Worried about woodworm? Watch this before you reach for the chemicals

[@ChristenThykjaer]

So happy that the first video I found recommends no chemicals, I'll keep my old furniture dry and hot. Great informative video! 😅

[@sympatheticrestoration]

Most welcome, thanks. Adequate ventilation is sadly so often forgotten in homes and the humid environment is what helps these critters thrive.

[@WishfulWanderers]

Great to hear someone not jumping straight to chemicals. Thanks for the info 🙌🏼

[@shadrewan]

Thank you so much for posting this video, I found it informative and enlightening as it deals with the root cause of the problem.

[@sympatheticrestoration]

Thank you, and you’re exactly right. Determining the root cause is vital for all building defects before resorting to any possible ‘remedies’

[@louisegreen9476]

Thank you, just what I needed to watch today! Informative and practical as ever 😊

[@sympatheticrestoration]

Most welcome, thanks for watching 😁

[@ruthross7808]

That was very informative. I have loads of holes in beams and frass, but I now know to take a moisture reading first before panicking and going down the chemical route. Thanks.

[@sympatheticrestoration]

Most welcome, certainly worth first identifying if it’s likely to be an active or legacy issue. 👍

[@scottvirgogp]

A super useful video thanks for sharing. Looking forward to watching more soon 👍🏻

[@sympatheticrestoration]

Thanks chum, glad it was helpful. More in the pipeline 👍

[@karentacey8372]

Another thoroughly informative video. Thank you!

[@sympatheticrestoration]

Glad it was helpful!

[@whittierlewis]

Thanks for sharing! Very informative!😊

[@sympatheticrestoration]

Most welcome, thanks for watching and glad it was useful.

[@liambond6955]

Hi Tim, I have an ongoing wood boring beetle infestation in the loft. For context, we only moved in to the property 3 months ago and the loft was previously boarded to the rafters, the floor joists and they had installed partition around the perimeter, essentially they had converted the loft. We have asbestos cement soffits at the eaves and there is no provision for ventilation in the roof whatsoever (no tile vents, etc). A few weeks ago I opened up some of the plasterboard in the loft and saw pilot holes with frass, upon removing all the plasterboard I have found a small leak coming from a lead valley. The infestation is widespread throughout the roof space timbers, but the timber is generally okay past 5-10mm, i think i caught it at the right time. I've Got a roofer coming round to install 16nr tile vents which should sufficiently ventilation the space, and to replace the leaking lead valley. I then plan to insulate 300 mm at joist level (100 between joists, 200 on top). My question is this, I am comfortable not putting any treatment on timber that will not be covered by insulation, so all rafters, etc. However, where I am covering the joists with insulation, I am worried the woodworm will continue to thrive in these areas as the air will not be able to circulate under the insulation. Should I use chemicals on the joists? What are your thoughts? Thanks for reading and for the very informative video. Liam

[@jennytaylor3324]

Frass. What a great word! Greetings from Chester.

[@ruaraidhmcdonald-walker9524]

Great that you’re on KZbin now!

[@sympatheticrestoration]

Thanks, it does mean I can do much more in depth videos for those who are after a bit more detail 👍

[@cwoosh]

Very interesting. I have old wormholes in one piece of antique furniture. Now I know what to look for and how to treat it. We hate using chemicals around our house. Thank you

[@sympatheticrestoration]

Great, the principles are certainly the same for furniture too, the challenge with a lot of it though are various varnishes and coatings that can inhibit them drying out easily.

[@Derek_Garnham]

rub wax into the holes, its then easy to tell when new flight holes appear helping you distinguish between active infestation and historical.

[@bmxvids2699]

Think I may need to double check the areas (above doors & windows) we “treated” 20 years ago 😮 thanks for a very informative video

[@sympatheticrestoration]

Most welcome, glad it was useful and gave you some areas to check for yourself.

[@automotivetales]

Excellent video, especially like the gas mask stuffed with £20s! That’s exactly what I think of when I see ‘a chemical damp proof course’ on house particulars 😂 good to finally see a use for those damp meters!

[@sympatheticrestoration]

Thanks chum, yeah the moisture meters do have a proper use in timber! Unlike the ill-informed using them in walls 🤦🏻

[@philipoakley5498]

Excellent. Informative.

[@Zachp_007]

Absolutely love your instagram content. You are very knowledgable and measured with your advice. I look forward to one day restoring my own property! 😊

[@sympatheticrestoration]

Thank you. My aim is to arm folks with knowledge of how their homes work and the reasons why to use certain materials and methods so that they can make their own informed choice.

[@joharris6238]

Thanks for this rich, really helpful, as I’ve got 200yesr old timbers in France and have noticed “dust” just where a beam goes into the wall. I was going to reach for the chemicals, but will try your approach on next trip.

[@sympatheticrestoration]

Certainly worth trying to get a moisture reading around those areas and compare it to other parts of the same timber. It could point to where you’re getting trapped moisture.

[@rosslukeshay]

Great information , thanks Rich

[@sympatheticrestoration]

Thanks very much. 👍

[@solatrons6642]

Great advice and serious work, thank you man 👍

[@sympatheticrestoration]

Most welcome, thanks 🤟

[@MichaelSmith-hg1sb]

Thanks for the great info I live in a Victorian cottage with old oak everywhere inc the loft. There definite signs of beetle holes. We had both lofts treated by a professional company because our house is grade 2 listed, the bottom of stairs were creaking and very loose. So I strip the 2 bottom steps out and found a large oak been that been destroyed by damp and woodworm. Whilst I repaired / replaced the timber work I brushed the a treatment which was the same as the professional company (PETER COX) that did the lofts. Fingers crossed we won’t see anymore grass.

[@MichaelSmith-hg1sb]

Sorry frass 🙈

[@sympatheticrestoration]

It sounds like the under stairs needs more ventilation if the beams were rotten. The chemical timber ‘treatment’ won’t protect what I’ve got long term unless you remove the moisture source.

[@hayley6661]

A really informative watch!

[@sympatheticrestoration]

Thanks very much, more to come soon!

[@bridgetvw2482]

Great information!

[@sympatheticrestoration]

Glad it was helpful!

[@danielcope7929]

Thanks

[@muddypawz7778]

Is there a way to fill the holes so the wood doesn't look so mottled? Ue for aesthetics

[@Dana-dana1]

Also, if you can, as I know many folks have a fear of them, leave the cellar spiders (They are the ones with long spindly legs and slim bodies) in your home. They'll eat anything, including wood worm.

[@emilymarchant2620]

Excited to see more videos :) love your insta feed

[@sympatheticrestoration]

Ahh thanks lovely. Several in the pipeline coming soon 😃

[@katyatthemanor2747]

So interesting!

[@sympatheticrestoration]

Thanks lovely - and for kindly sharing it too.

[@martynbanton-smith5100]

Agree completely that to eradicate wood borers, you need to eradicate damp and its causes. Would be interested to hear your thoughts on dry rot: after eradicating the damp that encouraged it originally, would you then recommend a chemical treatment to kill the fruiting body? All good wishes

[@sympatheticrestoration]

A bit like the fire triangle, dry rot requires three components to live and spread; food source (organic material like timber), moisture, and still air. Take one away and it no longer thrives and there should be no need for additional ‘treatment’. We all already have naturally occurring dry rot pathogens in the air around us and our homes, the most common being Fusarium, so chemically killing it on one area doesn’t remove the risk of return if you still have those three constituent conditions. In short, chemicals do kill it, but that doesn’t remove the issue from reoccurring - drying the area and ventilation does.

[@martynbanton-smith5100]

@@sympatheticrestoration Really interesting. Thank you for the information. In gratitude

[@kookia213]

Can you advice on how much humidity % you need to have in your room?. For instance, if you use a de-humidifer, you can set it to anywhere between 40-60%. What would be a good number that the bugs won't like? (and which will also suck the moisture from the wood beams?)

[@sympatheticrestoration]

I’ve another video that covers aspects of humidity for a healthy home. The issue with de-humidifiers is that they will extract moisture no matter the humidity levels (unless of course 0%). Much better to try to get the room in a balance using ventilation. In most cases this means opening the windows frequently.

[@kookia213]

@@sympatheticrestoration Thank you for the point of view. Opening the window is the easiest part i think. The question is: Are there specific times where you should / should not open the window. For example, if outside is 100% humidity (winter), should the window still be left open?. Won't it drag humid air to the inside? (and thus, increase the humidity levels). Thank you again

[@sympatheticrestoration]

@@kookia213 I’ve actually a video that explains exactly this, and why 100% RH in the winter can often still be dryer air than inside. The video is only on my Instagram page though (same username).

[@Ian-gw2vx]

I can hear a scratchy, ticking sound from the wood pile in my basket and around my stove. I can see woodworm holes in some logs and dust.

[@sympatheticrestoration]

Could well be deathwatch beetle emerging. The ticking is their mating call. Get some spiders in if you can!

[@Ian-gw2vx]

@@sympatheticrestoration Its def not deathwatch beetle as I have listened to their sound online. It's more a scratchy, wood crackling noise. I would put them outside but I don't have a log store and it's raining 😥

[@sympatheticrestoration]

Perhaps to be on the safe side it may be worth seeing if you can either remove it from your home or somehow store it all in a container that you can seal then🤷🏻

[@ChrisTheBroadcaster]

So ....... what? Everyone in the restoration biz is a Michael Caine meets John Cleese? AND YOU DO a GREAT job at it !!?????? Really. Thanks. ......... 'just bought ... uh ... took away, free ... a 40+ year old Cincinnati made wooden file cabinet, free because of the moisture damage on bottom, tho' hardware, etc., are all fine for restoration. In process of the first approach today, sneaking it past my wife out to the studio out back--wiping it down with anti bacterial spray / paper towels immediately disposed of and placing in direct California sunshine, I find YOUR marvelous work of art / comedy / instruction confirming a couple things--one, seeing ??? a beetle saunter out of somewhere in my new possession. But I digress. THANKS AGAIN. (The John Cleese reference is doubly complimentary to you--in graduate school for adult / andragogy M.Ed., I learn he's a pioneer / big shot in that academic field !!) /s/ Happy as a beetle who's happily where a happy beetle should be ... in California

[@jessicag630]

What to do with newly cut log which has problems with cracking and insects eating it?

[@sympatheticrestoration]

Cracking is inevitable with newly cut wood as it dries out. It can more pronounced depending on the species of tree. Provided it continues to dry then wood boring insects will soon lose interest in it. If you have a moisture meter then you could use this to monitor the drying, they’re not expensive devices (£12-20)

[@automotivetales]

*also - if you happened to have an Amazon affiliate link for a decent damp meter for checking beams that might be useful in the video description 😉

[@sympatheticrestoration]

To be honest you can spend £10 or £000s. Mine is a cheapo £10 one which probably isn’t particularly accurate but it gives me a good enough average over several areas to be able to make a judgement whether it’s dry or not. Happy to do an affiliate link but I find often what I recommend fluctuates in price and there is no point over-paying for something that is available pretty cheaply. 👍

[@Felixkoifish]

Hi sir , thanks for the video , May I know where you get the beetles chart ?

[@sympatheticrestoration]

Thank you. I’ve used various sources but if you search for a woodblring insect lifecycle online you’ll find similar versions.

[@Felixkoifish]

@@sympatheticrestoration Thanks

[@g.a.g.2197]

Dear friends, i have a question. does anyone know something about treat this woodworms using an OZONE GENERATOR GAS in high concentrations, i found many articles in the internet about it, this devices are use for desinfectation of hospitals, schools hotels, etc, the ozono gas, kills bacteria, bad odors, humidity and also larva and the insect even, is not capable to kill the eggs, but if you kill the larva and insect, you break the circle of breeding of the insect. any ways, i just bought the device and will use it in my house, and i will post the results if anyone is interested, you must buy a semi industrial machine, not cheap but worth the try. let see how it goes.

[@sympatheticrestoration]

The issue I can see with these types of treatments are twofold, 1, that they will not penetrate below the first few mm of timber therefore it won’t break life cycles of the insects as both the eggs and larvae will be untouched - they are generally several mm below the surface. 2, these ‘treatments’ will kill all the other natural predators that help eradicate the insects - eg spiders that sit waiting for beetles to emerge to breed will be killed.

[@CharlesJones-wi7tz]

Heat guns absolutely destroy wood borers. Although it’s clearly not practical on a large scale.

[@sympatheticrestoration]

In old buildings you need to be extremely careful applying heat. Sadly many historic homes are lost to fire from careless use of heat (e.g. when doing copper plumbing) during renovations. Dry timber, especially between floors, can ignite so quickly.