- Thread starter robgil
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Penners
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Keep going, Rob. You'll catch up with it by the time it gets to Debenham. :wink:
Just had a survey for the dreaded WW, suprise suprise... found some..
(Has anyone ever had a survey and discovered that they DONT have woodworm??)
Anyway, got up to £950, then i asked how much it would cost to do the garage, answer £175.. when I said, "ok leave it", it went back to, "Well I can knock off £75 !!"
My next tactic... "hmmm well it's more than I thought, so I'll have to get another quote"...
Calculator & pad came back out....
Bottom line £610 inc...
Where there's a will there's a way !!
(Has anyone ever had a survey and discovered that they DONT have woodworm??)
Anyway, got up to £950, then i asked how much it would cost to do the garage, answer £175.. when I said, "ok leave it", it went back to, "Well I can knock off £75 !!"
My next tactic... "hmmm well it's more than I thought, so I'll have to get another quote"...
Calculator & pad came back out....
Bottom line £610 inc...
Where there's a will there's a way !!
Matt Green
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robgil said:
Quite the opposite, they tend to be a bit lethargic.
Quite a few people who've employed me in the past, as it happens. There might well be evidence of furniture beetle beetle damage, but when you ask if it's active everything gets a bit woolly with phrases like "whilst we can't tell if the infestation is current, you might benefit from the peace of mind..."
You know you are just paying for a sheet of paper with 'Guarantee' written on it, right? Because £610 doesn't cover cleaning the roof out to ensure the spray hits the wood rather than the dust that's on it. And for what? I'm unaware of any roof collapse from furniture beetle damage and it will only be in the sapwood portions anyway, or more likely the loft hatch timbers formed from low quality off-cuts.
Schoolmarm
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What Matt says.
Plus, chemicals used are really poisonous and you are lining the pocket of a chancer basically.
Plus, chemicals used are really poisonous and you are lining the pocket of a chancer basically.
Penners
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The Chancer of the Exchequer, perhaps?
Schoolmarm
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:lol:
So are you saying that "pest" controllers (woodworm..to be specific) are just ripping everyone off? I just dont have any knowledge of the little critters, so if someone tells me its there & shows me a bit of dust, then i have to take his word for it.. he's the "expert" after all...
What cleaning should i expect them to carry out before the application? If you spray on top of dust, wouldnt that just soak into the timber anyway?
What cleaning should i expect them to carry out before the application? If you spray on top of dust, wouldnt that just soak into the timber anyway?
Penners
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I think that to answer that question with a blanket "yes" would be extremely unfair to those reputable and ethical members of the industry. But it must be said that damp-proofing and infestation control are sectors that have attracted their fair share of fly-by-nights.Mo-sizely said:
The pattern is pretty familiar to period property owners. " FBN Damp and Pest Control International Ltd" are called in to do a "free survey". Their report says something like:
They then charge you a wad of cash to go up into the roof and squirt a moderate amount of very nasty chemicals around the place (advising you, if you're lucky, to evacuate the building for a specified period). Beams encrusted with dust won't soak up enough of this to ensure eradication of the nasties.
Two years later, you try to contact them to complain that you're still finding woodworm frass, and - oh dear - the company has folded. There's a new organisation called "FBN Damp and Pest Control (2010) Ltd " but they're unable to honour the old company's guarantees.
The above is not intended to refer to any real organisation, but... well, you get my drift.
So, the message is - there are reputable organisations out there, offering a valuable service. Just be very sure that you choose one of them, and not a cowboy.
OMG I am so trusting !! (read Gullible !)
Their website says...
"As we are members of the British Wood Preserving & Damp Proofing Association (BWPDA) we are pleased to be able to offer our customers valuable underwritten warranties through the Guarantee Protection Trust (GPT). The purpose of the Guarantee Protection Trust is to give verifiable security to long-term guarantees of selected contractors specialising in timber treatment in-situ, chemical damp coursing, and cavity wall tie replacement if ***************** cease to trade."
Is the general consensus that i save my £600?
Their website says...
"As we are members of the British Wood Preserving & Damp Proofing Association (BWPDA) we are pleased to be able to offer our customers valuable underwritten warranties through the Guarantee Protection Trust (GPT). The purpose of the Guarantee Protection Trust is to give verifiable security to long-term guarantees of selected contractors specialising in timber treatment in-situ, chemical damp coursing, and cavity wall tie replacement if ***************** cease to trade."
Is the general consensus that i save my £600?
i am just going to spray my own timbers myself should i find any active wood worm , what can someone with 600+ pounds of my hard earned possibly do what I cannot do myself? But then again my house is in the state where it would be easy to spray the timbers anyway , after a good cleaning with a henry.
biffvernon
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I think I mentioned this a year or two ago; the only worm infestation we've had was in an oak-veneered plywood cupboard dating from the 1930s. There were loads of beetles emerging one summer. We didn't really like the cupboard and it was a good excuse to get rid of it. Allegedly, the glue used in such plywood is particularly tasty and sustains the worms even when conditions are drier than usually tolerated.
Feltwell
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robgil said:
I believe the general opinion is that you don't need to spray providing the timbers are dry enough. Why spray nasty chemicals around (especially with a baby in the house) if you don't need to? The building work you're doing should ensure any damp is sorted and the timber dries to a point where the woodworm no longer find it inviting.
Having said that I do need to spray my cellar stairs at some point - like most cellars it is damp, no real way to stop that and keep the stairs dry. From a previous discussion on here it looks like one of the very few circumstances in which spraying may be appropriate.
FamilyWiggs
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I would save the £600.
If you are really worried that you have active infestations of a scale that keeps you awake at night, then you can buy the same chemicals from DIY sheds for about £30 for 5l. You could even print yourself a certificate of guarantee!
Just sort out and damp timber issues, and the wee beasties will go of their own accord.
If you are really worried that you have active infestations of a scale that keeps you awake at night, then you can buy the same chemicals from DIY sheds for about £30 for 5l. You could even print yourself a certificate of guarantee!
Just sort out and damp timber issues, and the wee beasties will go of their own accord.
Matt Green
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Mo-sizely said:
They are not ripping people off, they are providing peace of mind- the sad fact is that the British public have zero tollerance to insects in their home, particularly those that might be damaging their investment. There is quite good money in exploiting that fact. They provide you with a guarantee and base their provision of service from holes in timber. The holes don't go away once they've been sprayed, so the 'evidence' is always there.
For a laugh, get another company around a week later, don't tell them anything and see what happens. For an even bigger laugh wait a couple of months and have a friend book the same company to look around the same house saying they've recently bought it and they didn't get a guarantee.
Mo-sizely said:
heh. He's selling pesticide on commission.
robgil said:
OK im convinced, ive always had a similar attitude, with cars etc, if a grease monkey can do it, i can do it.. (although i have had my share of bleeding knuckles..)
So the plan is to move in as planned, rather than pay for two nights storage of all of our furniture & two days with the delivery company, then spray the house room by room at my leisure.
Thanks everyone, Sorry for hijacking the thread a bit...
skier-hughes
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I wouldn't even bother spraying.
We moved in 5 years ago, had a wood report, noted evidence of old and recent woodworm attack.
Told to spray all of attic and to attend to certain beams.
We didn't bother with any treatments, and having got the place dry and lived in, it's been fine with no sight or sound of a woodworm!
We moved in 5 years ago, had a wood report, noted evidence of old and recent woodworm attack.
Told to spray all of attic and to attend to certain beams.
We didn't bother with any treatments, and having got the place dry and lived in, it's been fine with no sight or sound of a woodworm!
Penners
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I'm sure Rob will forgive you - particularly as much of the information that you've been given will also be of help to him.Mo-sizely said:
Anyway, the concept of a linear "thread" is something of a misnomer on PPUK. The phrase "plate of spaghetti" seems somehow more apposite - more convoluted, but much more tasty (particularly with a bit of added sauce).