Last year I spotted one patch of fresh woodworm in a corner of a bedroom(No central heating) I removed affected boards, and saturated the accessible joists with Cuprinol wood treatment from B&Q, thinking that'd do the trick
But a year later, fresh sawdust & holes appeared in the same joists, and another patch of holes in the floorboards of another bedroom.
So what to do? Treat again?
I'm about to instal laminate floor, which will hide any further developments & make it impossible to treat.
On the plus side, I'll shortly be fitting central heating which I've learned from here will make the climate inhospitable to the bugs.
Which "Cuprinol wood treatment"? Not all have insecticide some are just rot retarders... I'm surprised you found fresh flight holes on treated timber, more likely to find half emerged but dead beetles.
As you have active worm I'd be more tempted to get the whole place properly treated by a recommended and professional company. You don't know where the little beggars will have flown to and laid more eggs...
Well it helps but how long before timbers in roof spaces or in floor voids be come to dry is another matter. I suspect years rather than months, to long if you have active worm IMHO.
Hi Dave I checked... Last year I actually used Ronseal General purpose wood protection ("kills dry rot, woodworm"), just around the flight holes (around 25 pound for 5 litres)
Today I bought a 60 litre drum of Wickes trade woodworm killer for 60 pounds. it contains 0.2% permethrin. A lot of floorboards are screwed down, so I took them up & sprayed above and below.
I'll maybe phone r***_____ tomorrow for a price, but didn't feel too comfortable last time I spoke to them - they want to come out & survey, and then post me an estimate, then make an appointment for the treatment. It all felt like sales psychology. (is it libel if I name them - maybe theyre good, but I felt unsure) I thought about what you said about the roof. Its a new roof, with a decent floor & loft ladder to make a good storage space that's almost a room. It's as hot as a greenhouse in the summer, so I think it'll dry out quickly once the heatings in.
This is a second home investment with a view to installing my daughter there if she gets to Uni. It's taken me a heckuva long time to fix it, but been thoroughly enjoyable, apart from the occasional bout of suicidal despair!
What chemicals and concentrations do professionals use? The Wickes solution is a soak-in type in a low oudour solvent.
I've seen some that appears to contain pva, so it must work like a surface coating.
D'you think I could diy it, or is professional help the only right way to go?
I called Peter Cox They're coming out to survey tomorrow.I asked "how much for the survey?" They said "Well, are you goin to give us the work at the end of it?"
I have a figure in mind - if they come in below it, I will. ...but if he tells me their active ingredient is 0.2% permethrin, I'll wonder what the difference is. ...but it'll get me a guarantee.
They know how much and where to apply? Though the average DIYer will apply much more that the minimum required. Also unless you have good protective clothing (water/oil proof coveralls, full face resporator etc) it's not a pleasant job.
Which I think with Peter Cox is insurance backed rather than requiring them to still be trading. Though PC has been around a while, the previous owners had some worm and damp proofing done by them about 7 years ago, maybe longer.
The Peter Cox rep was very helpful He said that what I've done is very much what his ops would do. The only major difference is that their solution contains a growth inhibitor(?) (as well as permethrin) so any surviving new insects would have strange shapes & be non-viable. He said that the only key advantage would be -my added piece of mind - having the guarantee. The guarantee wouldn't extend to the bathroom unless I took up the vinyl, which I'm reluctant to do as it went down before the bathroom fittings, and is therefore a continuous waterproof barrier. But the bathroom is an important area for woodworm.
He also said that emergence of a last batch of insects after a treatment was typical, and not a serious cause for concern.
The price is good at 385, but -indecisive indecisive-, if all I'm paying for is peace of mind, well that alone is reason to have peace of mind! ................................... If I was a newly emerging woodworm, I'd fly towards the pvc window, where Id discover the fresh timber adjacent to the window frame & lay eggs there...
-I boarded over this just before discovering new flight holes. I can drill a hole and spray fluid in.
The Peter Cox rep was very helpful He said that what I've done is very much what his ops would do. The only major difference is that their solution contains a growth inhibitor(?) (as well as permethrin) so any surviving new insects would have strange shapes & be non-viable. He said that the only key advantage would be -my added piece of mind - having the guarantee. The guarantee wouldn't extend to the bathroom unless I took up the vinyl, which I'm reluctant to do as it went down before the bathroom fittings, and is therefore a continuous waterproof barrier. But the bathroom is an important area for woodworm.
He also said that emergence of a last batch of insects after a treatment was typical, and not a serious cause for concern.
The price is good at 385, but -indecisive indecisive-, if all I'm paying for is peace of mind, well that alone is reason to have peace of mind! ................................... If I was a newly emerging woodworm, I'd fly towards the pvc window, where Id discover the fresh timber adjacent to the window frame & lay eggs there...
-I boarded over this just before discovering new flight holes. I can drill a hole and spray fluid in.
On closer inspection, There's one short joist under the bedroom floor that is riddled with flight holes, some fresh. It's in the alcove so is only 30 inches long, and I can get it our & replace it quite easily. Then theres some rot and woodworm to the door of a shed, outside in the yard which I'll scrap. And theres one patch of a few possibly old flight holes in the house.
So, I've treated the whole house above and below floorboards with 0.2% perethrin in a solvent so it'll soak in, several applications. I'll remove & replace the badly affected joist, and the badly affected rotted yard door. The small area of holes in the other section of floor, I'll drill a short 3/8 inch hole in the joist(s) below near the end, jam in a funnel, fill it with fluid, and let it soak in for a dday or two.
And I'll drill a small hole to spray fluid onto the newly plastered internal wood of the windows.
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