You don’t come across things like this very often, but when you do it’s very interesting. We received a call from a homeowner with powder post beetles in a piece of “green wood”. The beetles were burrowing out and leaving frass all over the kitchen in this beautifully renovated 1930’s country home.
It’s difficult to tell, but the white piles in the picture are the beetles pushing out the frass through the top of the beam. The second picture is of the classic “exit hole” made by the adult as it exits the wood.
Here are a few powder post beetle facts:
- larva create the damage
- adults create the 1/16″ round hole
- eggs are laid in the cracks and crevices of the wood
- to much or to little moisture plays a role in their development
- activity can be determined by either seeing a fine sawdust below an infested piece of wood (although this isn’t always reliable) or circling old holes
- best method of treatment is with liquid borates. Tim-Bor is the most widely used
- newly installed hardwood floors, furniture and wood in crawl spaces and basements are all susceptible
- fumigation is sometimes needed in severe cases
If you have a problem with powder post beetle, Call Envirocare Pest Control, LLC at 1-888-879-6481. We can help