Possible Termite Problem?
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https://hnr.k-state.edu/extension/horticulture-resource-center/common-pest-problems/documents/Cottonwood Borer.pdf
I think this is the one we have here in Kansas that likes our Osage Orange firewood. If you go stand out by my firewood stacks on a warm day in spring you can hear them chewing away. I just figure they are helping the firewood dry faster by boring holes in it. 🤣There will be more of them show up if you happen to cut the wood on a day when the sap is flowing. Ours would have yellow stripes with a black body.
I think this is the one we have here in Kansas that likes our Osage Orange firewood. If you go stand out by my firewood stacks on a warm day in spring you can hear them chewing away. I just figure they are helping the firewood dry faster by boring holes in it. 🤣There will be more of them show up if you happen to cut the wood on a day when the sap is flowing. Ours would have yellow stripes with a black body.
Hey guys sorry it took me so long. I actually attached more pictures but it looks like they got corrupted somehow and only this one came through. Anyway I was seeing where people were mentioning the holes in the wood and mine definitely have holes in then. I would say they are 'pill' like ovals in the wood. I would say that I have an infestation of whatever it is because the saw dust around the wood is crazy. You would think it is from a lumber mill.
That looks like what PPB kick out. Are the holes pin head sized?
I’d still burn the wood, but would bring it inside when you’re ready to burn.
I’d still burn the wood, but would bring it inside when you’re ready to burn.
I'm glad it's cold here. Most times. Those beetles cannot survive here in the wood shed. Occasionally we find one in the house "coming to".
Harvesting near bark-less deadfall and snags prevents most of the potential for bugs. I knock a lot of bark off sometimes by throwing the wood into a pile before loading. Depends on the wood. We haven't been burning very long. This is only our third winter in recent times. We burned for a few years many years ago. Long enough ago that I forgot most of what I learned then.
As I have learned better what wood to gather, my insect count in the wood has been reduced to nearly nill. Really cold weather helps a bunch. The bugs can barely survive here in stacked firewood. They mostly don't exist in barkless wood. And termites do not exist here. Carpenter ants do. A few pieces I split this year had lots of ants in them. I knocked them out of the wood and squished them. Poor dears. I left the wood out for a few days and any remaining were gone. But not back to the wood shed. I don't think they made it very far. It was cold. Too cold for bugs, anyway.
Sorry about your problem. Hopefully it is minor.
Harvesting near bark-less deadfall and snags prevents most of the potential for bugs. I knock a lot of bark off sometimes by throwing the wood into a pile before loading. Depends on the wood. We haven't been burning very long. This is only our third winter in recent times. We burned for a few years many years ago. Long enough ago that I forgot most of what I learned then.
As I have learned better what wood to gather, my insect count in the wood has been reduced to nearly nill. Really cold weather helps a bunch. The bugs can barely survive here in stacked firewood. They mostly don't exist in barkless wood. And termites do not exist here. Carpenter ants do. A few pieces I split this year had lots of ants in them. I knocked them out of the wood and squished them. Poor dears. I left the wood out for a few days and any remaining were gone. But not back to the wood shed. I don't think they made it very far. It was cold. Too cold for bugs, anyway.
Sorry about your problem. Hopefully it is minor.
stoveliker
Minister of Fire
Yes, if they are indeed these beetles we have always had them in and around the house. I would guarantee they resist the cold very well. We have had days here that have easily been in the single digits. I guess like many insects they bore into the wood, go dormant and begin to become active again after you bring them in near the fire. I find all types of insects and I contribute it to bringing in the wood.
Something that has always alarmed me is that we seem to constantly have different species of wasps in the house. I know I have seen more than one species but one that seems pretty large is definitely more common. They are very big and when they 'wake up' and become active around the house it is unsettling to say the least. I have read and read about it and it seems the most likely culprit is that they are inside the wood when I bring it in. They are also not the fuzzy carpenter or bumble bees and are probably actually larger. Anyway I was reading that one possibility is you have a nest on the outside of your house where the bees have been able to penetrate inside. I doubt that I have this and I think it is more likely they are just inside the wood.
stoveliker
Minister of Fire
I just moved some wood from a stack into my shed (as I have space now, after burning...).
I found a big yellow jacket between the splits - that's a queen being dormant during the winter.
If one brings those in, they'll awaken indeed.
I found a big yellow jacket between the splits - that's a queen being dormant during the winter.
If one brings those in, they'll awaken indeed.
wasps and beatles hide in the wood had a big hornet crawling out of some wood i brought in in the middle of winter.i can't tell you the bug i had it was from some friends wood it was a little worm that would bore in the wood ,it actually started to go through my pine floors used to leave fine ,fine saw dust next to every hole.poured something wish i could remember in the hole and killed it off.if i were you keep the wood outside till you need it,and check your wood floors for little bore holes.
I too hope this is minor and you don't get it into your house.
In general, are there any commonly taken measures when storing firewood? Maybe spraying something around the wood shed, so that they don't crawl outside the boundaries? It looks like by buying/bringing wood from other places it's possible to bring some insects that might infest trees around and create issues...
In general, are there any commonly taken measures when storing firewood? Maybe spraying something around the wood shed, so that they don't crawl outside the boundaries? It looks like by buying/bringing wood from other places it's possible to bring some insects that might infest trees around and create issues...
@Woodsplitter67 , what do you use to spray?
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Woodsplitter67
Minister of Fire
In all honesty.. I have a license to spray.. what is available to me is not available to the general public. Im not sure what's available to the people purchasing from the big box stores..
I hope it isn't Chlordane.
You can sprinkle diatomaceous earth onto the wood pile, it kills bugs, non toxic to mammals.
You can sprinkle diatomaceous earth onto the wood pile, it kills bugs, non toxic to mammals.
We’ve found the “green” stuff is as effective as the synthetic stuff. Or at least we don’t have any more retreats with it. Maybe that is due to customer education and expectations. It does work differently though. It does have less impact on the environment, and that does mean less residual killing power.
Here’s a pic I took of the ones I have. I don’t worry about them too much. If my wood is seasoned two years, they are gone by then. If I happen to get into seasoned only one year (not recommended, but it does happen sometimes) they come out in droves, and I will use some fly spray on them. But I’ve noticed they only like wet wood and will leave dry wood alone. Plus the interior of my boiler room is all tin, so not much they can get to.
stoveliker
Minister of Fire
I have 1/8" circular holes in the sapwood of red oak here that was cut, split and stacked green and clean. But after 4 years these holes have appeared as well as sawdust (powder) from under the bark.
Leaving oak in rounds .for a year before splitting and stacking increases the number of these holes.
Leaving oak in rounds .for a year before splitting and stacking increases the number of these holes.
No, I burn almost exclusively hedge wood, or as it’s also called Osage Orange. A very hard wood.
Hey Tonty,
I just came to update the forum. I found out this is exactly what I have. Some of the wood that I am brining in is stuff that was just split and stacked around a year ago now. I looked these up and they are called Locust Borers, sorry if this was already mentioned. I have read that they are indeed dangerous to trees so I have been vacuuming them up with my shop vac. I have seen at least a couple dozen of them in my basement. I am hoping they do not cause me any kind of issues within my house. I guess they are dormant inside the wood and when I bring it in a start a fire they get active.
