof render/plaster, and the assorted other "cures" that they pedal - This will rule out most (all ?) PCA affiliated outfits.

SeaVixen

Thanks both for your replies! Yes I agree that there must be a damp issue somewhere. Would liked to have known about it several months ago though

 @Keep_pedalling
I've not said anything along the lines of them being negligent to them, so we're still on very good terms. Thankfully I managed to hide my annoyance at their penny pinching and lack of basic homeowner knowledge until I got back into my own house. 
They've sent me photos of their rot so that I can send them onto contractors to get quotes, so it seems like they would be happy to share a contractor. Will have to see if it stays the same when the quotes start rolling in. 

@FreeBear Nothing along those lines that I can see, but will check the ground height when it's light again. Having been under the house today I can confirm the airbrick things are not blocked, could see the light coming in! 

Keep_pedalling

SeaVixen said:

Thanks both for your replies! Yes I agree that there must be a damp issue somewhere. Would liked to have known about it several months ago though

 @Keep_pedalling
I've not said anything along the lines of them being negligent to them, so we're still on very good terms. Thankfully I managed to hide my annoyance at their penny pinching and lack of basic homeowner knowledge until I got back into my own house. 
They've sent me photos of their rot so that I can send them onto contractors to get quotes, so it seems like they would be happy to share a contractor. Will have to see if it stays the same when the quotes start rolling in. 

@FreeBear Nothing along those lines that I can see, but will check the ground height when it's light again. Having been under the house today I can confirm the airbrick things are not blocked, could see the light coming in! 

Well done, it is all too easy shoot first and regret it later. Hopefully they know know the seriousness of the problem and that there is no cheap fix.

Bendy_House

SV, where along that shared wall is the damage? And how close to an external wall?

stuart45

It sounds like it could well be dry rot. Red dust comes from the fruiting body, so it may have started next door and got through the brickwork.
Finding the cause of the damp timber is the first thing to do. 
Timber in damp brickwork is a common cause.

SeaVixen

Bendy_House said:

SV, where along that shared wall is the damage? And how close to an external wall?

@Bendy_House It's right in the middle of the house, just before the wall where our lounge meets dining room. It's a good 4/5 metres from an external wall, nowhere near pipes on our side. 

stuart45

Do you know if the floor joists are either built into the wall, on joists hangers in the wall, sit on a sleeper wall next to the wall, or run parallel to the wall?

SeaVixen

stuart45 said:

Do you know if the floor joists are either built into the wall, on joists hangers in the wall, sit on a sleeper wall next to the wall, or run parallel to the wall?

@stuart45
I don't I'm afraid. This is one of the photos I got while under the house yesterday if it helps at all? 

Due to the volume of the foam/spores (way more than is in that pic) I'm not keen to go back down there until there's a pro with me