Woodworm can cause a lot of damage in your home. That's why it's important to get it taken care of as soon as possible. Below you will learn more about woodworm control costs, how to recognize a woodworm, woodworm control tips, and so on!
Woodworm can cause a lot of damage in your home. That's why it's important to get it taken care of as soon as possible. Below you will learn more about woodworm control costs, how to recognize a woodworm, woodworm control tips, and so on!
What is woodworm?
Woodworm is the name for insect larvae that live in wood. They are also called wood beetles. There are common and large wood beetles. Woodworms are no fun in your home because they can cause a lot of damage to your wooden furniture and anything made of wood, including your roof structure. Therefore, it goes without saying that it is best to have this pest controlled as soon as possible!
How can you recognize woodworm?
Before you start fighting woodworm, you obviously need to be sure that you are really dealing with it. Recognizing woodworm in itself is not that difficult, but you need to know what to look for. It is especially important to pay attention because they can hide well. Usually they leave traces that you can notice. You will see all kinds of holes in your wooden floor or furniture. If there is also boron flour under these holes, then you know the woodworm is still active.
Sometimes you can also notice the beetle itself. It is dark brown and is located near your wooden structure or furniture. The beetles lay eggs that can sometimes also be noticed. Diagnosing whether woodworm is present yourself is easy, but if you are not an expert, it is impossible to be completely sure what kind of insect is involved. Therefore, it is always better to enlist the help of an expert for your woodworm control!
Is the woodworm still active?
Before you call pest control, it is important to find out if the woodworm is still active. You can tell this by the boron flour coming out of the holes. Of course, it could be old borer meal, but you can tell for sure by a little trick: put a white piece of paper under the holes and see if there is sawdust on it after a week. If that's the case, the woodworms are still active, so you need to have them controlled as soon as possible!
If you look closely at the woodworm holes you can tell if they are recent or not. New holes have a light colored inside. If you listen carefully you can hear the sound of the gnawing critters. If woodworm is suspected, it is a good idea to inspect all wooden objects. Don't forget your home's beams, doors and frames, wooden furniture, stairs, attic, crawl space, floors and paneling!
Longhorn beetle control
If you notice holes in your wooden furniture, it does not always mean that you are dealing with woodworm. In some cases this is caused by longhorn beetle. Longhorn beetle, like woodworm, loves wood. There is one big difference: timely longhorn beetle control is even more important, because the critter goes right to the core of the wood and is even more dangerous if possible.
But how do you notice the difference? Longhorn beetle leaves larger holes in the wood. The holes are oval, while those of the woodworm are rounder. If you have any doubts, it's best to have a specialist check your home as soon as possible. That way you will know for sure what you are dealing with and you can prevent damage!
Get woodworm control in a timely manner!
Woodworm control is not something you can wait weeks or months to do. Unless you like to see all your furniture full of holes. At the slightest suspicion of woodworm, it's a good idea to take action, because you won't see the critters right away but they can destroy a lot quickly.
In some cases, it's so bad that your entire roof structure has to be replaced. This can lead to life-threatening situations. Timely control is also very important if you are dealing with longhorn beetle. Longhorn beetle penetrates even deeper into the wood, so longhorn beetle control really can't wait. Never take no chances in terms of safety!
Methods to fight woodworm
If you are sure you are dealing with woodworm, it is important to fight it. There are several methods to get rid of woodworm!
Freezing or burning
If you want to be completely rid of woodworm infestation you will need to get rid of the critters completely. Because they do not tolerate extremely high or low temperatures well, this is a good method. If you notice woodworm, you can put the wooden object in the freezer for two weeks at a temperature of at least -18 C. The opposite is also possible, you can put your wooden object in the oven for half an hour at 55 C. It goes without saying that you can't just put your dining table in the freezer and so this is only a solution for very small objects.
Chemicals
If woodworm is present in larger wood surfaces, you can use a spray with poison. Be careful with this, because using poison yourself can harm your health. So this method of treatment is not the best!