Moisture Barrier?

[stevenrafferty]

I am planning to replace some T&G that sit underneath a window recess, that looks to be original (if so would be circa 100 years old) as a very small corner has rotted away.

This seems to be due to damp material sitting next to the wood in the space between the exterior wall.

I can obviously remove the material (just seems to be some old morter, other stuff) and there are no signs of dampness penertrating the external wall.

My question is: can I, or should I, put some form of moisture barrier when I install the new T&G so that should any further material fall, then it won't sit against the rear of the wood. I have a void of circa 9cm between the rear of the T&G and the inside of the external wall.

Thanks

 

[P.J.]

Steven,
Cladding, not flooring, right ? If so, I think you could just install a polythene sheet between the new cladding and the wall and under the bottom of the cladding to stop anything coming up off the floor.

If interior wood is rotting, you shouldn't have that amount of damp inside and the source should be repaired. Unless this happened over many years and is due to normal amounts of condensation in which case you'd probably get away with repairing your t&g and protecting it from moisture as above and with regular varnishing (make sure the woods treated on the ends and the back aswell as the exposed face).

I'm a DIYer, so I'm sure there are more professional tricks.

All the best.

P.J.