How to treat woodworm in floorboards properly?

Question

We’ve pulled the carpet up and spotted small holes in the boards, and now I’m panicking a bit about whether this is something I can deal with or if it’s serious.

Kevin · Accepted Answer

Pull up every over floor board, and  spray with a wood worm killer, if its really bad ie rotted crumbly  wood, you will have to remove the infected floorboards and replace with new boards.

Petr · Answer

As the previous answer... but also I would do checks on joists too. Becuase few hundreds or few thousands could be a different story later.

Kacper · Answer

Small holes in floorboards can be something like old woodworm, but they’re not automatically a serious active problem — old holes can sit there for decades.

What to look for:

Fresh, light sawdust (“frass”) near holes = could suggest active infestation
Crumbling/soft timber when pressed with a screwdriver = worth investigating
Clean old holes with solid wood around them are often historic, not current

If the boards feel solid, I wouldn’t panic. Vacuum up, take a close look for fresh dust, and if you’re unsure get a timber/pest specialist to inspect before assuming the worst. Often it sounds scarier than it is.

Simon · Answer

You must identify active woodworm
Make sure no damp is present, increase ventilation, 
Clean off and treat accordingly replacement if necessary. 
Hope this helps you.

Sonny · Answer

Hi Adam, as others have stated, expose all the timber in the floor and check how far the little gremlins have travelled.
Treating the timber may kill the blighters but you'll still have weakened timber.
A lot of the time it may have travelled to the joists aswell and the underside of the floorboards too which they prefer as gravity naturally empties their burrows allowing them to travel further into the wood with less effort.
Pull up a few boards and check the underside first.
There's no point treating just what you can see on the surface.

Carl · Answer

You should have a wood worm survey done , to locate and identify all wood worm areas .

How to treat woodworm in floorboards properly?

Follow Us

Cookies

Manage Cookies

Essential cookies

Analytics & Tracking

Advertising