Timber decay and woodworm
Strands like dry rot were seen behind one skirting and the floorboards were not lifted. What extent of decay is still unknown?
The extent still unknown is how far any decay runs past that one skirting. Strands like dry rot were seen there, and the floorboards were not lifted, so the joists, the boards and the timbers beyond that skirting were not seen. The survey cannot say whether the strands stop at that board or continue under the floor. It has not measured lost section, has not named how much timber must come out, and has not mapped a limit. The finding is strands at one skirting. The size of the problem is still unknown.
Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Written for buyers in England and Wales unless this answer says otherwise. No named surveyor has signed this page. It is general guidance, not a report on your house, and not legal advice.
What is the fuller explanation?
Dry-rot strands can run in the narrow gap behind a skirting and then out across joist ends, or they can be a short growth at a wet spot. One exposed length does not tell those stories apart. Lifting boards is what shows the path, and that was not done. Looking like dry rot is also a careful phrase: the survey saw strands of that sort, not a fully opened attack with a measured boundary.
A timber specialist can lift enough boards to trace the strands and say which timbers, if any, have lost their section. Tell the solicitor the home survey has not defined the extent and has not specified a strip-out. Do not lever the skirting further on a viewing and do not lift boards casually. Covering the strands up again before the specialist sees them makes the next look harder. The unknown extent is the reason to get that opening done properly, not a reason to guess a whole-floor renewal.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- How far along the one skirting did the strands actually run?
- Were any floorboards lifted, or was the floor left closed?
- Have you left the extent of decay unknown on purpose?
What are the typical next steps?
- Treat the extent beyond that skirting as unknown.
- Ask a timber specialist to lift boards and trace the strands.
- Do not accept a whole-floor renewal until that extent is seen.
Costs vary with the building and with who you instruct. Where this page does not cite a published figure, ask the surveyor, a relevant specialist, or your solicitor for a written quote. Do not treat a forum average as the price.
Also asked about this
If the skirting is only soft at one end, is the extent now known?
Softness at one end of a skirting is still one skirting. The floorboards were not lifted, so joists and the rest of the floor remain unseen. The extent is not known. Asking about it again later still leaves this skirtingend point outside what the survey decided.
Does a mushroom smell in the room map the decay?
Smell may fit a fungal problem, but it does not show which timbers have lost section. The survey did not lift the boards, and a smell has not drawn the boundary of the decay. The home survey itself did not pursue this odour question any further than the visit.