The European Standard (ENV-807) determines the threshold of effectiveness of wood preservatives against the action of soft rot Ascomycetes fungi. Its application in the treatment of wood used in the hazard class 4 does not always offer repeatable results, which could be expected in an experimental norm. For this reason, in this paper, we have evaluated the diverse variables that might influence the development of such a Standard. These variables are: substrate used (sterilized soil, unsterilized soil, or vermiculite), fungi (Chaetomium globosum) , inoculated independently, or sprayed suspension of Chaetomium globosum spores, along with Glenospora graphii, Humicola grisea, Petriella setifera, Phyalophora mutabilis and Trichurus spiralis), techniques of inoculation (watering with or without inmersion), incubation time (six and twelve weeks). The degradation was evaluated by the percentages of weight loss suffered by Fagus sylvatica wood block tests. The results were analyzed by four way ANOVA). The susbstrate that showed the greatest weight losses was sterilized soil, with no difference in the method of inoculation or in the fungi employed. An incubation time of six weeks was sufficient to contrast the differences. According to these results, revision of the test described in the European Standard would be advisable.

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