Since 1979 Wood Decay Wood Decay Fungi is the most important agent in the decay of wood buildings in the Pacific Northwest. Fungi are filamentous organisms which begin as microscopic spores that loud on the surface of wood, and germinate to produce strand-like cells called hyphae.
Hyphae grow through the wood and secrete enzymes which degrade and weaken the wood.
The most common form of fungi decay in the Northwest, especially west of the Cascades is brown rot. Brown rot fungi is most common on softwoods, and at the advanced stages, their damage leaves the wood as a brown, crumbly mass with numerous cross-breaks perpendicular to the grain. Signs of fungal attack in wood are often subtle. No inspection device is capable of detecting incipient decay. However, clues to invasion may be detected as change in color, lack of luster or brashy appearance.