Woodworm and Timber Treatment

Holes in timber tell you very little on their own. What matters is whether they are active — whether a larva is still feeding inside the wood, or whether the damage finished years ago. That is the first thing we settle on a survey, because the answer decides whether treatment is needed at all.

Active infestation or historic damage

Fresh exit holes are pale, sharp-edged and the colour of clean timber inside. Below them you find frass — a fine, light bore dust that gathers in small piles or catches on ledges and cobwebs. Brush it away, come back a few weeks later, and if it has returned the infestation is live. Old holes are dark, dusty and rounded at the rim, and nothing new collects beneath them.

On survey we look at:

• The colour, edge and diameter of the exit holes
• Fresh frass below the holes and on surfaces underneath
• The moisture in the timber and any staining around it
• Joist ends, floor voids and roof-space junctions
• Timber in contact with soil, and mud tubing on walls or footings

The beetle you see is not the one doing the damage

The adult beetle has already left the wood; the hole is where it came out. The damage is done by the larva, which hatches from an egg laid in a crack or open grain and then tunnels through the timber, feeding for a long period. This is why surface spraying alone achieves little: the product has to be worked into the timber and the surface kept protected afterwards. Every product we use is a biocidal product licensed by the Turkish Ministry of Health.

Moisture is usually the underlying cause. Wood-boring insects favour timber that has taken up damp rather than dry, well-ventilated wood. A leaking roof, a failed pipe, an unventilated cellar or a joist end buried in damp masonry keeps those conditions in place. We point out the source on survey; without the repair, the problem tends to return.

Termites are a job on the structure itself

The classic sign of termites is mud tubing — narrow, earth-coloured shelter tubes built from soil and saliva, running up a foundation wall or column to reach the timber above. Termites tunnel with the grain and hollow out the softer growth rings, so a beam that looks sound from the outside can be reduced to a thin shell.

Structural termite work is specialist work. It combines treatment of the soil around and beneath the building with monitoring and bait stations; a one-off surface application does not deal with it.

Furniture and structural timber are handled differently

Antique and valuable furniture is not approached like a roof timber. Finishes, veneers and animal glues can react to what is applied to them, so we match the method and the product to the piece and test it out of sight first. With rafters, floorboards and load-bearing timber the priorities are access, coverage and getting the product into the depth of the wood.

After that, protecting timber is largely building maintenance: break any wood-to-soil contact, keep structural timber clear of the ground, ventilate roof spaces and cellars, and repair leaks without delay. Stored timber and firewood should not be stacked against the walls.