Woodworm

Woodworm is a collective name for any wood boring insects that attack wood and structures in buildings.

There are a number of wood boring insects in the UK, the most common types are:

• Powderpost
• Common Furniture Beetle
• Death Watch Beetle
• House Longhorn

Most woodworm prefer damp conditions whilst others are quite at home in dry conditions.  The female will lay her eggs in cracks and fissures of timber.  The eggs then turn into larvae and at this stage will then burrow through the wood.  After some time, they pupate and turn into adult beetles.  At the next stage they will then bore through the timber and emerge through flight holes.  The flight holes can be seen on the surface of the timber, this, together with dust (frass) around the flight holes, indicates new activity.  This process usually happens between April and September.

Your timbers may be harbouring woodworm and sometimes this is hard to determine. Wood may be infected with eggs or larvae without it being noticeable and you may not spot an infestation of woodworm for many years. It is a common misconception that woodworm only affects older properties. The fact is, if the moisture content in the timber is right, then an infestation can occur.

Spotting the signs that you may have woodworm:

• Small round holes in your timbers.
• Fine, dust around flight holes (this is called frass).
• Crumbly edges to boards and joists.
• Adult beetles emerging from the flight holes or spotted around the house.

Old furniture brought in to your dwelling can help the spread of woodworm. Also logs brought into your home can could carry an infestation.

Sometimes holes and frass might just indicate a previous woodworm infestation, which is now dormant.

Surveys

A survey will be required to inspect the timbers, this will take place in attics and all rooms where timber floors and structures are present.  Floorboards may need lifting and insulation removed in attics to check for new flight holes, dust and debris left by exiting beetles.   After this a concise report and quotation will be issued to the customer with a method statement of treatment required.

Treatment

This will usually consist of an insecticide spray or brush application to the timbers.  The beetle will then come into contact with the insecticide and this will eradicate the problem.  After treatment the homeowner can usually re-enter the property within a couple of hours.

Book a Survey

Call Active Damp Solutions for a free home survey and no obligation quotation.