First some background:
We live in Costa Rica. We have a piece of furniture made of Apple Ply, Teak and Mahogany. Now there is an infestation of some sort of larvae..either termites or powder post beetles. The pellets look like little bits of sand to the naked eye, but have rounded edges and are flat looking via a magnifying glass. I tried filling the pin holes with some home made bug juice of Meathyon and water and some liquid ant killer. But that doesn’t work.
Living downhere we do not have the benefit of the many chemicals to treat the wood or equipment to freeze/heat the wood. So my question is:
What can I use to kill them? I can fumigate, spray, paint etc. But I need to know some options here.
Any and as much help would be appreciated. I’d hate to lose this piece of special furniture.
Thanks
Steve
Replies
Not termites
Steve,
They aren't termites, they live in large colonies and need a water source, you probably have some form of beetle grub. My understanding is that it is very difficult to get at bugs in the wood with chemicals brushed on the outside, they simply don't penetrate any distance into the wood. I have good luck freezing wood to eliminate bugs, and one of the side advantages to kiln drying is that it also will kill most bugs, but higher temperatures won't do assembled and finished furniture much good. You might ask for advice from a specialist, contact Costa Rica's Department of agriculture for starters.
Most bugs once they mature eventually leave the wood so the infestation might just fade away naturally.
I have the same problem you had back in 2010
Hi Steve,
I have the same power on my wood bookshelf and wondered how you got your problem resolved!!
I appreciate you help..
Thank you - George
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