Wood decay by indoor basidiomycetes at different moisture and temperature

Some of the most important indoor wood-decay basidiomycetes were investigated in Erlenmeyer flask experiments, in which 50 Pinus sylvestris sapwood samples with moisture content (MC) of 16% were piled, in view of the parallel influence of wood moisture and temperature on decay in buildings. In the piles, the moisture flow from the liquid at the bottom was interrupted by a metal ring at layer 7. Laboratory incubations with Antrodia xantha, Coniophora puteana, Donkioporia expansa, and Gloeophyllum abietinum over the temperature range of 10°C–25°C showed that fungi are able to colonize, moisten, and thereafter degrade wood samples below fiber saturation, if a moisture source nearby is available. In extreme cases, mycelium grew on wood with 17.4% final MC, and wood mass loss of more than 2% occurred at 24.6% moisture.