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    1. What is Woodworm
    2. Woodworm Lifecycle
    3. Woodworm Tips
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Woodworm Tips

Use the following woodworm tips to help you confirm whether you have a serious or current woodworm problem and what you can do to help ease your woodworm problem:

Detecting woodwormWoodworm tip 1

Not all woodworm beetles/larvae are harmful - it is always a good idea to get a specialist to identify the woodworm before you decide on treatment. Contact Wise Property Care for help or advice or visit the Property Care Association for qualified specialists within your area.

Woodworm tip 2

Woodworm emerging from wood hole

Adult woodworm beetles are responsible for boring the holes when they exit the wood to breed. This happens between May and September, so a good idea is to block the woodworm holes during the winter by painting with a coat of emulsion, or applying masking tape. In the spring, you can check if any woodworm beetles have emerged and therefore determine whether you have active woodworm in your timber.

Woodworm tip 3

Moisture meter

Test the humidity of your wood within your property using a timber moisture meter. These cost about £50, but you can hire one from a hardware store or a specialist contractor from Wise Property Care or the Property Care Association will have one to hand. Simply insert the probe and you will get an instant moisture content reading. To give you a point of reference, a moisture content of 20% would be a cause for concern. Woodworm prefer timber with a moisture content of over 18% however; it can tolerate moisture contents as low as 12% for short periods. At lower moisture levels, the rate of woodworm colonisation tends to be low and infestation will die out with prolonged periods of reduced moisture levels. You can assume that a reading of 11% puts you at very low risk of a woodworm problem

Woodworm tips - prevent woodworm infestation

To prevent further woodworm infestation, it is an idea to employ to the following woodworm tips:

  • Keep humidity levels low and ensure wood is well ventilated. See above for advice on checking moisture content of your timber.
  • Remove pieces of furniture or non-structural timber that are woodworm infested to avoid the woodworm spreading.
  • Install electric fly traps in loft spaces and under-ventilated areas to kill emerging adult beetles in the summer months, and thus reduce the threat of infestation.

Play woodworm videoFind out more about woodworm

To find out more about woodworm, visit the following web pages:

  • What is woodworm?: basic information about woodworm & the woodworm beetle
  • Woodworm Lifecycle: from larvae to beetle, understand the root of the problem and what exactly is affecting the wood in your property
  • Woodworm Treatment: watch our woodworm video and find out how to eradicate the problem
  • Property Care Videos: think your problem might not be woodworm? Identify the problem you might have within your property by watching our helpful and individual property care videos

Click to find your local Wise Property Care BranchContact Wise for Woodworm Advice

If you want to speak to someone regarding your woodworm problem, contact Wise Property Care today on 0800 65 22 678. Alternatively, use our Contact Form and we will organise one of our specialist to call and speak to you at a time convenient for yourself.