Woodworm - Facts, Misconceptions, Myths and Old Wives Tales

[CliffordPope]

The responses to Zebra's question do seem to me to have slightly but significantly moved the goal posts.
We used to be rather glibly told that "woodworm doesn't like dry wood - all you need to do is cure the damp and the beetles will go away".

Now it seems that "dry" really means very dry, so dry that it is hard to achieve especially in an older house, and in any case there could well be micro-climates close to or actually inside infected woodwork which are less dry than you might assume.

It's traditional when you notice active woodworm in say a piece of furniture to saturate the affected area in cuprinol or similar, and use a little squeezy bottle with a special end to the nozzle to pump fluid into the holes. Then seal the holes with furniture wax of a matching colour, which leaves a nice aged patina and also seals the hole so new beetles aren't tempted to go in.
What actually is wrong with that approach? It works, and it means you can continue to keep the old bit of furniture in an old "damp" house without needing to preserve it in a special dry museum with central heating.

 

[Cubist]

On occasion when I’m presented with one or more lengthy contributions from others to an article of interest I commit the cardinal sin of ‘soft’ reading. As a consequence I sometimes find myself with a nagging feeling that I may have overlooked something important or of value. On occasion, when I’ve taken the time to go back, I’ve subsequently come across a missed nugget or pearl that’s filled a gap in my knowledge or understanding, or revealed a thread that, when tugged, unravels a puzzle for me. That nagging feeling has been bugging me for a few days now so today I took the time to scratch that itch in the hope of some small relief.

I hate making mistakes. My aim is always to get the answer right the first and every time and so it grieves me when I fail to do just that. Oftentimes, and thankfully, the impacts of my errors are inconsequential and affect me alone but, more often than I would like, a blunder has caused some loss, insult or pain to someone else and I then find myself rightly obliged to apologise and make amends.

So, feeling a trifle chastised after discovering the following previously over-looked admonishment I was preparing myself for such conciliatory measures;

Don't be ridiculous, it's one instance, that's not conclusive in any fashion and nobody is dealing in absolutes on a forum designed to stop people making bad decisions about period property repair. If you take it to an absurd end point you would spray all timbers every year.

But; on re-examining the statement (in full) I made that provoked that rather firm repudiation;

Zebras post, the oak one not the reply, is very curious indeed, particularly if one accepts the five year upper limit on the larval stage of woodworm. I think there are a couple of possibilities concerning where, when and how this latest infestation arose but Zebras reply also points to one of the other claims I regard with some suspicion. That being; woodworm will not infest 'dry' timber and Zebras post (the oak one) seems to provide conclusive proof that that claim too is false. Can anyone refute that evidence? Alternatively is there some specific threshold of dryness that needs to be achieved and maintained to be confident that the beetle community will move on to greener pastures?

I find, after further reflection on the above, that I have nothing to apologise for and will therefore not be withdrawing my statements and questions. However, I will urge Matt to similarly reflect and perhaps realise that - if one intends beating someone over the head with the blunt end of a stick, its worth checking first that one has hold of the right end!

 

[Zebra]

Found some more....fresh frass! This is under the stairs. Not original timbers, modern-ish timbers that I put in in 2013 (I remember that was the year I built the stairs with a fractured spine)... I didn't treat them as I thought there was no need. They're on a concrete floor with a dpm...... gonna crawl under there now with some pemethrin....

 

[Cubist]

A fractured spine! You were crawling around under there with that kind of damage? Damn, but you're just one ballsy lady. (Apologies in advance if that was not PC)

And a pressure treated timber too by the looks. That's the trouble I think, once the wood-munchers get in somewhere they won't travel far to the next restaurant. If it were me I'd be treating all the woodwork in the area irrespective of how dry it may currently be.

 

[Toby Newell]

lol, fresh frass, try saying that after a couple of gin and tonics. You go get 'em. I'm sure you have a few decades before your house falls down

I guess we should all be thankful we don't live in a place like Australia or the US, they have termites! And they really can collapse your house in a short time frame.

 

[Zebra]

I don't think it was treated timber, I think it was just planed untreated, I used a mix of whatever. The treated stuff they haven't touched.
Fractured spine....well yes, but I wasn't crawling around, I was just sawing treads with a neck brace on, being very careful. Each piece had to be individually shaped to the contours of the existing staircase, so it was a slow painstaking job, not a hefty physical one. I couldn't wait to get back to working on the house after several weeks off injured (rock climbing accident).

 

[Frog1]

I’m wondering if anyone could help me with a query about woodworm please? Well we think it’s woodworm… we went to retrieve an old table from our loft only to find that the surface of it was no longer smooth- full of holes & dust. We’ve assumed that the table had woodworm (or maybe furniture beetle?) & discarded it, however the loft area was built in 1958 - Will the wooden joists etc now be susceptible to woodworm or will they have been pretreated with something? We haven’t seen any signs of holes yet but we’re worried! Many thanks

 

[CliffordPope]

If woodworm likes damp wood so much why are they only rarely found outdoors? Fence posts certainly rot just above ground level, but have you ever seen one eaten away by woodworm?
Conversely, why do they seem to have an especial liking for tool handles, like screw drivers or hammers kept dry indoors, but never go for axes kept in damp sheds?

 

[Zebra]

I’m wondering if anyone could help me with a query about woodworm please? Well we think it’s woodworm… we went to retrieve an old table from our loft only to find that the surface of it was no longer smooth- full of holes & dust. We’ve assumed that the table had woodworm (or maybe furniture beetle?) & discarded it, however the loft area was built in 1958 - Will the wooden joists etc now be susceptible to woodworm or will they have been pretreated with something? We haven’t seen any signs of holes yet but we’re worried! Many tha

I don't know whether there would necessarily be a greater risk but I would be keeping an eye on it for a while....

 

[a twig]

If woodworm likes damp wood so much why are they only rarely found outdoors? Fence posts certainly rot just above ground level, but have you ever seen one eaten away by woodworm?
Conversely, why do they seem to have an especial liking for tool handles, like screw drivers or hammers kept dry indoors, but never go for axes kept in damp sheds?

You should see my fence posts - riddled with them.

Axe handles are usually hardwood (traditionally hickory) so more resistant to chewy things whereas tool handles are far more likely to be softwood - easier to eat and more chance of tasty sap residue.

 

[CliffordPope]

You should see my fence posts - riddled with them.

Axe handles are usually hardwood (traditionally hickory) so more resistant to chewy things whereas tool handles are far more likely to be softwood - easier to eat and more chance of tasty sap residue.

Not in west Wales - it's wetter, so woodworm hates it

Tool handles are traditionally beech.

 

[Stevers]

Technically I doubt if any tool handles are 'softwood' as in not from a deciduous tree of some sort or other. Balsa being somewhat confusingly a 'hardwood'.

Box and moulding planes are beech, but hammer and garden tool handles in particular were often ash as it has a spring to it and polishes with hand use. Woodworm absolutely love ash!

 

[a twig]

Clearly you all have much nicer hand tools than me

 

[Cubist]

I started this thread - coo, over a year ago now - with the aim of busting a few myths, or otherwise taking the edge of some old saws (forgive the pun), concerning the wood munching beasties so many of us encounter. Also, if possible, to elicit some hard facts that I/we could use to guide future actions. Having got off to a reasonably good start that did indeed kill off a couple of the myths and, by inference, confirm some conclusions; in particular: -

• When you see exit holes in the wood they are gone and won't be back - False (Probably)
• Some have a preference for particular species of wood - True, some can and do.
• The larvae may live for up to 5 years in the wood before emerging as adults - True and False. The 5 years is based on studies of particular species of woodworm, others have been found that appear to have lived in the wood for up to 16 years!
• They will only infest wet or damp wood - True (Probably) and perhaps only on the first occasion that particular piece of wood was infested.

From these most recent additions to this thread I see that there is still some contention but that's only to be expected I suppose but - to provide Frog1 with a direct response to his/her query:

It's best to make the Safest Assumption which is that the woodworm found in the old table emerged in its adult form while in the loft and found another home for its own young elsewhere in that space. It would be sensible to treat all the timber within your reach and paying particular attention to any areas that may have been damp at some point. After that keep an eye on that and all other woodwork about the house for signs of the presence of new infestations.