How to repair bottom of door trim and wall corner?

[barydos]

Hi,

There are some seemingly small DIY tasks I'd like to for parts of my first home, as I hope to get more handy around the home.

There's a door that appears to shut properly. Looks like someone shaved off the trim that probably expanded over time. How would one go about patching up this trim? Is this a job for wooden shim + wood filler? I also notice the bit behind looks like it has swelled up too..

. . 

Also next to the door trim (on the other side) it meets a corner of the wall, and then a door to the garage. I had an inspector come over who said there's some moisture reading inside this patch, but on the other side of the wall there's nothing, so he thinks it's some patch up job carrying some moisture for whoever owned the home previously. It's a relatively small space, but would you suggest I cut a square out, look inside and remove whatever's bad there? Is it easy to just repair with plasterboard + some plaster mud or something? 

Thanks!

[EricL]

Hello @barydos

Looking at the picture you posted, I suggest using Turbo 175ml Builders Bog Flexipack. It can be shaped, sanded and drilled into like real wood. My number one tip is not to use too much activator compound to prevent the bog from drying up too fast. The general steps to repair the area is to clean the spot of any loose timber and debris before applying the filler. 

Once the spot is ready I recommend shaping the filler to the level of the wood as close as possible so that you won't have to sand off too much of it off. Once the filler has cured the next step is to paint the filler to hide the spot that's been patched.

As to the swelling of the other parts, it appears that some form of repair was attempted on this part of the floor trim. However, is the area close to the shower or laundry? There might be a water leak that is causing the wood to swell. I recommend doing a bit of investigation before you carry out your repairs.

Please keep us updated with your progress, we look forward to seeing your door trim repaired.

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Eric

[barydos]

Hi Eric, thank you for the advice.

Silly question, but what exactly is "activator compound"?

And it's interesting, it's probably 2 m away from the laundry space, but nowhere else has a similar moisture reading or similar swelling look.

Will definitely look into it some more.

[EricL]

Hi @barydos

The activator compound comes with the Builder's bog in a separate container. When you mix a batch of the filler one part will be the filler itself and in another container is the activator. When joined together a chemical reaction occurs and the filler starts to harden and set. Putting in too much activator accelerates the reaction giving you no time to form and mold the patch. Hence putting in a bit of the activator will give you heaps of time to mold the filler.  

If you need further assistance, please let me know.

Eric