A Guide To Woodworm
What is woodworm? The term "Woodworm" refers to the larvae of any wood-boring beetle.
The most popular ones in the UK include: - the Common Furniture Beetle (Anobium punctatum), - Deathwatch Beetle (Xestobium rufuvillosum), - House Longhorn Beetle (Hylotrupes bajulus) - Powderpost Beetle (Lyctus brunneus).
A woodworm beetle will consume wood and can cause great issues within a home destroying furniture and other household items.
How do I know if my house has woodworm? You should study your wood and you may or may not notice small holes forming.
However, in some cases eggs are laid which you cannot spot yourself - you should get the damp proofing experts in this instance.
You may also notice fine, powdery dust and crumbly edges to your floor boards and joists.
You may even notice a beetle but this is very rare.
What if I find holes in my wood? Don't worry if you notice holes - this may even indicate an old woodworm problem (they may have moved on and no longer infest your wood.
) To be on the safe side, contact damp proofing specialists for advice.
Also, you should know that not all woodworm are harmful.
How can I prevent woodworm? - You should block any holes you notice during the winter months.
You can do this by painting the holes over with a coat of paint.
Then in the spring, you can check if any beetles have come out of the wood.
This can help you to determine if you have woodworm and if they are active.
- Another tip is to test the humidity of your wood by using a timber moisture meter which any professional can do for you.
Woodworm will always prefer wood with moisture content over 18 % so see if your wood is like this or not.
- You should also keep rooms well ventilated to keep moisture levels low.
- Another tip is to remove pieces of furniture that are infested to avoid the woodworm spreading.
This is much like isolating a virus.
- You can try and install electric fly traps to kill the adult beetles in the summer months.
I heard it only happens to older properties? This is not at all true.
Woodworm can strike anywhere so both older properties and new builds should watch out for possible woodworm infestation.
The earlier that you spot it, the less damage that will be done and the sooner you can get on with your life!
The most popular ones in the UK include: - the Common Furniture Beetle (Anobium punctatum), - Deathwatch Beetle (Xestobium rufuvillosum), - House Longhorn Beetle (Hylotrupes bajulus) - Powderpost Beetle (Lyctus brunneus).
A woodworm beetle will consume wood and can cause great issues within a home destroying furniture and other household items.
How do I know if my house has woodworm? You should study your wood and you may or may not notice small holes forming.
However, in some cases eggs are laid which you cannot spot yourself - you should get the damp proofing experts in this instance.
You may also notice fine, powdery dust and crumbly edges to your floor boards and joists.
You may even notice a beetle but this is very rare.
What if I find holes in my wood? Don't worry if you notice holes - this may even indicate an old woodworm problem (they may have moved on and no longer infest your wood.
) To be on the safe side, contact damp proofing specialists for advice.
Also, you should know that not all woodworm are harmful.
How can I prevent woodworm? - You should block any holes you notice during the winter months.
You can do this by painting the holes over with a coat of paint.
Then in the spring, you can check if any beetles have come out of the wood.
This can help you to determine if you have woodworm and if they are active.
- Another tip is to test the humidity of your wood by using a timber moisture meter which any professional can do for you.
Woodworm will always prefer wood with moisture content over 18 % so see if your wood is like this or not.
- You should also keep rooms well ventilated to keep moisture levels low.
- Another tip is to remove pieces of furniture that are infested to avoid the woodworm spreading.
This is much like isolating a virus.
- You can try and install electric fly traps to kill the adult beetles in the summer months.
I heard it only happens to older properties? This is not at all true.
Woodworm can strike anywhere so both older properties and new builds should watch out for possible woodworm infestation.
The earlier that you spot it, the less damage that will be done and the sooner you can get on with your life!
