powderpost beetles

Hi,
I don't post much, but I've drawn inspiration from so many of the home bar projects I've seen here. I decided to post with a question I've run across in converting my apartment living room into a tiki space. I've got some bamboo trim on the wall and ceiling edges, and I recently began to notice in one corner a fine sawdust on the floor. Following it up, I see very very small holes eaten into the bamboo I have attached to the ceiling. Sweeping around, I also finally found the small creatures doing the damage, and after taking macro photos of them and looking at images online, I think I've got them identified as powderpost beetles (possibly anobiid variety). Just wondering if anyone else has encountered such a problem in the building of their Tiki environments. Are you pretreating your wood before putting it up in your home?
I've done some reading and learned that these beetles lay their eggs in hardwood, where the larvae incubate for up to 5 years, then chewing their way out. I may replace the bamboo post that seems most affected, but I'm not really sure if the rest of my wood could be loaded up with eggs waiting to hatch. I've got some Timbor on order. Has anyone used that? Whatever info or experience you have would be valuable. Thanks!

You can find ways to get rid of all kinds of pests on the net.
Here's one place.
And the next link has all kinds of info.
Good luck!
http://epestsupply.ecomm-search.com/search?defaction=search&keywords=beetles&rewrite=off

http://www.powderpostbeetles.com/

Here is some info for you as well.
This is from the second site I listed.

February 27, 2012

Tammy @ 9:08 am #
How I can eliminate the bamboo borers inside a restaurant?

Reply

admin @ 10:57 am #
If the bamboo doesn't have a finish on it's outer facing side, simple spray or "paint" it with Boracare. I've been involved with doing this treatment it's very easy to do. I've also seen where the bamboo is attached to the wall and can be removed because it's actually in squares like tiles or paneling. Once removed, the back side can be treated.

Another method I've seen done is by mixing up in the Boracare in a tub and then dunking the bamboo in it for a few minutes to let the treatment penetrate. This is highly effective.

Lastly, spraying it down with some Phantom can prove effective since bamboo is very thin. In most cases aerosols won't help but with bamboo, it's a viable option.

Here are links to these items in our cart. Please show your support for our business by purchasing the items we recommend from the links provided. Remember, this is the only way we can stay around and keep this valuable web site up and running. Thanks for your business!

Boracare: http://www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/liquid/boracare-gal

Phantom: http://www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/aerosol/pt-phantom-17-5oz

Thanks tikiskip. Was thinking of using a spray bottle, but the dunking idea sounds better. Maybe I'll go that direction instead.

That Phantom stuff works great too.
I have used it for ants.
http://www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/aerosol/pt-phantom-17-5oz

Timbor and Boracare are both borate-based products, so they work on the same principle: they get absorbed into the wood fibers and turn the wood itself toxic to wood-boring insects, including powderpost beetle larvae. This is different from a surface spray that just kills what it touches on contact.

The dunking method mentioned above is genuinely more effective than spraying for something like bamboo, since the borate solution can penetrate deeper into the material rather than just sitting on the surface. If you go that route, letting each piece soak for a few minutes and then allowing it to fully dry before installing is important, since the borate needs to actually absorb in rather than just wet the surface.

On your bigger question, whether your other wood could already have eggs waiting to hatch: unfortunately there's no way to know for certain without either treating everything preventively or waiting to see if more emergence holes and frass show up over time. Since anobiid powderpost beetle larvae can take a few years to develop before emerging, a piece can look completely fine for a long stretch and still be infested. Given that, treating all your bamboo trim with Timbor now, not just the visibly affected piece, is the safer move rather than trying to guess which pieces are contaminated.

One thing worth checking: powderpost beetles specifically go after starches in hardwood (and bamboo has similar starch content), so once the wood is fully kiln-dried and the moisture content drops low enough, it becomes far less attractive to them. If your bamboo hasn't been properly dried before installation, that's often the real root cause, and drying + borate treatment together is a stronger long-term fix than treatment alone.

You can read and get more idea at https://mytermitecompany.com/blog/