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Building Defects

Insects

Wood Worm

General
Life cycle of a woodworm is egg, larvae, pupa and adult. The first signs are exit holes made by adults emerging to mate and they usually die after reproduction.
Insects below can all cause serious damage and death watch and longhorn beetle can cause structural damage.
Other beetles feed on damp wood rotted by fungi, so that controlling the wood rot will stop infestation.

Common furniture beetle (Anobium punctatum)
The Beetle - Approx 3-5mm long Wood Damaged by Wood Worm

Softwoods and European hard woods affected, sap wood, also birch, used in plywood mostly affected. Most widespread beetle and frequently found in old furniture or unfinished surfaces, loft accesses, under stairs and areas affected by damp.
It is attracted to white surfaces, emergence holes in timber are usually 1.5-2mm in diameter, adults emerge May-Sept.
There are holes in timbers and bore dust present, holes are round but mainly along the grain, bore dust is gritty to feel between the fingers, pale cream coloured

Wood Boring Weevil - (Peutathrum Huttoni, Euphryum Confine)
Beetle - Approx 3-5mm long Wood attacked by Wood Boring Weevil
Found in decayed softwoods and hardwoods in damp conditions, poorly ventilated sub-floor areas, and cellars.
Beetle is 3-5mm long with a distinctive long snout. There are holes and grooves on timber surface and weevil tunnels in the
direction of the grain, often breaking through to the wood surface
There is a fine, granular bore dust

Death watch Beetle (Xestobium rufovillosum)
Attacks sapwood and heartwoof of partially decayed hardwoods and occasionally adjacent softwoods.
Often found in old churches with oak and elm. Typically found in areas prone to dampness such as wall plates, end of posts, lintels and timbers built into masonry.
Grows up to 7mm in length and is covered by yellowish scaly hairs which makes it clearly visible to the naked eye.
The main problem with the Death Watch Beetle is that the grubs can spend up to 15 years eating away at the timber before emerging and leaving the tell-tale exit holes, by which time there can be little left of the timber.

As with woodworm, the presence of Death Watch Beetle is often only detected once the wood-boring lavae become adult beetles and bore out through the timber. Being a larger beetle the exit holes are around 4mm in diameter.