I was writing the other day about the restoration Chippendale salon, of how difficult it was to get rid of the mob of carrion that infested the furniture. Seeing how affected the furniture was due to long storage in an unsuitable environment, with very good conditions for the development of the carabid, I decided to tell you more about these insects, their development cycle, how to prevent them and the recommended treatments in case of infestation.
"The 'critter' that feeds on wood is called a car, plural cari. Because it makes holes and grinds holes in the wood, some call it a carrion, but the term is incorrect. The chariot lives only in wood, feeding on wood, so the term 'wood chariot' is pleonastic.
The term horn beetle is given to several insects of the order Coleoptera that live in wood. Anobium punctatum is the best known and most common in the temperate zone, and therefore also in our area. It feeds on the softer parts of wood - alburn - making it less dangerous to the structural strength of buildings. If the wood has been attacked by fungi and molds that make it vulnerable, then the wood decay can get into the harder areas of the wood. However, there are also species of hardwood-feeding cary (Xestobium rufovillosum).
The adult insect looks like a rectangular, grayish-brown, hairy, hairy beetle 4-6 mm long. By the time we see these insects the wood has most likely already been infested. The beetle emerges from the wood at maturity, having spent its entire life in the wood, feeding on it.
Adults emerge from the wood during spring-summer, from May to August-September. Their life outside the wood is short; they live practically long enough to produce offspring and then die. Thistles do not live in live wood but only in wood that has been cut for at least 4-5 years and without bark. The female lays clusters of up to 50 eggs, which look like small white pearls, in cracks in the wood, in old holes or under the wood. Whitish cream larvae develop from the eggs, which are initially 1 mm long. For 4-5 years the larvae stay in the wood and feed on it, burrowing randomly. They grow to 6-7 mm long and begin to transform. It first pupates, and for this it moves towards the surface of the wood, burrowing very close to the surface. It takes 6-7 weeks for the larva to pupate. From the pupa emerges the adult which digs 1-1.5 mm diameter round holes in the thin layer of wood and emerges to the surface to breed, thus resuming the cycle.
Cavities do not grow in all conditions, they need moisture. That's why they appear in wood stored in poor conditions, in old and damp houses. Wood with humidity above 16% and above 64% relative air humidity are a very good environment for development. It is one of the reasons why it is recommended that wood used for furniture should have humidity below 12%, too low for decay infestation.
The preferred wood of Anobium punctatum is resinous, but it can also be found in fag, birch, cherry, arin and other such species. They attack less oak tree, which is a hard wood, and exotic species. That's why old pieces of oak furniture hold up much better over time. But this is not a general rule. In environments with very high humidity, fungi and molds develop on the wood, weakening its structure and making it accessible to decay.
Insects attack any wood in the house if the right conditions are met. They are found in furniture, flooring or floorboards, doors, doors, paneling, even in beams and the structural framework of the house. It is sufficient for the relative humidity of the air to be above 60% for more than a month, and the relative humidity of the wood to be above 14-15%. After a long period of high humidity, the wood may be so attacked that the furniture, flooring or paneling is totally compromised.
In terms of structural strength things are not so bad. By feeding only on the sapwood, i.e. the area on the outside of the trunk, the strength poles are not penetrated by decay and so their strength is not affected. In some countries (e.g. England) it is forbidden to use wood with more than 25% sapwood in construction. In this way, the strength structure will not be affected by decay. However, it should not be forgotten that, under certain conditions, decay can also reach the center of the trunk, in the heartwood zone.
The best way to keep wood safe from woodworm attack is prevention. Treated wood is particularly recommended for construction, flooring, paneling and other fittings. Treating wood can be done by impregnating it with various chemicals or using pressure to make it harder. Unfortunately, many of the items attacked by decay are old, from a period when the wood was not treated before use.
The larva is very resistant and it takes aggressive and repeated treatments to kill it. In addition, the labyrinths carved into the wood are so small and convoluted that sprays do not always reach them. Therefore, when treated, objects should be left for at least 24 hours in that environment. When you have infested areas of your home or many large objects it is best to call in the specialists. As well as the substances, they also have the necessary conditions for the treatment to be successful.
Various substances are used against the scale. The most common is Borax (sodium borate - an inorganic boron-based compound). Similar products are Boron or ProBor. These are trade names, depending on the company that produces them, but they are all based on sodium borate. Another product is Permethrin, an organic chlorine-based substance. It is also used to treat mange or against lice. Methyl bromide is another chemical that was used a lot in the past, but is gradually being phased out because of its toxicity. All these products are used as concentrated solutions and are sprayed on infested wood.
The operation is repeated several times to make sure the larvae have been killed. A clue is the lack of specific noise (it is very audible when it is quiet) and wood dust around the holes. Sometimes, to reach the larvae, the toxic substance is syringed into the canals.
Because of the toxicity of the products or the impossibility of using them in certain environments (museums, collections, etc.), treatments have been developed that attack only the carrion, without harming the environment. These treatments are based on temperature variation. At temperatures above 50 grd.C or below -20 grd C, the caryons do not survive. However they adapt easily so the temperature has to be lowered abruptly, after which it returns to normal. The cold-warm cycles repeat several times. Treatments must be done carefully so as not to damage the objects. There are also treatments that use ultrasound or microwaves.
Another treatment is with nitrogen and carbon dioxide. The gases are sprayed into the enclosure until the oxygen ratio drops below 0.2% and maintained for 2 weeks. Cavities cannot live without oxygen. Treatments that do not use chemicals kill cavities, but do not provide protection over time.
There are natural treatments, both for prevention and treatment. Some seem very hard to believe, but many say they are effective. Find methods described in full here.
Often, to get rid of decay, parts of the infested wood need to be replaced. It is best not to go to this stage as valuable items may be lost. If you see adult insects flying around, round holes in the wood or hear specific noises don't wait. Look for specialized firms and start treatment immediately.
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[...] unlike other building materials, wood is vulnerable to attack by insects (curries, termites). To protect it, it must be treated with suitable substances. Treatment can be done [...]
Hello.Can Borax pentahydrate be used against caries?Thank you very much.
Hello!
Borax is used as a flame retardant and fungicide. It is also used as an insecticide, in insectofungicidal mixtures, but I found no reference to it destroying cavities. They are very resistant and need more aggressive treatments.
Find more information about combating carrion in the link below.
All the best!
https://revistadinlemn.ro/2018/08/23/tratamente-naturale-impotriva-carilor/
Good evening! My name is Teo Cangea, a subscriber to your magazine. I am desperately crying out for help. I built a house in the summer, somewhere in the country, on a wooden structure. The house is finished on the outside (polystyrene was put over the OSB and then decorative plaster). A few days ago, going to the cottage in the country, I was astonished to find fine traces of sawdust in some places inside the house. On the floor I found a lot of dead flies. In the two days I stayed at the cottage, I saw many small insects flying around inside, with transparent wings, similar in appearance to miniature dragonflies. I asked someone about the case and he told me it was curries. Please tell me what to do in this situation. If it is indeed curries, how can I destroy and stop their development? Thank you.
Hello!
It may be curries that you have unknowingly brought inside the wood. The moisture inside has facilitated their development and their emergence to the surface. But they do not necessarily have to be curries. Mature curries live very little after they emerge from the wood. They lay eggs and die. If they are curries it will be harder to get rid of them, being all covered up. If you don't live there, you should buy some anti-caries solution, spray it all over the house, close it and leave it for a week, then repeat the operation 2-3 times. The solution should be for pest control, not prevention. Find solutions at Casa Iancu or Bochemit. Casa Iancu will also offer advice. It is good to call them to identify the insect and recommend the most appropriate treatment.
You can also find information about curries and treatments in the link below.
Thank you for being our subscriber.
All the best!
https://revistadinlemn.ro/2018/08/23/tratamente-naturale-impotriva-carilor/
Hello! Please tell me kindly how and what you managed to do against the carrion? I also made a new house and the top Nu is all sewers because of the thistles. Thank you and I am waiting for you to inform me too. Beautiful day!
Hello!
Thistles are very hardy and you probably brought them into the house using infested wood. If you live there it is quite difficult because you should spray the recommended substances (boron or chlorine based - you can find them at specialist shops or on the net), leave the house closed for a few days, then resume the operation. Make sure that the substances get into the gutters, spray directly on the infested wood. The operation is a dangerous one and you should call in specialist firms.
The development of cavities is favoured by the humidity in the house which should not be high and there should be no condensation.
All the best!
No curries! They're ephemerides! I have the same problem!
The plural of caries is cavities. NOT " CARIES " !
You are right. Except that the article is talking about the wooden chariot, not the tooth decay.
Hello! Can you recommend a company that can deal more efficiently with the problem of carts? I mean by methods such as ultrasound or hot-cold alternation, because with substances I have also tried and failed to reach their internal canals. Thank you!
Hello!
Unfortunately, we don't know of any company that uses such methods. I have contacted people involved in restoration activities and am still waiting for answers. I will get back to you when I receive information.
All the best!
Hello, I noticed a couple of holes in the doors of two rooms in the house this week and I think they might be curries. On one door there are no more than 10 holes and on the second I noticed 2 smaller ones. Do you think I could do something or would it be better to change the doors?
Good evening!
You should make sure there are larvae inside. It is possible that those holes existed before and you didn't notice them and there are no more grubs inside. If you find fine wood dust in the morning next to the holes, it means there are larvae inside.
Try to put white spirit (gas, petrosin) into each hole with a syringe and then cover the hole on the surface with wax (from a candle). Repeat the operation after one week. After another week remove the wax plug and check for wood dust.
A safer (and more aggressive) solution is Bochemit. It is a solution with very good results in eradicating ticks. It can also be introduced into the holes with a syringe.
My opinion is that you should first assess the situation and try to get rid of the curries before getting rid of the doors.
Below are 2 links that may be of use to you.
All the best!
https://revistadinlemn.ro/2018/08/23/tratamente-naturale-impotriva-carilor/
https://revistadinlemn.ro/2020/07/30/cum-scapi-de-cari-si-alti-daunatori-ai-lemnului-solutii-anticarii-lemn/
[...] piece of furniture in time you risk that the other wooden objects are infested. Here you can find a more detailed article about this, with the caveat that there are effective solutions to [...]
Hello,
I work in a bread factory that uses spruce-based spruce baskets for the dosing. These baskets are tarnished and stand in an environment of humidity 50 - 52% and temperature 30 - 40 gr. Over time on these baskets especially on the sole have appeared holes like those produced by caries. Apart from tribolium I have not particularly other types of insects present. Is it possible that these cavities are produced by tribolium? How can we get rid of these insects?
Good evening!
Tribolium is a flour beetle and I have not found any data showing attacks on wood. What you have appears to be curry ( Anobium punctatum). The larvae were already in the pine wood and the very good conditions (high humidity and temperature) caused them to develop and the adults to emerge from the wood causing holes.
Because it is a food you should use natural methods or materials. One solution is glass water (sodium silicate), but it has a stronger effect as a prevention. Some other ideas for protection with natural products can be found in the link below.
All the best!
https://revistadinlemn.ro/2018/08/23/tratamente-naturale-impotriva-carilor/
Hello! In your article you talked about the specific noise that cavities make. What is this noise? Last night I couldn't fall asleep because of a noise coming from the wood, but I couldn't tell if it was from the floor or the door and I don't know if it's curry noise or something else, because I don't know what is the specific noise made by curries! Could you please enlighten me?
Good evening!
It sounds like a gnawing sound, as if the wood is being given to a grater. The noise is continuous and can be heard when it's quiet.
Control the wood. If it has small holes and there is wood dust in the right side, it's definitely decay.
All the best!
Hello,
Please help me with some information.
A fine white dust falls on the kitchen furniture (melamine pallets) behind the wall units. I also saw 2-3 beetles of approx. 2 ml. Do you think it could be wood decay?
Can the pall be affected by curry?
What about laminate flooring?
What commercial solutions do you recommend for this?
Thank you!
Hello!
Woodworm rarely attacks chipboard or MDF, but it is not excluded, especially when they are already in the house and have no other food source (wood). The favourite place is indeed behind furniture.
Melamine flooring is not wood, it is paper impregnated with paper. Find here more information. Maybe the skirting board, if it is wood, can be attacked.
In my opinion the most effective solariums in case of curry infestation are those from Bochemit. You have below link with more information. There are also non-chemical treatments (very high or very low temperature, etc), but they are difficult to apply in such conditions. About natural treatments against woodworm you can find information here.
All the best!
https://revistadinlemn.ro/2020/07/30/cum-scapi-de-cari-si-alti-daunatori-ai-lemnului-solutii-anticarii-lemn/
Hello,
I made a decorative object from a wooden log - the log was actually sliced. The wood had visible traces of decay so I kept the wood slices for about 17 hours in chlorine water. Is this an effective method of destroying curry larvae?
Sincerely,
Catalin Tene
Hello!
Chlorine is a fairly aggressive agent, but is used more against mould. It also depends on how concentrated the solution was. You should check in one of the holes to see if there is still larva and if it is alive. You can do this with a needle that you insert into the hole.
One good thing is that there are slices of wood and the solution can penetrate deeper. Check though, just in case. Being a decorative object it will sit next to other wooden objects and not infest them too.
I leave below a link with natural treatment solutions.
All the best!
https://revistadinlemn.ro/2018/08/23/tratamente-naturale-impotriva-carilor/
Thank you!