Mold problem

[wwh]

Greetings! I've been lurking here for a while, and recently acquired a

set of 1981 type KCBR Klipschorns. Unfortunately, one of these sat on a

damp carpet for a few months and mold has grown on the bottom and

wicked about 1/4" up the side and front panels.

I've cleaned the moldy wood with a strong bleach solution. It is

currently drying, and it looks like the structure is still sound, but

the plywood has separated slightly on the sides.

How simple do you think it would be to replace the bottom panel? It is

obviously screwed together and also glued. I don't see any water damage

inside (through the woofer access panel), but very little of the top of

the bottom board is visible from in there.

Any advice?

[Malcolm]

I don't think there are any screws except those that hold the back panel, woofer, squawker horn, tweeter, and crossover in place. The cabinet is nailed and glued. You'll have to cut out the panel, then fabricate and fit a new panel, then match the finish. It might be faster, easier and better to build a new cabinet.

[sunburnwilly]

Seeing as you are in Denver I'm sure there are a few good cabinet makers around you . I'm sure one could fabricate and replace the bottoms . This would keep most of the originality intact . This is the route I would take .

[johnyholiday]

You'll need to post pics of the damage, an the pro's around here will

give you advice ,an estimations, use the file attachment browse button,

on your reply

[wwh]

Attached are the following pictures:

bottom - overall view of the bottom.

lt_side - Left side if the speaker was upright (side with the woofer

access door). This is the panel that has the most extensive damage. The

stain is about 1.25" wide.

rt_side - Right side detail.

inside_lt_bottom - inside view of the bottom board, front corner, from the woofer access hole.

inside_rt_bottom - inside view of the bottom board, front corner, from the woofer access hole.

The bottom board feels solid now that it is dry. The big problem is the

right side board -- the damaged section is sort of "spongy."

Bottom:

Left side:

Right side:

Left front corner, from inside:

Right front corner, from inside:

[Gilbert]

That looks like pretty significant water damage. The veneer is gone along the bottom. To get it looking the way it should, you will need to reveneer the speakers, at least that's my opinion, I'm no expert, but I've refinished close to a dozen heritage speakers, Khorns included.

[ricktate]

Well if the plywood is not seperating i would just sand and fill cracks and voids then tighten the screws let dry for awhile the re-veneer the fronts.Might try find some type of sealer to put on the bottom edges to seal them up cant really tell from pics how bad it is but looks like just got wet then mold started,,,if it was wet a long time the plywood would have seperated.That area you took pics of inside had air leaks on mine i poured glue in there and then sealed all the joints with silicone.. mine are air tight now its an easy test to check if you want to make sure yours are air tight.Rick

[Jeff Matthews]

Those look like Katrina K-Horns. With the chunk of veneer gone, you have a real problem.

I've heard of people mixing birch sawdust into wood putty in order to make puttied areas take a stain that reasonably matches. Before going the hard route of a complete re-veneer, you might see if you can do this first.

[wwh]

Fortunately, these aren't from New Orleans -- I bought them from a good

friend and neighbor who, as we found out when we moved them, has a bit

of a plumbing problem...

I had planned to put a trim strip along the front anyway, so for

cosmetic reasons, I could get one wide enough to cover the stained

area. I'll try the wood filler / glue on the bottom first, for

structural integrity. Cosmetics don't matter there anyway.

Thanks for the advice.

- Bill

[Jeff Matthews]

Hey, Bill, I thought your inquiry dealt more with cosmetics on the fronts and sides. If you put that toe-kick on there, that would do it the easy way. Good idea.

What is the structural problem with the bottoms that makes you need to do something there?

[3dzapper]

There is a product for boats that may help you .

http://www.jamestowndistributors.com/find;a;1;ID;;eclDrill;788

Rick

[wwh]

The wood surrounding the screws on the left side panel that hold it to

the bottom panel is rather soft. My concern is essentially acoustic --

there are two other baffles above the bottom panel that are undamaged

that form the actual horn, but it looks like the bottom panel itself

contains the woofer's back chamber. So I wouldn't want leakage around

the bottom board.

I think I can address that by pouring glue into the small gap, as was

suggested, then sanding the whole thing and painting it with primer. I

was just looking for additional ideas / warnings / etc.

- Bill

[jacksonbart]

Ouch

[mike stehr]

"I've heard of people mixing birch sawdust into wood putty in order to make puttied areas take a stain that reasonably matches."

When I was doing hardwood floors, we mixed sawdust from the installed floor with stuff called wood doe to fill knotholes, cracks, etc...etc...

We would use the sawdust from the edger after sanding with 120 grit discs, the dust has to be rather fine. You can fill pretty good sized holes with the mixed wood doe. It does shrink, so you to go over the hole a few times until it is full and won't settle anymore.

[3dzapper]

Here is another product for mold, rot and delamination:

http://www.rotdoctor.com/index.html

Mike, They carry a sawdust "flour" for mixing with the resin.

Rick

[johnyholiday]

Epoxy an/or steal{ L}shaped edging, bring the cab back to strength, an then a pedestal/kick board

to

hide reinforcing work, if bottom plate is shabby incorporate, a

reinforcing bottom plate in pedestal,an fasten ,in design a triangular

coaster ,which would have saved it in the first place,see kick in pic