How to get rid of Powderpost Beetles

This article is about POWDERPOST BEETLE control. It will explain why they are a pest and what needs to be done for controlling infestations. Most people fear that termites will infest their home and this fear leads them to spend thousands of dollars on pest control to prevent this from happening. Yes, it is true that termites may find a meal at your house. But they are not the only pests ready to eat your house. Powder Post Beetles, Old House Borers and decay Fungus can and do cause damage to thousands of homes throughout the United States. This article will ex- plain these threats and offer ways to control the problem. Because we encounter these pests in several different situations, we will present this information in four sections. The first will apply to those who have a pro- blem in a log home, a shed or a barn. The second section will be for homeowners who have a problem in a crawl space, attic or wall. The third section will be for people who have furniture which is infested such as a dresser, couch, hutch, cabinet or chair. The fourth will be for homeowners who experience beetles emerging from wood floors made of hardwood or softwood. Before we get to the different sections, I would like to explain some general biology of these pests. By under- standing their life cycle, you will be able to understand why we do certain treatments for control. Please remember this article is not intended to discuss in great detail the different species of wood destroying organisms you may encounter. We have described the general biology which pertains to many species and subspecies so you will be able to understand these types of insects better. Time periods for development, longevity of infestation, specific behaviors and reproduction cycles are only outlined with the intention of giving you information so you can determine whether or not you have such pests, how you should treat the infestation and what products to use. The scope of this article is to provide the basic facts and guidelines so individuals inclined to do their own pest control may do so with confidence in what they doing, why they are doing it and what products to use. Although an unprotected structure is a target for unwanted pests, powder post beetle infestations are more likely to be in wood which is used for construction. This includes wood used for log homes, conventional homes and furniture. Most wood today is milled, kiln dried and sometimes even treated. However, the egg and pupae stages of these insects seem to prevail. Powder Post beetles have many sub species which have different time tables for development. They all start from eggs, but the time it takes for the egg to go through its stages varies on the species. It is not uncommon for wood used to construct a log home to have adults emerging any time from one to ten years later! This wide range of development further complicates diagnosis time and may lead you to ignore the severity of the problem. The cycle, like any other insect, is egg, larva, pupa and then adult. When the egg hatches, a little grub crawls out which eats cellulose. This grub is what causes all the damage. Once it gets it's fill, it will undergo metamorphosis and then emerge as the adult. If powderpost beetles are what you have, expect to see tiny little holes and in some cases channels where they have chewed their way through the wood. In most cases, it is the adult emerging which people witness. First they see a fine powder, like talc powder, and then they see small holes. THESE HOLES ARE ACTUALLY EXIT HOLES WHERE THE ADULT HAS LEFT !!! This point is so misunderstood that I feel it is important to state it again....THESE HOLES WHICH YOU ARE SEEING IN ARE ACTUALLY EXIT HOLES WHERE THE ADULT HAS LEFT!

A trained eye is usually capable of finding the adults as they tend to accumulate around windows and lighted areas. They are small, about 1/8 " and appear to be reddish brown in color. It is not unusual for an infestation to generate several hundred of these adults during a short period of time. They are seeking a good place to mate and lay eggs to continue their cycle.

Old house borers are larger and therefore create larger exit holes. They are most likely in softwoods such as pine. Their cycle is like powderpost beetles in that the larva is what does the damage. Their exit holes are huge, however, and cannot be missed. Expect to find them in attics and crawl spaces. There are many species of old house borers and they come in several colors and sizes. Their holes will vary accordingly. Their cycle is the same as powderpost beetles and treatment must stop the larva for complete control.



To solve either problem, you must stop the larva. This is done by using a material which penetrates wood. The material you use needs to do two things. First, it needs to be able to penetrate. The larva stages of these pests develop from the inside out. To control them, you need to get where they start. The second key to control is using a product which will last. Although it is easy to kill the larva which are feeding, eggs that hatch months or years later must be stopped. A product with a long residual will provide such control. This residual will stop the current infestation as well as protect against new invaders should they find their way to your home. It is important to understand that most species of these pests are dependent on a particular type of wood. For example, if you first discover them in hardwood floors, the adults that emerge would try to lay eggs on a similar type of wood. They could not thrive in pine or cedar, so do not worry the will spread to all available wood. It is more likely the infestation will try to expand in the wood which they are currently living. For example, if a piece of cherry furniture has some powderpost beetles, the emerging adults will try to infest other areas of the same furniture. You should then be concerned about that entire piece as well as any other pieces in the house. The same is true of hardwood floors. Emerging adults will be looking for similar oak or pine to infest so all flooring or moldings made of the same wood will be their focus. Now that you have a basic understanding of these pests and how they develop, lets examine more specifically the type of infestation you are experiencing. Each section will describe in some detail the nature of the infestation and how you need to control it. Choose the type of infestation you would like to learn more about and then click on it to link to that part of our article. You can also scroll down the page to get there as well.

1) LOG HOME PROBLEMS AND TREATMENTS 2) CRAWL SPACE AND ATTIC TREATMENTS 3) FURNITURE TREATMENTS 4) WOOD FLOOR TREATMENTS

LOG HOME PROBLEMS AND TREATMENTS

Log homes are being constructed through- out the United States in record numbers. These homes are prone to natural attack as nature tries to recycle the dead cellulose. These recyclers are ever present and represent themselves in the form of carpenter bees, carpenter ants, termites, decay fungus and powder post beetles. Although most lumber companies and log home construction companies are treating wood before construction, there appears to be many infestations still active which leads to pro- blems years later. No one knows if it is because the treatments need to be increased or if the material being used is simply not penetrating. Whatever the reason, log homes are being constructed with active infestations which don't reveal themselves until years after construction. At this point the logs have usually been treated with stains, paint, lacquers and sometimes sealers which will make treating them difficult. If an infestation is discovered after construction, the use of a penetrating material such as BORACARE is needed. Boracare has the ability to penetrate 2-4 inches of wood and will be lethal to eating larva. It lasts a long time and acts as a stomach poison to feeding larva. It will quickly stop the chewing, but adults may still be seen for a while until all developing pupa have hatched. Boracare needs untreated surfaces in order to penetrate. If the wood has a polyurethane finish, don't waste your time trying to treat. Nothing will get through such a finish. However, stain by itself will not stop Boracare from penetrating and if it has weathered for a year or two, than applying Boracare before you stain again is always best. Even though it may penetrate up to 4 inches, it will help if you are able to treat on both sides of the logs. This will insure maximum coverage and penetration. Boracare is absorbed quickly into the wood, so it only takes 24-48 hours to cure. This means that it doesn't prove to be a major inconvenience in the home waiting for it to dry. But if the home has a strong finish on the outside and nothing on the inside, you may have to treat the inside several times and hope that you can get deep penetration. If the area needing treatment is small then BORASOL may be the better option. It's very similar to Boracare but comes in a small size. Even though you may only see a small area where exit holes exist, try to treat as much of the home as possible. Many times a spot treatment will resolve a problem area but then other areas of the home are found to be infested. To insure complete protection, treat as much as you can. Remember, the adults emerging are only a symptom of the problem. If you are worried about where the emerging adults are going, install some of our PHEROMONE TRAPS which use strong sexual odors and attractants to lure reproducing adults. These traps can be hung around windows, in rooms where activity is present or on ledges. We have two types which are designed to be used in different areas. However, the real problem is that there is still larva feeding. You could only treat the area where the adults have emerged, but this would prove to be short sighted. A better approach is to apply as much as needed to treat the entire area which may have activity. This attitude will save you money and time in the long run. Another product worth mentioning is called TIMBOR. Many professional applicators like to use this material when treating for borers and powderpost beetles. It costs less to use than Boracare and I expect this is the main reason why it is the product of choice. If are having your home treated by a company and they want to use Timbor, insist on having them use Boracare. It will cost you more, but you will get a lot more protection for your money. Timbor is fine for prevention and provides a surface protection that most wood destroying organisms will not be able to penetrate. However, it does not absorb as well as Boracare and therefore may not kill off eating larva. To kill the infestation as quickly as you can, use Boracare. If you have logs you want to protect that do not have insect activity, you can use Timbor effectively. The only difference between the two is that Boracare will penetrate better and Timbor is more likely to leave a white residue. Boracare dries invisible but because Timbor is a wettable powder, it can be seen on many wood surfaces after it dries. In finishing this discussion about these products, it should be noted that both use boron based active ingredients. They are relatively safe compared to many household cleansers and detergents. Neither product has an odor and cleanup is easy when working with them. They both can be applied with a standard PUMP SPRAYER, but be sure to use one which has a spray pattern which is flat and sprays a swath that is similar to using a paint brush. This insures uniform coverage and equal distribution. Many spray tips are not as fine and the application is rough and splattered. For most standard insecticide applications, this is acceptable. For Boracare or Timbor, you need equal distribution. If you have a lot of treating to do, you should consider getting our custom SPRAY WAND. This is a unique extension which fits in place of the standard nozzle at the end of the wand. It has two nozzles, each producing a fine flat spray pattern, enabling the applicator to spray twice as much area in the same time. The extension is adjustable so you can bend it to insure proper coverage based on the angle of wood you are treating. They come designed to work well for floor joists and logs but you can bend them straighter so they will work well for any flat surface you want to treat.

ATTIC, LIVING AREA AND CRAWL SPACE TREATMENTS

Like log homes, conventional homes can have an infestation of powder post beetles brought with the original wood used for construction. Structural lumber such as studs, sill plate, floor joists and rafters all can have infestations which do not show themselves until several years after construction. Treatment of these areas is generally easier than treating a log home be- cause the wood is usually exposed and unfinished. Such structural wood is usually thinner which allows for quick and complete penetration as well. Again, BORACARE or BORASOL should be used where you have activity and TIMBOR can be used to protect wood away from the infestation. Big areas can be treated using one of our SPRAYERS and once again treating more than the suspected infested wood is suggested. When spraying rafters and roof sheathing, use goggles. Although the runoff isn't likely to hurt you if you get it on you, it is wise to wear rubber gloves and eye protection so you don't have to run off and wash yourself every time some splashes on you. If you suspect you have activity in wall voids below attics or above crawl spaces, you have a couple of options for treatment. The first would be to remove wall coverings like paneling or sheetrock. Once open, you would have direct access to studs and sheathing allowing for direct treatment with Boracare. This should also be done if you are renovating a home and plan on exposing certain walls or ceilings. Treat them when you will have the area exposed and once treated, you won't have to worry about it again. These areas are protected from the sun and rain so treatments last a lifetime. However, if you don't intend on removing wall coverings, you should still consider treating. This can be done with one of our FOAMING TOOLS. This device is like a standard pump sprayer but instead of pumping out a liquid, it creates a foam. When pumped into wall voids, this foam carrys the Boracare to all sections of the void. Such coverage is not possible if you simply spray a liquid into such voids; liquid sprayed into wall voids simply runs down to the bottom and you end up with very little area treated properly. When Foamed, voids get complete coverage with little mess. The Foam is much dryer than water alone so you are able to get better coverage, less mess and a lot less preparation since you don't need to open walls to do such work. You will need to get some FOAMING AGENT to mix with the Boracare in the Tool. It is also best to mix the Boracare first in a bucket before you add it to the sprayer. Once in liquid form, pour it into the Foamer, add the Foaming Agent and then go to work. The Tool comes with several nozzles so you only need a small hole through which you can foam large areas - perfect when you want to keep a wall cosmetically in tact. If a crawl space is the area of concern, you may be having a problem with moisture which can lead to decay fungus. Although Boracare is needed for penetrat- ing, using another product called Timbor will work well for surface treatments. Timbor does a good job of pre- venting powder post beetles as well as decay fungus and is recommended to apply as a precaution to stop such problems from developing. Structural members will stay intact longer and resist rot and insects if treated with Timbor. In this case, the ability of Timbor to stay on the surface acting of treated wood enables it to provide long term control of decay fungi, mold and mildew. It has been demonstrated that if you reduce decay fungus you will reduce insect infestations. Use one of our Pump Sprayers along with the optional Spray Wand to get good coverage a uniform treatment. However, if the space is not readily accessible, use a BG FOGGER for the job. This device is excellent for jobs where you are not able to get close enough to spray the wood you want to treat. This Fogger is able to propel the material 50 feet or more allowing for the treatment of many crawl spaces and attics which would otherwise be virtually impossible to access.

FURNITURE TREATMENTS

In some cases, powder post beetles will infest furniture. Again, this is mostly due to wood being used which has some stage of the pest already in it. I have seen dressers, tables, chairs, desks, wall units, artwork, picture frames and other wood objects experience this problem. You don't have to fumigate to obtain control. In most cases, a combination of the right material along with the right application method will provide long term control. The first step when dealing with such a problem is to identify the pest. This can be done by inspecting the piece thoroughly. Look for the talc-like dust falling out around joints and pin holes. Another pest which can infest furniture is the drywood termite. This species of termite does not need ground contact like it's subterranean cousin. Drywood termites can exist in a piece of wood with minimal amount of moisture. A sure sign of them are pellets, smaller than a grain of rice, falling out of "windows" they cut in the wood. These windows are for ejecting the pellets which are actually their droppings. In most cases, the drywood termite problems are limited to furnit- ure which has been stored in attics and crawl spaces of homes in the south. Many times this antique furniture or inherited pieces are displayed after years of being stored. Once in the living section of the house, the infestation becomes evident. If you suspect you have drywood termite activity, go back to our article archive where you will find an in depth article about termites which features details about how to treat such problems Powder post beetle infestations of similar pieces can be a problem anywhere in the country. With the increase interest of antiques, existing infestations are being distributed to new homes as well as antique galleries, museums and schools. Although antiquing can be exciting and rewarding, be wary of these pests in any piece you want to place in your home. Be sure to treat any furniture that has evidence of activity, even if you are unsure if it is active. This preventive treatment could prove to save you from the much larger cost of having to treat your home because it got infested due to that "old dresser you got from Grandma's"! Don't think the stain or varnish you plan on using will "kill those woodworms". Those "woodworms" are buried deep in the legs and sides of that old furniture and even if the fumes of the stain you applied was able to kill all the exposed stages, eggs and pupae will prevail! Nature has equipped these stages to endure a lot of extreme exposures as a way to insure the insect is able to continue it's role in recycling cellulose. If you want to break that cycle, you'll have to treat it. To treat for these pests, you need to use a product which will penetrate throughout the wood to insure all stages of the beetle or termite are killed. We have three products which are designed to do this. The simplest method is to use an aerosol called BAYGON AEROSOL. This aerosol comes with a straw applicator and when applied to the galleries, exit holes and windows of the damaged area will kill on contact. It does not penetrate so it will not work well when treating wood which is more than 1/4" thick. It doesn't provide much residual so eggs which hatch in a month or two are likely to survive. To insure a more thorough and complete treatment, it is recommended that you use a material such as BORACARE, BORASOL or JECTA GEL. Baygon is good for small pieces such as baskets and wreathes. You can apply it on a regular basis to make sure you break the cycle of whatever is living. If the piece is too big or you don't have the time to make repeat applications, read on. The Boracare concentrate can be mixed with water and applied by spraying or painting. It is clear, odorless and needs to be applied to unfinished wood. It will penetrate up to 4 inches and once embedded will kill existing larva as well as new ones hatching later. Most dressers and cabinets need to be treated from the inside as the finish on the outside will prevent the Boracare from penetrating. If the piece is completely finished, such as the leg of a chair or table, you should use the Jecta gel. Jecta is Boracare in a gel form which allows for treatment where the liquid is difficult to apply or use. The gel can be applied to large and small holes you need to drill. Fill the holes with gel and over time the material will permeate throughout the wood. If drilling small holes you will need to keep them close to each other. Large holes will enable you to place more gel at one location which will insure a better and wider distribution. In most cases, the gel is used where you are concerned about the cosmetics of the furniture. You will be able to treat with the gel without having to strip the piece. If you intend to refinish the wood, apply Boracare to the unfinished surfaces for complete and thorough treatment. With either treatment, you will be able to refinish the wood with stain or varnish and the application will have no impact on how it looks. Once the piece has been treated, don't be surprised if you still see some emerging adults for another few months following treatment. This is normal. These will typically die off unless they are able to find another food supply close by. We recommend setting out some of our PHEROMONE TRAPS which will catch most of these. The traps work as a monitor as well so if you notice a large amount of activity, there may be another part of the home which is harboring this pest which needs to be treated.

WOOD FLOOR TREATMENTS

Over the years of doing pest control, I have had many customers who have problems with newly installed wood floors. The wood used for these floors is usually made of oak although pine is just as likely to be infested. In most cases, the customers notice the problem after the floor has been stained and varnished. Small holes start to appear and talc like powder begins to accumulate where adult beetles are emerging. Like other infestations, I am at a loss as to how this could happen. Since most wood used for floors undergoes kiln drying and some type of treatment, how can anything infest it? Logic tells us no insect should be alive, yet the wood has activity. This tells me there is a problem with conventional methods of treatment by the wood floor manufacturers or that the product is simply getting infested while kept in storage. I firmly believe very few cases of wood floors become infested after they are installed. Unfortunately, most contractors and wood floor suppliers seem to avoid taking responsibility for the problem. In most cases the homeowner is left to solve the problem themselves. This could prove to be expensive depending on how the floor is treated. Let's talk about your options. Option one is to ignore the problem. Most manufacturers will tell you the level of infestation is small and probably will die out within a year. This means you would expect to have adults emerge during this time. In fact, the problem could die out. Since the species of beetle in the floor needs similar wood to continue it's cycle, the emerging adults probably have little or no wood available to lay their eggs. If your floor is made of hardwood such as oak, the beetles will need oak for their young to be successful. If you have a lot of furniture made of similar wood, you probably should be concerned. If you have trim molding or stairs of oak, again, you should be concerned. Although this other wood may be treated and appear to be sealed, these beetles are small and are able to penetrate small cracks and crevices. In fact, they look for just that when laying eggs. Many floorboards shrink over time and the cracks created during shrinkage is more than enough for them to find plenty of good locations for laying eggs. If the floor is made of wood not available in the rest of the home, the emerging adults will probably die off without being able to reinfest. If you choose not to treat, remember you are gambling that the level of infestation currently in the floor is not significant. Even though emerging adults may not have other choices of food for laying their eggs, if there are thousands of beetles currently in the wood the damage could become significant before the cycle runs it's course. Install some of our PHEROMONE TRAPS to prevent these emerging adults from laying eggs and reproducing. This means you could experience several hundred to thousands of adults emerging over a year or two. For many homeowners, this in not acceptable. If you are afraid the infestation will not die off, than you will need to treat. Here are your options. Option two is to strip the floors and apply BORACARE. Since the infestation is in the wood, you need to use a material which is able to penetrate. If the floors are finished with a varnish or urethane, Boracare will not be able to penetrate without stripping them first. Although this could be costly, it will probably be a lot cheaper than waiting a few years and finding out the floor is so damaged that it must be replaced. We recommend treating as much of the floor as possible. This will insure no section of it is left unprotected. If you only treat floor sections where the beetles are emerging, you may find out later that they are throughout other sections and you will have to treat those sections anyway. If you decide to treat any part of the floor, it makes sense to do as much as possible. Use a SPRAYER for the application. Make sure to use one which has a spray tip which puts out a flat equal pattern. This is important when using Boracare because uniform coverage and distribution is required for proper penetration. You don't want all the spray pooling up in pockets because the spray tip did not disperse it evenly. The third option may be employed if you have a very small section of floor that you want to treat and you are able to access it from below. This would apply to wood floors which are built over a crawl space or a basement. These floors could be treated using a product called JECTA GEL. It comes with it's own applicator and is used by squeezing small amounts into holes which are drilled into the wood you want to treat. Jecta gel is used for treating furniture and wood which has a finish that cannot be removed. By making small holes discreetly, you are able to treat furniture and other decorative wood pieces without having to destroy the finish. You can also use Jecta Gel for treating your finished wood floor. This option is tedious but allows you to treat the floor without having to remove the finish as described above in option two. From the basement or crawl space, you must drill up into the subfloor and then through it to the wood floor above. The key here is that the drilling should be done to a pre-measured depth. This depth would be enough to enter the floor boards at least 1/2 inch. The holes drilled should be at least 3/8 inches in diameter although larger holes would ensure better treatment. Generally, subflooring is 3/4" to 1" thick. The flooring is usually 3/4 inches thick. Once you know the exact width of these boards, you then attach a drill stop on the bit. Holes will need to be drilled every 6 to 12 inches, depending on how big of a hole you drill. Once the holes are all drilled, Jecta Gel is then applied. After the holes are treated, use a CORK or wood dowel to seal the hole. Make sure the plug is no longer then the width of the subflooring. This insures the Jecta Gel will be pushed up into the flooring and the dowel will keep it in place. Since the gel takes several months to permeate throughout the flooring, you want it to be in contact with the floor boards. If you don't cork or seal the holes, gravity will cause the gel to leak out. The trick to doing this type of treatment is knowing where the holes you are drilling are going and making sure they are going the correct depth. I like to start by drilling at least two holes all the way through the floor. I use these holes to measure a precise grid which will tell me exactly where I need to drill. Remember, you need to treat each floor board. This means that if you are treating a 10 x 10 room, you will need to drill about 1000 holes! How come so many? Well, if you drill every 6 inches, it will take about 21 holes for every 10 foot runner. In a ten foot room, you would have 54 floor boards if standard hard wood runners are used. 54 runners times 21 totals 1334 holes! It would take about 11 tubes of Jecta Gel to do the application since one tube can treat 5 runners which are ten foot in length. Although this treatment is tedious, you will avoid the added the cost and aggravation of having to strip and refinish the floors. If the wood is unusually moist, you won't have to drill your holes as close as 6 inches. In fact, if the wood is moist enough, you can spread the holes up to 24 inches apart. However, the Gel is very thick and does not penetrate too far when applied to dry wood. If the wood is dry and not expected to become moist or to be exposed to moisture, than the holes need to be close together.