is it possible to test for dry rot without removing plaster?

sheep543

I'm looking to buy a house but the surveyor mentioned that as there had been previous work done to repair a leak in the kitchen ceiling, there is (naturally) always the possibility that there could be dry rot extended out from the leak area (i.e. behind the plastering).

Unfortunately, there is not much information on what repairs were previously undertaken to fix the problem but we do know there is no leak currently and there is no rising damp present as he tested for this. The house has been vacant for some time.

It seems the leak resulted from a combination of the shower upstairs and a waste pipe that was moved during an extension added to the building.

The surveyor said, that the only way to check for dry rot here, is to remove all the plastering etc. and visually check all beams associated with the area. Of course we can't start gutting and inspecting the area until we purchase the house...but we don't want to purchase the house if there is a large amount of dry rot.

I'm sure others have been in a similar situation?! Does anyone have advice please?

thanks

Calahonda52

what age is the house?
how long is some time?
why the test for rising damp?
what concerns gave rise to that?
how, exactly, was this test performed?
.
TBH, it is very un-lightly that there is any dry rot as you need two things: moisture and the spores, which could be anywhere in the house so if you are concerned about that possibility then don't buy any house

sheep543

thanks. The house was built in the 60s and has been vacant for about 1 year. The test for rising damp was one of the tests provided by the surveyor and I'm not sure of the exact monitor the surveyor used to test for this. The leak and patch job is clearly visible on the ceiling. I suppose it could also be the case that the area is just dry because no one has been using the shower for over a year?

Calahonda52

Perhaps but I don't see a big risk of dry rot.

Do you know the difference between dry and wet, and more importantly does your surveyor?

Most tests for rising damp are with a cheap moisture meter which measures surface dampness, is impacted by the different conductivity of different surfaces/finishes which is not the same as rising damp so I wouldn't be relying too much on it.