Quarantined furniture…

[jdsnape]

We recently moved into a timber framed house. I’ve been given an old bureau and bookcase from my late granny, unfortunately it was stored last winter in her empty/damp house and has light surface mould (easily cleaned up), as well as some woodworm holes.

It’s not something I’ve got any experience of, but I was wondering how I make sure it’s ‘safe’ to bring in, and isn’t going to introduce pests. I know woodworm is only active in damp timber, so I’ve put it in our garage which is pretty dry at the moment but not sure if there is anything else I should be doing or checking for? Or how long is sensible to leave it to try out.

 

[Toby Newell]

Dry and not damp are two totally different concepts.

Under an umbrella in a thunderstorm is dry, yet possibly not the lowest humidity level.

Buy a cheap hygrometer and check, most garages are 'dry' yet damper than the house next door.

There is a wee beastie boffin on here, he might chime in.

I may suggest putting some lining paper underneath and check regularly for frass, although it's a little late in the season for them to be making flight holes.

What is it with grannies and bureaus? Did every young woman mid century get given an Edwardian, walnut, slant top, bureau? Was this part of the welfare state standard issue that we don't know about? 'Here we are Mrs Perkins, here is your prescription, and if you would just like to pick up your bureau at reception on your way out...' My mum has one, everyone or their Mum has one. Faded and slightly cracked, with white in the grain...

Just think. Thirty years from now, on some other forum, people with be posting on their VR headsets 'My granny has just left me a Prodigy CD, does anyone know what do I do with it?'

 

[CliffordPope]

"What is it with grannies and bureaus? Did every young woman mid century get given an Edwardian, walnut, slant top, bureau?"


Yes - we did!
It's an effect of the "junk cascading down the generations" syndrome, interacting with the general decline in house sizes.
Most of the furniture Victorians and Edwardians filled their larger houses with was too big and too old-fashioned for later generations in their dolls houses, but bureaux (? sp. s?) are a bit different - taller and with a smaller floor area than sideboards, dressers, easy chairs, tables etc, but usually elegant to look at and also actually quite useful.

 

[Cubist]

I've always been an admirer of bureaux provided they are well styled and constructed of good materials - some of the horrors of the 50s and 60s should have been consigned directly to the bonfire from the factory. Whenever I see one childhood memories spring to mind of the mysteries and treasures only occasionally glimpsed when some adult lowered the lid but prevented an inquisitive toddler going on a rummage. Much to my chagrin the very simple art-nouveau bureau that belonged to my paternal grand-parents still resides with my fathers third wife, though he's been gone for some time now, but should it ever become available I would be very happy to give it some living space. Interestingly my daughter recently asked me to help her restore a bureau she inherited from her maternal grandmother and once done it will be taking pride of place in her study at home.

Regarding the woodworm. You're clearly worried the piece may still be harbouring some wood munchers and you're doing the right thing by isolating it from your other furnishings and the house itself - albeit there are likely other and greater threats to the timber frame than this bureau. To check and as suggested above, put a sheet of dark fabric/paper/cardboard or the like below it and inspect it regularly for what may look like grains of sawdust. If you find some that's grass and the munchers are alive, well and still dining. Be aware though that this is only a guide, the little perishers may not be sweeping their excreta out so an absence of such can be deceptive.

There are of course chemical/pesticide treatments available that can be applied to kill off any current infestation. Some frown on these and claim that all that is required is to keep the piece as dry as possible. Whilst that is vitally important it cannot kill and eradicate a living colony of woodworm and the only other effective alternative treatment I've come across is not suitable for bulky pieces of furniture or other largish timbers. That said however, if you have a conservatory or green-house that is not full of plant life, you could try the method I've now used with some apparent success. This depends on exposing the wood to a low level heat source - daytime heat in a conservatory or greenhouse is sufficient by itself - for a few days or even weeks if needed to kill off the colony and incidentally dry the wood out a little as well. Clearly the piece needs to be elevated above the floor, particularly if using a greenhouse, and covered to prevent sunlight bleaching.

 

[LadyArowana]

the only other effective alternative treatment I've come across is not suitable for bulky pieces of furniture or other largish timbers.

Are you thinking of freezing? that’s what I’ve done with textiles or small wooden things ( like carved elephants ). I was going to suggest it and then realised that unless someone had a functional ice house it wasn’t exactly a practical option!

 

[Cubist]

Are you thinking of freezing? that’s what I’ve done with textiles or small wooden things ( like carved elephants ). I was going to suggest it and then realised that unless someone had a functional ice house it wasn’t exactly a practical option!

I understand freezing works but haven't used that technique myself Lady A - same issue, not enough space even if I eat all the fish-fingers.

 

[jdsnape]

Thanks all. I will see if we can give the greenhouse a go now that we have some sunshine again, although I think it does get a bit damp in there at night. It is a bit tricky - as Toby says dry and not damp aren't the same, but we have limited places outside of the home.

Looking at it again, the wood-worm holes are in the back, which is a relatively thin sheet of wood. I think I will have a go at treating it there and on the interior surfaces - obviously the exterior is waxed/oiled so not much I can do there. Any recommendations for a treatment, or are they all more or less the same thing?

This is actually one of three bureaus that we could have got from various recently elderly/deceased relatives. We are sadly getting to that stage of life where stuff seems to come our way, and as we now have an old house people are offering us all the dark-wood furniture that looks out of place in their modern homes. In my Granny's case she left a note in her will that she wanted various bits to stay in the family, which is rather difficult when you are talking about great big wardrobes etc. Our house has tiny doors, so the bureau was about the only thing that would fit in!

 

[Cubist]

although I think it does get a bit damp in there at night. It is a bit tricky

Provided there are no plants in there prop the vents/windows open as the evening draws on and the external air cools. That will draw the warm moisture laden air outdoors. Make sure though that the cover you are using over the piece is not plastic or in direct contact with the surface of the piece.

 

[Toby Newell]

woah woah woah, just caught the word greenhouse.

NO.

You will destroy your furniture.

Dry is good, hot and sunny = warped, cracked and destroyed furniture.

SLOW and steady dry area.

 

[Toby Newell]

If your house is warm and dry they will die before they pupate next spring or the spring after.

 

[Matt Green]

Bureaus, bookcases, upright pianos, wardrobes....

The thing they all have in common is that they are often constructed of really good quality, often tropical, timbers that are extremely resistant to decay and attack by wood borers at the front where they are on display and look lovely. At the back it's a different story, there the timber is of distinctly less good quality because it's not on display so it is less durable and more prone to attack by wood-borers. As long as it's kept warm and dry it's not a problem, but people do like to put these items up against stone cold external walls where the temperature is low, the relive humidity is high and that cheaper timber is hygroscopic.

The life cycle of furniture beetle- which is most likely to take advantage of this situation is 2-5 years depending how mush energy they can get out of the timber: if it's high moisture content with animal glue- 2 years. Electrical meter boards used to be the archetypal example of this. Keeping your furniture isolated for that long is silly- the rest of your furniture is warm and dry and not suseptible to attack. Worst case scenario is that in April/May next year or the year after some adult beetles will emerge and fly away.

And that's it.

 

[Stevers]

Wordworm can be picky when there's a choice of timber. The elm treads and risers on my stairs down to our basement were riddled with worm, but the pitch pine strings each side were remarkably free from it. Similarly in belfrys the ash stay that stops the bells from rotating is attacked in preference to any oak framing. My only attempt at bellringing was foiled when the ash stay broke (I did let go), and we went up to the belfry to find the broken stave full of worm - this being exactly what was intended according to the tower captain. Confirming what Matt says, I would not be at all surprised if the plywood has been attacked in preference to the rest of the piece.

 

[Matt Green]

The elm treads and risers on my stairs down to our basement were riddled with worm, but the pitch pine strings each side were remarkably free from it.

Elm is notoriously wany- it's difficult to cut it with no sapwood. Elms are annoying for not growing as perfect cylinders.

Wany (comparative more wany, superlative most wany) Waning or diminished in some parts; not of uniform size throughout; said especially of sawed boards or timber cut too near the outside of the log.

It's a the sapwood edges the beetle larvae are attacking as that's where the most nutrients are. Relatively speaking- it's still a hard slog for the larvae to get enough energy to pupate.

Victorian pine imported from the Baltic regions was very slow grown and had next to no sapwood (pine trees tend to grow more cylindrically too) which is why it is so important to preserve it.

 

[Toby Newell]

Most treatments are permethrin, use a hyperdermic needle and insert into all the flight holes.

I repeat, large, fast temperature changes, especially direct sunlight warp and break furniture, putting any furniture into a greenhouse is nuts.

You are overthinking this. Put in your house where it is warmer and drier, obviously not next to any valuable antiques, but the risk will be minimal. As Matt says, the worm wont pupate and fly until next spring, if they survive and if your place is warm and dry they won't recolonise.

Worm like softer wood like sapwood, they prefer elm over oak as elm spalts whereas oak does not. Spalting, even partial spalting where you can't see the metabolite lines, effectively predigests the wood for the worm.

Baltic pine does have sapwood, having restored kilometres of it, it's just that pre 1900's pine was often super slow grown virgin, natural growth hence found in larger round, hence they could afford to lop more off the edge.

You can literally estimate date via board width because of this reason.

1500s = 300mm, 1600s = 260mm, 1700s = 240mm, 1800s = 180mm, around 1870 - 1890s are the last 150mm 6in boards, from then on you have 140mm from around 1900s, you have a bit of a blip from 1910 to 1930s where we get some very narrow boards 110 - 130mm, then up to present day where we have Wickes 'super slow grown' bananas at around 140mm.

And yes, I do photograph stair treads in macro and count the rings recently found one nearly 200yrs accross a narrow tread.

No idea how the ASA lets Wickes et al call their 30yr old timber 'slow grown'. I guess its slower than 20 years...

 

[Toby Newell]

I count 230 years, you can see the sapwood at the edge with worm galleries, super wood. This was from a 1500s cottage in Kent and was a much later c. 1900s staircase addition, the rest was period 1500s oak.

 

[Toby Newell]

Matching the 1900s pine to 1500s oak.

You can see where the worm damage delineates the sapwood portion perfectly. Worm love sapwood!

You will often find worm in the pine carcass of veneered furniture, but only flight holes at the back as they do not like exiting through the harder veneers.