Why you never need to treat woodworm with chemicals
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 12 พ.ค. 2016
- Most surveys say 'use a Property Care Association contractor' to treat the timber. This survey did as well. We were called in to investigate. BS 7913 says don't use chemicals. Dr Brian Ridout of Historic England says 'don't treat with chemicals' We show how just by ventilating, you can reduce moisture and beetle go away.
- วิทยาศาสตร์และเทคโนโลยี
Thankyou for this video - this is the first commnet I have ever left on a you tube video but it just simply makes sense!
Where’s the next video where you solve the issue please Peter?
thats logical, simple and quite cheap thank you for a fab video!
I'm a little bit sceptic if you'll ever solve the woodworm problem in this floor.
Ventilation is necessary but does it stop the beetles eating the wood?
Chemicals yes: people who want to sell chemicals
Chemicals no: people who want to sell new lumber
???
nice canon sitting on the floor! videos are great, by the way. many thanks!
Thanks - need it for all the photos and vids we do - good in low light... Keep watching - we take loads - just having time to put them up. We'll do the TV show one day..
Hello, Did you manage to ventilate the subfloor to solve the issue Peter ?
Very interesting mon brav!
I've seen woodworm in bone dry lofts and furniture in centrally heated homes. I certainly agree the damp conditions don't help but is that the whole story? I've also seen so called treated timbers turn to dust because it was still infested or got re-infested. I've heard builders say that it's actually impossible to get rid of in certain parts of the country due to the high humidity and rain etc.
It builds up in what LOOKS like a dry loft - but what people don't realise is that in certain temperature and weather conditions, humidity from the house is constantly rising into the loft, and will cause high moisture in the timbers - and beetle. Often because people insulate the loft... You need to make sure loft spaces are well ventilated - plenty of air flow. Those builders who say you can't get rid of need to look at ventilation . There is always a way to prevent - and treatment NEVER needs to be chemical - just drop the moisture level below 17% ..
Saved money from watching this video . I was quoted £500 for chemical spraying . When I checked my air vents many was blocked . I've sorted airflow now I'm hoping it solves the problem .
I'm so glad i came across your videos peter. I was just about to head out and buy one of those stupid moisture devices and then call someone to come look at some patches of damp in the corner of the house. When i first moved into this 1930's house I had to re-wire it all so when i took up the floors in the living room i noticed some flakiness of the beams. So all i did was just PVA it. I do have venting at the back and front of the house and some at the side of the semi-d. So glad i didnt mess with those but i will now go and check the ground level . The drive way slopes down to the main road so i think that helps a bit but the previous owners had laid some red brick tiling outside so i think that has contributed to the water not escaping down the drive and just seeping into the brick. The hallway is still originally red brick and bed-ash. Will this contribute to the humidity being high that is causing black mould in the corners of the front living room and by the front door at the bottom of the stairs? Appreciate your advice but if you think i need specialised help do you cover the Dudley area? thanks Kym
Check drains as well - look for any cracks / leaks.. :-)
1000% agree with you been saying the same for years and people laugh at me,
You'll have the last laugh - just keep on saying it, and showd them the solutions - they wont argue with common sense.
good info
Thanks for the video. How do you dry indoor timber?
he's just told you.it needs ventilating
Just found a Beatle in my back garden, he's a big guy. My wife told me she'd killed 2 of them outside of the house last week. I do remember about 2 years ago finding one in the front drive way. Any suggestions, I know you'd need to see a photo?
Big beetle are fine - they aint nothing to do with timber in the house - its the tiny ones you cant see that do the damage and if the timber in your house is dry, forget it - they wont be affecting it. Leave the big ones to play their guitars - they're harmless!
Thanks Bud! house is still standing!
Very interesting video . I'm a retired carpenter/ builder and you're right about the flow of air preventing damp but does that really stop woodworm? I've seen plenty of old furniture with woodworm and as far as I know the wood was never damp. Would be interested in any info you have.
Its all about humidity as well - beetle are usually IN the furniture when brought into a house - it has been shown again and again that the beetle were present first, the furniture was placed somewhere, and you often see beetle having a go at the floorboards and then giving up because they are dry. A lot of furniture comes from somewhere else that was a bit damp, and thats where it got affected. Once in the timber, they take about a year or so to emerge as adults - so you often dont make the connection that they are not coming from within the house. I say again - BS 7913: 2013, and Ridout, both state categorically that dry timber does not get beetle - and the cure for any 'possible beetle problem' is to dry the timber and reduce humidity - below 75% RH and total moisture content of about 16%.
Interesting Peter and thanks very much for posting this up . I have found severe woodworm in my own house . The underfloor spaces are unventilated , although after some digging I have found the remains of underfloor vents .which I have re instated . The subject of underfloor and loft space ventilation seems to be something that isn't understood and more . The UPVC central heated age tells us that any draught should be sealed up . Also wood touching stone seems to be seen as acceptable .
Question I have is that even after ventilating and replacing timbers why would anyone not go to the cost of a few cans of 5 star just in case ? It would be a small cost compared to the price of the work assuming the homeowner did it themselves .
Absolutely - total waste of time. Spraying toxic chemicals in your home - not a good idea. As the floor area dries out and ventilation resumes, any beetle in the timber will just up and leave - they don't like dry wood. Spraying will never completely treat the timber, and only sits on the surface anyway - it has been shown not to penetrate - why do you think they pressure treat timber? The beetle just go - BS 7913: 2013 is clear on this, as is Ridout - English Heritage - the world expert on timber problems. All the experts say treatment is not needed. It is pushed by guess who - the idiots in the pca - who just want to sell useless chemicals. By using 'a few cans of 5 star' - you just filled a multi millionaires pockets with even more silver..
Thanks very much for the response Peter .
The entire subject of damp , rising damp and rotting timber has been the subject of so much rocket science it leaves the home owner and most builders thinking it's a specialist job that wants money thrown at it . I've had great advice from one builder , but every other one is in no way savvy about old buildings .
Thanks for the videos , excellent stuff .
If in doubt - do nothing, but ventilate. Look for any areas where moisture can be trapped or stale air can collect... That's about it really!! Good luck - shout if you need help.
Thanks again Peter .
I have an old cottage probably made around 1870 . As far as I can see the ground level outside is level or slightly below floor level . The underfloor vents need to be snorkled if that makes sense . I tried to lower the ground level but I am finding the toilet soil pipes and rodding outlet are not buried very far down ( only about 8 inches below ground level . . As they look old it leads me to believe that the ground level might always have been this high . The front of the house does however have a much lower ground level .
Am I missing something here ?. Could the house have been built without a toilet system and the clay soil pipes have been put in later . As the joists sit on dwarf walls inside the main walls , would ground level matter ?. The stone I am looking at in the 2 foot thick rubble walls looks dry >
Clay pipes much later. Toilet was outside.. It's always hard to be certain in these cases - all we say is that the golden rule is to keep ground externally below level of internal floors, or below level of the bottom of the floor joists if on dwarf walls. If its dry, then you may be ok anyway - especially if underfloor is well vented... No two cases are the same, but general principles always apply!
Hi Peter, could the air bricks possibly be covered by the patio as its so high against the house wall? Would of someone been that stupid! You can never under estimate stupidity is my thinking behind this one.
damn Beatles. had one years ago and crashed it unfortunately.
If the remedy for woodworm is ventilation and drying timber I can't understand why I have it in my detached garage roof joists.
That is certainly vented, it's freezing in there with all the gaps etc! I had my caravan serviced at home and the technician done a damp test on the joists, no damp. (Well it registered 11% which he said was ok.)
I stored some burr elm in there about 3 years ago and this became infested which suggests to me despite the ventilation etc, they didn't leave? The roof has never leaked.
11% on a 'damp' meter is quite high - they are so unreliable as to be useless anyway . Dont forget the holes are flight holes - beetle may have been in the timber for years before. Elm is dreadful stuff - beetle love it, and often timber is affected by them in the forest, and emerge years later. Look at old barns left in the middle of fields - usually the timbers are fine if they are kept dry and often hundreds of years old - believe me, all the science and research points to the same thing - dry timber doesnt get beetle. It might LOOK dry, but may have been through a damp phase, are actually is wetter than you think..
I have just bought a piece of furniture with active beetle , i dont want to introduce into my house what are the chances of it travelling to my worktop or shall i burn it ? I have also seen that Turps can stop it.
Shouldnt be active - just cuz you see little holes in it is NOT active - they left a long time ago - those are flight holes.
I visited a house which had many damp issues near Swansea and the client was treating it by putting in vents under all
the ground level floors, it was a massive job but has paid off because he shouldn't have anymore damp issues.
It's quite funny really, as I'm typing this, in a window just below the window with your film clip is an advert for 3 different
woodworm killer treatments.
Yep - I think google likes to make money from ads - so every time one of those ads is shown, the damp industry pay! Call it fining the idiots... At least people get to see how insidious the industry is, and how totally unnecessary.
I think that when the algorithm's were being written they might well have overlooked the problem of incongruous advertising, they do the same in the media too with some hilarious results.
Peter, I just bought a 100 year old house in Surrey. The survey stated underfloor ventilation was inadequate. The air bricks were part filled with cement which I’ve drilled out, but I want to, and here’s where I’d like your opinion, cut out part of my beautiful Edwardian floor boards and fit a decorative floor grill, with a Louvre closing system behind it. I’m a novice and just want to know if I’m on the right track? If I do this does the location of the floor vent matter and should I put another through in the adjoining dining room?
Thanks for your time! Cheryl 👩🏻🔧
You need through flow - so if you can only get airflow at one side of the floor, the other side may still be badly vented - thus your vent idea would help. If you can go from front to back, or side to side, you should be ok - but vents need to be big - the modern vents with little holes are useless they get blocked by cobwebs etc. The cast iron air vent company do good Victorian style ones that dont get blocked...
please please please can u help me. my family have had to leave our home due to damp. old house pre 1911
We can try - email peter@heritage-house.org and tell me what the problem is - we'll go from there...
Peter Ward thanks so much emails sent
How did you manage to ventilate the subfloor to solve the issue Peter ?
Artisan Plastering you need to lower the outside ground level and install vents to the external wall to allow ventilation to the sub floor
hi Peter i have just spent 1 month getting under all my floors and spraying them with woodworm treatment made hatches to get under all downstairs floors to spray woodworm. lol .now you tell me .oh well . thanks love all your videos very interesting . p.s hows dog doing now .i know was a bit touch and go a few vids back