Furniture Beetles

Why do I have furniture beetles

Adult furniture beetles do not eat wood, but their larvae, often known as woodworm, will consume both seasoned hardwoods and softwoods that are at least 10 years old.

Because of this, furniture beetles like to lay their eggs inside crevices in wood framing, flooring, and furniture to give the larvae that emerge an immediate food source.

Commonly, these beetles – or rather their eggs and larvae – are brought into the home inadvertently, in already infested furniture.

These beetles can also be attracted by damp structural beams commonly found in crawl spaces.

How worried should I be about furniture beetles

Once furniture beetle eggs hatch, the larvae consume the surrounding wood and develop within the timber, before exiting as fully grown beetles.

When eating, they drill deep into the wood, creating wood dust and when leaving, they make exit holes, all of which damages furniture, flooring, and wood frames.

A furniture beetle takes up to the three years to go through the four different life stages – egg, larva, pupa, and adult – so those larvae could be chewing up your furniture for some time.

For smaller pieces of infested wood that can fit in an oven, exposing the beetles to temperatures of at least 50°C for at least 30 minutes may kill them. Or you can try placing the wood in subzero temperatures for a long period.

However, it can be challenging to thoroughly eradicate a furniture beetle infestation, since it depends on properly identifying the insect, plus knowing the age, species, and moisture content of the infested wood.

To successfully eliminate your furniture beetle problem and keep them from returning, you need a professional pest control service.

How can I prevent furniture beetles invading

Inspect furniture or timber before you buy, Apply varnish, polyurethane, or paint, De-bark firewood and store it outside if possible, Ventilate attics and crawl spaces