If you have a basement or crawl space with high levels of humidity, there’s a good chance mold will grow on the wood. Even if you don’t see it, it’s possible it’s growing and developing in such a way that, by the time you notice it’s there, the wood will have to be completely replaced. Wood can sometimes be salvaged despite the fungal growth, but this depends on how fast you’re able to kill the fungus. Learning how to identify when your wood is rotting is the best way to save it. There are two things you need to look out for when trying to identify wood rot: direct signs and indirect signs. Direct signs of wood rot would be those that you can observe when directly examining the wood or the space it inhabits. Even if there are spores or fungal growth anywhere in the crawl space or basement, even when they aren’t directly on the wood itself, you need to do something since mold spreads so easily between different materials. Wood rot can also be very sneaky in the sense that it can grow on the wood without any discoloration. The best way to test the wood for rot would be to use a screwdriver or a pencil. If the wood shows any signs of softness at all, it is rotting. Indirect signs would be those that you can detect away from the rotting wood, usually in your household. The biggest indicator would be a strange smell wafting from the crawl space or basement. Due to the stack effect, the air in your foundation rises toward your home, meaning that the spores and smell of mold will be noticeable throughout the house. Another good way to test for wood rot would be to simply check the humidity levels in your home. Crawl spaces and basements tend to be a lot more humid than the rest of the house, so if the humidity levels in your home are extreme, it goes double for the humidity in your basement.