Identifying Woodworm at Home

What is Woodworm?

It’s important to know how to identify whether or not you have a woodworm problem. Woodworm is a term used to describe any insect that feeds on wood. The term “woodworm” is the generic name for the various species of wood-boring beetle. These insects include the common furniture beetle, house longhorn beetle and death watch beetle. Woodworm causes damage to timber in buildings by feeding on them as larvae.

Although they are called a worm, they are not worms at all, but look very much like small beetles with wings. Furniture beetles are small, brown insects that cause considerable damage because of their numbers. Common furniture beetles make small holes in woodwork, approximately 2mm diameter and leave piles of sawdust which can be found below wooden beams or furniture

If you want to tell if you have a woodworm infestation in your home, look for tiny round holes on your wooden furniture and floors. These holes can range between one and ten millimetres in diameter. 

The life cycle of woodworm typically lasts between three and five years but can last up to twelve years depending on the type of woodworm infestation.

Woodworms prefer damp or wet areas so it may be possible that there is an infestation of these bugs if you have had water damage somewhere in your house before now. If you’re lucky, you’ll catch them before they become adults and cause any real damage.

There are many different types of woodworm that affect timber in a plethora of ways; however, there are some common traits which most share.

The Signs of Woodworm Infestation?

To identify a woodworm infestation, you need to know what to look for.

Woodworm Holes

The most obvious clue that you may have a woodworm infestation are exit holes. Woodworms burrow into the wood, leaving small holes behind. Woodworm holes are circular and vary between 0.5mm and 2mm in diameter and typically appear in wooden furniture or floorboards or construction timber. If you look closely at the holes, you will see that the sides are smooth and oval-shaped. The surface of the wood around the hole may be dusty, which is caused by frass (woodworm droppings) falling from inside the tunnels below it. You can use a matchstick to investigate further by pushing it into one of these holes to see how deep it goes.

Additional signs of Woodworm damage to look for:

  • Signs of dust around the holes (frass)
  • Tunnels and burrows in the wood that become visible as they widen over time
  • Crumbling wood near the holes
  • Sagging floors caused by extensive tunnels beneath it

Life Cycle of Woodworms

Woodworms go through four life stages — egg, larva (woodworm), pupa (insect) and adult insect — with each stage lasting at least one year depending on the environment and species of beetle. 

Woodworms are small beetles that eat wood; once inside the wood, woodworms live and breed inside their tunnels by laying their eggs inside the wood, which eventually hatch into larvae. The larvae will keep on eating until they have enough food stored up for them to survive pupating into an adult beetle (a process called metamorphosis) and move on to other parts of your home. This causes damage over time as they eat through your wooden furniture and flooring, causing weakened paintwork and structural damage. Once this happens, we call it infestation.

The next step is to determine whether there is an active infestation or if your home is simply suffering from residual damage due to past infestations.

If there’s a current infestation, then you should find adult beetles emerging through those tunnels around May/June time.

Treatment for Woodworm

There are several ways to treat woodworm, depending on the extent of your infestation and the type of woodworm beetle you have in your home. The first step is to identify what kind of woodworm you’re dealing with, which can be done by using a magnifying glass to see if it has two or three pairs of legs on its thorax. 

Once you’ve identified the species, you can begin treatment by applying a woodworm treatment that is effective against both larvae and beetles (also known as dustless drilling). Treating in this way prevents eggs from hatching into larvae and becoming full-grown beetles.

A professional pest control company can help treat your home for woodworms effectively. They’ll inspect your home thoroughly before making a recommendation on which treatment method is best for you. If there are signs of an active infestation, we recommend hiring an expert exterminator who will know exactly how to get rid of these pests safely and efficiently with minimal damage caused during the process.

Different Types of Woodworm Treatment

Treatment for woodworm is typically undertaken in one of three ways: chemical, heat, or cold.

Chemical Treatment for Woodworm

If you choose to use a chemical treatment on your woodworm problem, there are a number of different chemicals you can use that have proven effective over the years. 

Heat Treatment for Woodworm

Heat treatment involves raising the temperature of your home and keeping it at a specific level for a period of time. The high temperatures kill off most larvae, but this method has mixed results when it comes to killing all larvae as well as adult beetles.

Cold Treatment for Woodworm

Cold Treatment involves lowering the temperature of your home, which also kills off most larvae, but again can have mixed results when it comes to killing all larvae and adult beetles.

One way to tell if your treatment has worked is by checking for signs of live activity or new damage. If you see evidence of ongoing activity like new flight holes or fresh frass after your woodworm infestation is treated then it’s best to call in an expert who can help identify why the treatment isn’t working and what needs to be done about it.

Prevention of Woodworm

The best way to prevent woodworm is to control the conditions in which they thrive. Woodworms need damp and rotting timber to grow and reproduce. The first step you should take to prevent a woodworm problem is to ensure that no water gets into wooden furniture or floor boards and joists, especially if it’s stored in a dark and damp place. If any of your wood does get wet, be sure to dry it immediately with an absorbent cloth.

Because woodworms are dependent on damp conditions, the best way to stop them from becoming an issue is to prevent dampness in the first place. Here are some steps you can take:

  • First, fix any existing issues that could be causing damp in your house, such as leaky pipes or cracks in your walls
  • Use a wood preservative on any exposed timbers
  • Replace pieces of rotten wood with new ones and use treated wood for these replacements
  • Remove any old furniture from your home, as old furniture is often made from untreated wood and can attract woodworm
  • Seal around all windows and doors using a flexible sealant, which allows movement in the building while still protecting against water ingress

It’s also important that the air circulation inside your home is sufficient enough to keep your furniture dry. You can do this by leaving spaces between objects when you store them and by making sure there are no cracks or vents around windows, doors or walls where moisture may enter.

Another tip: Make sure the paint on any woodwork you have at home is thick enough (at least two coats) with a good quality wood primer before painting over it with coloured paint—so that if it does get wet, the water can’t seep in as easily between coats of paint on its surface.

Professional Service or DIY?

If you suspect you may have a woodworm infestation, or if it’s been some time since your house was last checked, then it’s likely time to call in a professional. You’ll need to identify an expert in the field and schedule a consultation with them. They will do an initial check of the property and advise you on whether or not there is any further action that needs to be taken.

While companies will tend to charge for their check-ups, they should be able to give you a clear answer following their initial visit as to whether or not they think there is cause for concern. If there is no evidence of woodworm found at your home, then you can breathe a sigh of relief—but if any woodworm is discovered during the inspection, then the service provider will work with you on developing an effective woodworm treatment plan for your property.