Post #428527 by Mo-Eye on Tue, Jan 13, 2009 12:20 PM

Aloha Bigbro,

Here are my thoughts. I used to do restoration and preservation work on historic homes and museums.

Are you sure that it is termite damage? To me it looks like natural wood rot. My guess would be that the rain is constantly seeping through the natural crack on the top, and soaking the head inside.

What I would do is first let the inside dry out real well. You may need to make an awning over the top to keep new rain out, but make sure air is flowing through easily to help the drying process. Next I would pour a wood hardener through the top of the head, and let it soak through that way. (Prepare yourself for the fact it will seep and drip from every crack and hole on the bottom of the brow.

The minwax hardener is not that great. It is fine for a flat surface, but it will just run right through the cracks. Also, it is solvent based, so most just evaporates. The best products I have used are PC Woody. They make a 2 part epoxy rot terminator as well as a very good filler. Here's their site:

http://www.pcepoxy.com/woodproducts/woodrotterm.asp

Their Rot Terminator is thicker and takes longer to dry, which means it will really seep into the cracks and give the wood time to soak it up. This will really harden the wood, and if it is termites, they won't attack the hardened wood.

After that, you can use the PC filler to fill the hole. You can even harden the piece that came out, then put it back in with the filler.

Ben is exactly right. DO NOT use the expanding foam. That moai's head will just explode, and it will prevent you from doing any work in that area in the future, and will also trap more moisture in.

Let me know if you have any questions.

Mahalo!