Dry rot and woodpecker damage repair in El Dorado County and Lake Tahoe

Soft trim, swollen siding, a spongy deck board, or a row of holes under the eaves. We find where the damage stops, cut out every bad piece, fix the water or bird problem that caused it, and leave you with photos of what was behind the wall.

What we repair

Siding: T1-11, old LP and hardboard panels, cedar and redwood lap. We replace the bad boards and match the profile, or re-side the wall when patching would not last.

Fascia, trim and soffits: Fascia and rafter tails rotted by ice dams and overflowing gutters, corner boards, frieze boards and soffit panels.

Window and door trim: Rotted sills, brick mold, jambs and the trim below them, with new flashing so water stops getting behind the trim.

Deck framing and stairs: Ledgers, rim joists, posts, beams, stair stringers and treads. Structural parts get replaced, not filled.

Woodpecker holes: Holes in siding, trim, fascia and eaves, plus the acorn caches behind them. Repaired with new wood, not a blob of caulk.

Pest report repairs: The fungus and dry rot items on a termite (WDO) report for a sale or refinance. Your pest company handles treatment and the clearance.

Dry rot: find the water, then fix the wood

What dry rot really is: It is a fungus eating wood that stays wet. Dry wood does not rot. That is why every repair we do starts with finding the water.

Where we find it up here: The bottom 12 inches of siding where snow piles up and sprinklers hit, under window sills, behind a missing kickout flashing where a roof meets a wall, at deck ledgers with no flashing, and at posts buried in soil or set in concrete.

How far it goes: Rot is almost always bigger than the soft spot you can see. We probe and open up until we hit solid wood, so it does not come back next winter.

Woodpecker damage repair

Who is doing it: In the foothills it is usually acorn woodpeckers storing acorns in rows of holes. In the pines and at Tahoe it is often northern flickers drumming and digging into siding and eaves.

Why your house: Drumming to mark territory in spring, chasing insects living in the siding, storing food, or digging a nest hole. Wood siding, cedar and soft trim are their favorites.

What actually stops it: Repair the holes properly, check for insects in the wall, then make the spot less inviting: fiber cement siding, metal flashing on favorite corners, or deterrents placed once the repair is done.

The rules: Woodpeckers are protected under the federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act and California law. We never harm birds, and we do not disturb an active nest. We work around nesting season when a nest is in the wall.

Repair or replace

Small soft spots (Trim or a few boards): Cut out the bad wood, replace with primed or treated stock, prime the cut ends, caulk and paint to match. Small spots on trim worth saving can get an epoxy repair.

Patchy rot or holes (Several boards, one or two walls): Replace the damaged siding and trim, add or fix flashing, and check the sheathing behind it.

Rot in many places (Old T1-11, hardboard or original LP): Patching gets expensive and keeps coming back. Re-siding with fiber cement or LP SmartSide usually costs less over time, and fiber cement also helps with fire rules and woodpeckers.

How it works

1. Look and probe: We probe every suspect area and take photos.

2. Written scope: A price for what we can see, plus a set unit price for hidden rot, so nothing is a surprise.

3. Repair: Our crew opens it up, replaces bad wood and fixes the water source or bird problem.

4. Seal and finish: Flashing, primer on all sides, caulk and paint to match.

5. Photo report: Before, during and after photos. Useful for a sale, an insurer or your records.

Dry rot and woodpecker repair in every town we serve

Pollock Pines (3,939 ft): Snow piled against siding and decks, pine needles packed in gutters and at wall bases, and older panel siding swelling at the bottom edge. Permits through El Dorado County.

Camino (3,138 ft): Acorn woodpecker holes in cedar and redwood siding, and north walls that stay shaded and damp all winter. Permits through El Dorado County.

Placerville (1,861 ft): Older homes with original wood siding, window sills and porch posts. Inside city limits, permits go through the City of Placerville. Permits through City of Placerville.

Diamond Springs (1,793 ft): Hardboard and early composite siding swelling where sprinklers hit it, and trim at the base of garage doors. Permits through El Dorado County.

Georgetown (2,664 ft): Heavy winter rain on the Divide, tall cedars and pines shading the house, and decks that never fully dry out. Permits through El Dorado County.

Shingle Springs (1,417 ft): Oak lots with acorn woodpeckers, and irrigation spray rotting the bottom row of siding and fence posts. Permits through El Dorado County.

Cameron Park (1,200 ft): Wood fascia and trim on tract homes, and paint colors that must match for HOA or CSD design review. Permits through El Dorado County.

El Dorado Hills (769 ft): Stucco and fiber cement homes that still have wood fascia, trim and decks. Ledger rot behind decks and sprinkler damage at the base of walls. Permits through El Dorado County.

Folsom (220 ft): Hot south and west walls cracking paint so water gets into trim joints, garage door jambs and trim touching the ground. Permits through City of Folsom.

Meyers (6,334 ft): Roof snow sliding off and piling against walls, ice dams rotting fascia and roof edges, and deck stairs under snow for months. Permits through El Dorado County + TRPA.

South Lake Tahoe (6,265 ft): Freeze-thaw cracking paint and caulk, rotted deck stairs and landings, and flickers working on cabin siding. Permits through City of South Lake Tahoe + TRPA.

Tahoe Keys (6,232 ft): Decks and siding near the water, snow drift on the lake side, and trim around big lakefront windows. Permits through City of South Lake Tahoe + TRPA.

Homewood (6,242 ft): Deep West Shore snow and big firs shading the house, so siding and decks stay wet well into spring. Permits through Placer County + TRPA.

Tahoma (6,283 ft): The same West Shore snow and shade. Permits go through El Dorado or Placer County depending on the side of the county line. Permits through El Dorado or Placer County + TRPA.

Truckee (5,817 ft): Long freeze-thaw seasons, fascia and trim rotted by ice dams, and deck framing under heavy snow. Permits through Town of Truckee.

Donner Lake (5,943 ft): Wind-driven rain and snow off the lake soaking west-facing walls and window trim. Permits through Town of Truckee.

Questions

How do I know if I have dry rot? Push a screwdriver into the wood. If it sinks in easily, the wood is soft, crumbles into cubes, or the paint is bubbling and peeling in one spot, you likely have rot. Check the bottom of the siding, under window sills, fascia boards and deck ledgers first.

Can you just patch dry rot? Small spots on trim can be cut out and patched, and some trim is worth an epoxy repair. But filling over rot hides it and it keeps spreading. We remove wood until we reach solid wood, then fix the water source.

Is dry rot covered by homeowners insurance? Usually not. Most policies exclude rot that happens slowly over time. Rot caused by a sudden covered event, like a burst pipe, is sometimes covered. Check with your agent. We give you photos and a written scope either way.

Do you do the repairs on a termite report for escrow? Yes. We repair the wood damage items on a pest (WDO) report, like fungus and dry rot in siding, trim and decks. The licensed pest company handles termite treatment and re-inspects for the clearance.

Why are woodpeckers pecking my house? Usually one of four reasons: drumming to mark territory in spring, hunting insects in the siding, storing acorns, or digging a nest. Acorn woodpeckers are common in oak foothills, and flickers are common in the pines and at Tahoe.

Can I get rid of the woodpeckers? You can discourage them, but you cannot harm them. Woodpeckers are protected under federal and California law, and active nests cannot be disturbed. Repair the damage, check for insects, and use deterrents or a harder siding material on the spots they like.

Will fiber cement siding stop woodpeckers? It helps a lot. Woodpeckers cannot dig into fiber cement the way they dig into wood, and it does not hold insects. It also does not rot, and it is noncombustible, which helps in fire zones.

Do I need a permit for dry rot repair? Small repairs that replace trim or siding in kind usually do not. Re-siding a house, replacing structural deck framing or rebuilding stairs often does. We check with your building department and pull the permit if the job needs one.

How much does dry rot repair cost? It depends on how far the rot goes, which you cannot see until the wood is opened up. We price the visible work and give you a set unit price for any hidden rot before we start, so you know the cost of every extra board.

Which areas do you serve? All of El Dorado County, including Pollock Pines, Camino, Placerville, Diamond Springs, Georgetown, Shingle Springs, Cameron Park and El Dorado Hills, plus Folsom, South Lake Tahoe, Meyers, the Tahoe Keys, Homewood, Tahoma, Truckee and Donner Lake.

Sierra Ridge Deck and Siding, CSLB #1117955. Call (530) 903-7996 for a free repair estimate.