Drying out external woodwork

[ffawkes]

The wet weather has been scuppering a repair job I'm trying to do on an outside wooden window sill.

The lip of the sill had rotted so I cut a two inch slice off the whole breadth of the sill and made up a replacement strip to glue on the stub of ledge that was left.

the problem is that just after I cut the rotten strip off, it bucketed with rain and has it has been wet and damp ever since. As a result the remaining ledge has become damp so I am afraid to glue the new strip on in case i am just sealing in the wet.

i covered the whole ledge in foil in the hope it would dry out but the face that I want to glue the new strip to remains damp to the touch.

Any suggestions how I can dry it out? Of course the ideal would be a few days of direct sunshine on it but that isn't going to happen

 

[nicguthrie]

If your weather is anything like it's been up here the last few days, it'll take a few weeks at least for wood that's gotten soggy to dry out without being able to move it indoors etc.

I've no great experience, but if I was going to MacGyver a solution, I'd say try tacking a few offcuts of wood perpendicular and across the face of the sill, sticking out like it's a big E with four or five "prongs", open the window and jam in some tarpaulin, or preferably some transparent polythene sheeting, then tack or tape it to the wall a foot or so underneath the window sill.

That way the "Prongs" will stop the sheet just lying against the sill trapping moisture there, it'll be open at the sides and the air can circulate thoroughly and hopefully after a while it'll dry enough to finish up, fill the tack holes and give it all a lick of paint etc on one dry winter day

Of course, this is all just an idea, more experienced types may have a tried and tested solution...

Nic.

 

[ColeyS1]

Electric paint stripper ?

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk

 

[Shrubby]

If you use PU glue (Balcotan, Semparoc) they bond very well to damp wood. Use plenty of clamps !
I'd worry more about painting the damp in - make a simple rain cover that lets air circulate or use a hot air gun /hairdryer
Matt