Discovering a woodworm infestation in your home is never a good thing. Woodworm is a serious problem that can harm everything from wood furniture to the underlying structure of the property itself. The question we frequently get from clients is one of whether woodworm treatment is a one-time proposition or not. Unfortunately, there is no black and white answer we can give.
The first thing to know is that a woodworm infestation could be the result of one of three different woodworm beetles. The most common, and the one we generically referred to as woodworm, is the furniture beetle. This is the least damaging of three. The other two are the longhorn beetle and the death watch beetle. The longhorn beetle is the most destructive of the three.
Things To Note Regarding Woodworm Treatment
Observing Woodworm Activity
Clients who contact us in need of woodworm treatment do so after noticing woodworm activity in their furniture or timbers. They notice small bore holes along with what appear to be fine sawdust in and around the bore hole sites. There is both good and bad news here.
The good news is that recognising wormwood activity as early in the life cycle as possible increases our chances of effectively treating it the first time. The bad news is that by the time holes appear, the worms have already burrowed themselves inside the wood. If they are in deep enough, damage could be significant.
A Challenging Life Cycle
We cannot promise that woodworm treatment is a one-time proposition due to the life cycle of the woodworm. Going back to the common furniture beetle, its larvae can live inside a piece of wood for years, gradually consuming that wood as food. The worm does not actually emerge from the wood until it becomes an adult beetle.
Another challenge is found in the reality that adult beetles may return to those very same bore holes to lay eggs – if they have access and the holes have not been treated properly. This means that improperly treated woodworm could create an ongoing cycle that continues year after year until the affected timbers simply fall apart.
Woodworm treatment can be a one-time proposition if an infestation is fairly new and the technician who applies the treatment does it correctly. On the other hand, a more severe infestation may require several treatments to effectively eradicate the problem. In either case, every woodworm treatment should be followed up by at least 12 months of careful observation to make sure infestation doesn't return.
If you are at all concerned about a possible woodworm infestation on your property, please don't hesitate to call Thames Valley Timber Treatment right away. One of our professional technicians will come out to inspect your property and, if necessary, begin the treatment process.
The sooner woodworm treatment is implemented, the more effective it is in the long run. So, do not wait. Reach out to us right away if you have observed any activity that might possibly suggest woodworm infestation.