Woodworms

What Exactly Is a Woodworm?

The term “wood­worm” col­lo­qui­al­ly refers to the lar­vae of the com­mon fur­ni­tu­re beet­le (Anobi­um punc­ta­tum). The­se lar­vae bore through wood, lea­ving cha­rac­te­ristic traces: small, round bore­holes with a dia­me­ter of appro­xi­m­ate­ly 1–2 mm on the wood sur­face, as well as fine, light wood dust (frass) that emer­ges from the­se holes. It pre­fers cold, damp are­as, and thus often infests art objects, fur­ni­tu­re, musi­cal instru­ments, and woo­den uti­li­ty items.

An unt­rea­ted wood­worm infe­sta­ti­on can cau­se signi­fi­cant struc­tu­ral dama­ge, redu­ce the value of antique fur­ni­tu­re and art objects, and pose health risks due to pro­mo­ted mold for­ma­ti­on. The­r­e­fo­re, it is cru­cial to take ear­ly mea­su­res for con­trol and pre­ven­ti­on.

How Do Woodworms Spread?

Wood­worms pre­fer spe­ci­fic con­di­ti­ons and mate­ri­als.

Humi­di­ty

High humi­di­ty pro­mo­tes the deve­lo­p­ment of the lar­vae.

Tem­pe­ra­tu­re

Mode­ra­te tem­pe­ra­tures bet­ween 20–30°C are ide­al for deve­lo­p­ment.

Wood Spe­ci­es

Soft­woods such as spruce, fir, or pine are par­ti­cu­lar­ly vul­nerable.

How to Identify a Woodworm Infestation?

An acti­ve infe­sta­ti­on is indi­ca­ted by spe­ci­fic cha­rac­te­ristics.

Bore­holes

Small, round holes with a dia­me­ter of 1–2 mm on the wood sur­face.

Frass

Fine, light wood dust (frass) trick­ling out of the bore­holes.

Tap­ping Sounds

In quiet envi­ron­ments, faint tap­ping sounds can some­ti­mes be heard, which may ori­gi­na­te from the lar­vae.

Paper Test

Place a dark sheet of paper under the affec­ted area. Fresh wood dust (frass) on it indi­ca­tes an acti­ve infe­sta­ti­on.

Where Do Woodworms Hide?

Wood­worms pre­fer spe­ci­fic hiding places.

Roof Trus­ses and Woo­den Beams

Par­ti­cu­lar­ly at risk in old buil­dings.

Fur­ni­tu­re

Antique or unt­rea­ted woo­den fur­ni­tu­re is sus­cep­ti­ble.

Flo­ors and Cei­ling Panels

Hid­den are­as offer shel­ter.

Damp Rooms

Base­ments and unhea­ted rooms with high humi­di­ty.

What Are the Effects of a Woodworm Infestation?

An unt­rea­ted infe­sta­ti­on can cau­se signi­fi­cant dama­ge.

Struc­tu­ral dama­ge

Load-bea­ring woo­den ele­ments can lose their sta­bi­li­ty.

Loss of Value

Antique fur­ni­tu­re and art objects lose value.

Health risks

Mois­tu­re and wood dust (frass) can pro­mo­te mold for­ma­ti­on.

Cos­t­ly Repairs

Signi­fi­cant reno­va­ti­on cos­ts in case of advan­ced infe­sta­ti­on.

How to Prevent a Woodworm Infestation?

Pre­ven­ti­ve mea­su­res pro­tect your wood long-term.

Keep Wood Dry

Ensu­re good ven­ti­la­ti­on and avo­id high humi­di­ty.

Regu­lar inspec­tion

Regu­lar­ly inspect woo­den struc­tures for signs of infe­sta­ti­on.

Sur­face Tre­at­ment

App­ly­ing wood pre­ser­va­ti­ves can make it dif­fi­cult for pests to pene­tra­te.

Pro­fes­sio­nal Advice

In case of uncer­tain­ties, con­sult a spe­cia­list to take appro­pria­te pro­tec­ti­ve mea­su­res.

When Must a Woodworm Infestation Be Reported?

A wood­worm infe­sta­ti­on is gene­ral­ly not sub­ject to report­ing requi­re­ments in Ger­ma­ny. Howe­ver, report­ing is man­da­to­ry for qua­ran­ti­ne pests such as the Asi­an long­horn beet­le, as well as for new pests with a simi­lar sta­tus. Fur­ther­mo­re, in some fede­ral sta­tes, report­ing infe­sta­ti­ons by house long­horn beet­les, true dry rot, or ter­mi­tes is requi­red, espe­ci­al­ly in cases of signi­fi­cant struc­tu­ral dama­ge. In addi­ti­on, spe­ci­fic report­ing requi­re­ments may app­ly in lis­ted buil­dings and cer­tain rede­ve­lo­p­ment are­as.

It is advi­sa­ble to inqui­re with the com­pe­tent aut­ho­ri­ty or an expert in case of suspec­ted wood­worm infe­sta­ti­on to deter­mi­ne if a report­ing obli­ga­ti­on exists.

How to Combat Woodworms?

The con­trol of wood­worms depends on the ext­ent of the infe­sta­ti­on. Mild infe­sta­ti­ons can often be trea­ted with home reme­dies, while pro­fes­sio­nal methods are requi­red for seve­re or deep-sea­ted infe­sta­ti­ons.

Home remedies

Vin­egar Essence or Alco­hol

Inject into the bore­holes to kill lar­vae.

Heat Appli­ca­ti­on

Heat smal­ler objects abo­ve 55°C, e.g., in an oven or sau­na.

Cold Tre­at­ment

Store infes­ted objects for seve­ral days at tem­pe­ra­tures below ‑10°C.

Oni­ons or Acorns

Sli­ced oni­ons or laid out acorns can repel or attract wood­worms.

Professional control

Che­mi­cal Tre­at­ment

Spe­cial wood pre­ser­va­ti­ves are appli­ed or injec­ted to eli­mi­na­te pests.

Fum­i­ga­ti­on

In case of extre­me infe­sta­ti­on, fum­i­ga­ti­on with spe­cial gases may be neces­sa­ry. This method should only be car­ri­ed out by spe­cia­lists.

Ther­mal methods

A che­mi­cal-free method that kills all pests through heat.

Pro­fes­sio­nal methods offer a high suc­cess rate and are par­ti­cu­lar­ly recom­men­ded for exten­si­ve infe­sta­ti­ons.

Effectively Combat Woodworms with Thermo-bug®

The Ther­mo-bug® method offers an envi­ron­men­tal­ly fri­end­ly alter­na­ti­ve to che­mi­cal tre­at­ment. By con­trol­led hea­ting of the room tem­pe­ra­tu­re up to 70°C, wood­worms are relia­bly kil­led in all deve­lo­p­men­tal stages. This method is par­ti­cu­lar­ly sui­ta­ble for sen­si­ti­ve woo­den objects such as fur­ni­tu­re, musi­cal instru­ments, or his­to­ri­cal buil­ding ele­ments.

Advantages of the Thermo-bug® method:

Che­mi­cal-free

No use of insec­ti­ci­des, thus no resi­dues in the wood.

Deep-acting

The heat pene­tra­tes deep into the wood and also rea­ches hid­den lar­vae.

Fast

The tre­at­ment usual­ly lasts only a few hours.

Safe for Humans and Ani­mals

No health risks due to che­mi­cal sub­s­tances.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)