Wood deterioration: Ground contact hazards

Ground contact poses one of the highest decay hazards that is nonetheless highly variable and not always straightforward to predict. The decay hazard is severe because soil retains damaging moisture for long periods of time, harbours an aggressive preservative depletion hazard and contains a plethora of wood decay microorganisms of a somewhat unpredictable make-up. Relatively few wood products can provide aquate durability in this aggressive environment. Whilst adequate service life for correctly selected preservative-treated wood products is readily achievable, factors other than durability, such as environmental and perceived health profile, increasingly challenge its delivery. This chapter discusses the impact on wood in ground contact of soil-inhabiting wood-rotting basidiomycetes, soft rot fungi, wood degrading bacteria and preservative/ extractive detoxifying organisms. It also provides an overview of the ecology of wood decay and other factors that affect product service life in ground contact. It concludes by discussing test methods used to predict the durability of wood in soil and some performance data on treated wood products. © 2014 American Chemical Society.