Woodworm treatment in Apeldoorn: which beetle is it?
Woodworm is the larva of a beetle. It spends years tunnelling through the wood and only emerges as an adult beetle, through a round exit hole. The common furniture beetle mainly attacks old furniture, floorboards, stairs and beams. The house longhorn beetle prefers softwood, such as rafters and roof timbers, and leaves larger, oval holes. Because a longhorn can weaken load-bearing timber, it always deserves an expert's eye.
- small round holes of one to two millimetres with pale, sharp edges
- little piles of fine, pale bore dust under furniture or on the floor beneath a beam
- wood that feels soft or crumbles when you press a screwdriver into it
- small brown beetles on the windowsill in late spring and summer
Why woodworm feels at home
Furniture beetles lay their eggs in cracks and old exit holes in untreated wood. Damp timber is especially attractive: in a poorly ventilated crawl space, a cold loft or a leaking shed, the damage progresses faster. Varnished or stained wood is chosen less often, while old, bare wood is chosen all the more.
It often starts with an antique cabinet, an old chest or firewood kept indoors. From there, emerging beetles can seek out other wood in the house. That is why it is wise not to move an affected piece of furniture up to the loft unchecked, where beams and floorboards are there for the taking.
Our approach to woodworm
At the inspection we assess how far the damage goes, which species it is and whether the infestation is still active. Old, dark holes without fresh dust have sometimes been empty for a long time and need no treatment. If there is activity, we choose a targeted wood treatment: a professional product is applied on and into the affected timber, so that larvae inside and beetles emerging later come into contact with it.
Loose furniture is treated separately. Where load-bearing beams are badly affected, we advise having a builder or structural engineer assess their strength before anything else is done.
What you can do yourself
Not sure whether a piece of furniture is still occupied? Lay a sheet of dark paper underneath and check after a few weeks for fresh dust. Cover existing holes with a strip of masking tape; new holes in the tape reveal a beetle that has emerged. That helps us judge more quickly at the inspection whether woodworm treatment is needed.
A dry house helps too: ventilate the crawl space and loft and fix leaks. Do not sand or paint over holes before it is clear whether anything is still alive inside, or you lose the evidence while the damage continues. A product from the DIY store often does not penetrate deep enough into thick beams.
Protecting wood and spotting other uninvited guests
Check second-hand and antique furniture before it comes into the house, and store firewood outside or in a shed, not next to the stove indoors. Give bare wood on a summerhouse or log cabin a protective coating and keep rainwater out of the shed.
Anyone searching the loft or shed sometimes discovers other uninvited guests too: droppings in the insulation, in which case read about mouse control, or a papery nest under the eaves, where our page on wasp nest removal helps. For an overview of everything we do, see pest control in Apeldoorn.
