You may be totally unaware of a woodworm infestation – but if you can see tiny holes in the surface of wood in your home, you need to get it looked at by an expert.

The tiny holes are just the tip of the iceberg. They may be holes made by wood boring beetles, once their larvae have pupated and emerged as adults.  Underneath, there is a whole matrix of tunnels caused by the feeding larvae.  These tunnels can weaken the structure of the timber.

Usually known simply as woodworm, these infestations can be one of four main timber pests: the common furniture beetle, the house longhorn beetle, the wood boring weevil or the death watch beetle.  The death watch beetle produces a distinctive tapping sound by banging its head against the wood to attract a mate.

Once we’ve identified the species of wood boring beetle infestation, we will treat the affected areas to eradicate and prevent further occurrences, using preservatives that are approved by the HSE.

Dry Rot spores are ubiquitous and there is no environment free of them.

Spores will germinate and grow in timber with a moisture content of between 20 and 30 per cent.  The fine fungal thread (hypha) digests the cellulose and hemi cellulose fractions of the wood, but is unable to attack the structural lignin’s. These remain as a brittle matrix which cracks into cubes under differential stresses.  Cuboidal cracking is also a characteristic of many wet rots and does not automatically indicate the presence of Dry Rot.

Fungal hyphae may clump together into a variety of structures known as mycelia which takes various forms depending on the surrounding conditions.  They may fill a humid cavity as a cotton wool-like mass, or grow across the surface of the timber, as a grey-white skin.  Active Dry Rot has a fresh white or greyish appearance.

Some hyphae group together to form conducting strands.  Their main function is the conduction of nutrients, through inert non-nutrient materials (brickwork etc) to permit eventual colonisation of other timbers.  Their relatively impervious outer layer together with an unusual alkaline tolerance, allows them to survive in the mortar layers within masonry and walls and an infested area may be full of Dry Rot strands.  The Dry Rot fungus may tolerate relatively low moisture contents and, through this, and other quirks in its biology, is potentially capable of considerable destruction.

A thorough treatment to eradicate dry rot properly involves the removal and replacement of affected timbers, chemical treatment of the surrounding areas of timber and masonry, replastering, ventilation improvement and of course the source of the underlying dampness will also need to be identified and treated.

Wet rot is characterised by the softening and darkening of affected timbers, often accompanied by Cuboidal or longitudinal cracking.

Wet rot is a less serious fungal strain, as it is restricted to timbers that come into contact with dampness and needs a high level of moisture present to survive.  However, it can cause the collapse of timber floors or roof joists if left untreated.

In order to effectively treat wet rot the affected timbers need to be cut away and replaced.  The source of the dampness must be located and treated to prevent further fungal growths and ventilation improved.