Question 1

What Are Woodworm?

Accepted Answer

There are numerous species of woodworm and wood-boring beetle larvae, the most common in the UK being the common furniture beetle.

Other species within the UK that may wreak havoc on your doors are:

Deathwatch Beetles,
House Longhorn Beetles,
Wood-Boring Weevils.

Question 2

What Causes A Woodworm Infestation?

Accepted Answer

There are three main ways woodworms may find their way into your home:

Woodworms have the power of flight, so can make their way into your home (and your wooden doors) of their own accord.
If you've purchased a piece of furniture that already had an active woodworm infestation and bought it into your home, it may spread into other furniture and your doors.
Woodworms love damp environments, so if you don't have a good handle on your ventilation, your home could become a desirable environment for these pesky creatures.

Question 3

How To Identify A Woodworm Infestation In Your Doors

Accepted Answer

We recommend regularly carrying out checks for woodworm so that, should you find an infestation, you can gain control of and deal with the situation before it spreads to other areas of your home. Here's how to check for woodworm beetles:

Look For Exit Holes

You may not know that there are woodworm larvae nestled into your door until they have grown to adult size, at which point they will be ready to leave their home environment.

The holes will be oval or round with sharp edges, although they may differ sightly be species, more on that later.

Check For Dust

In addition to the holes, if the woodworm has very recently burrowed its way out of your door, you'll see frass, or bore dust, which is essentially the remnants of the wood they worked their way through to get out, creating the tiny holes mentioned above.

Inspect Other Furniture

While this isn't 100% relevant to finding woodworm in your doors, we do recommend regularly checking other areas in your home to reduce the chances of any active wood-boring insects making their way into your doors.

We recommend that you check your homes:

Beams,
Floorboards,
Joists,
And any other timber and wooden furniture that woodworm could be calling home.

Question 4

Can I Ignore Woodworm?

Accepted Answer

You could ignore woodworm, however, this may lead to the infestation spreading once the wood-boring beetles have grown into adults and are ready to 'fly the nest' as it were.

That means that your other doors and internal wooden furniture aren't safe from infestation.

Question 5

Can I Treat Woodworm Myself?

Accepted Answer

You can treat woodworm yourself using the methods mentioned above, however, if you have a significant problem, or your treatment methods aren't working as you had hoped, it may be better to seek help from a specialist.

Question 6

How do I know if the woodworm treatment has been effective?

Accepted Answer

Once you've treated the infestation, you'll want to be as sure as possible that nothing will be rearing its head and causing more damage to your door.

You can check this by simply placing a piece of paper under your door and checking for remnants of dust falling onto it. If this happens, then unfortunately you still have active woodworm living in your doors. If not, then the treatment has been successful.

Question 7

Can you fill woodworm holes?

Accepted Answer

Yes, you can. Filling in the exit holes once you've treated the woodworm infestation is a great way to restore your door (close) to its former glory. Here are a couple of options:

Fill the small round holes with a wax stick

These are available in different shades so you can select the one that's closest to your door. Simply apply liberally and buff with a cloth. You can do this as many times as you need to fill the gaps left by the infestation.

Use wood filler to salvage your door

You can purchase a professional wood filler and, using a filling knife, apply it to the holes on your door following the instructions on your chosen brand of wood filler (it may need to be mixed with a hardener, for example). Once the door is dry, sand it down with medium-grade sandpaper.

Question 8

How To Prevent Woodworm

Accepted Answer

Whether you've just treated a woodworm problem or are looking to take preventative measures, there are a few things you can do to prevent the insects from returning or coming in the first place. These include:

Removing humidity near your doors through heating and ventilating.
Treat any damp within or near your doors as soon as possible to stop it from attracting woodworm.
Apply a wood preservative to your door that specifically targets the prevention of woodworm.

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