Powder Post Beetles

Powderpost Beetles

There are several groups of powderpost beetles.  For this discussion, we will focus on Lyctid powderpost beetles, since that is what is most commonly found in homes in Central Texas.  Powderpost beetles are small, around ¼ of an inch, brown, and cylindrically shaped.  Adults are cryptic and rarely seen by homeowners.  Larvae are found inside infested wood.  They are white, c-shaped grubs.  People usually notice they have an infestation because of the fine powdery frass ejected by larvae as they feed.

Life History

Adult powderpost beetles lay eggs on unfinished dead hardwoods.  The larvae feed inside the wood, kicking out a talcum-powder consistency frass.  Development to adult takes 1 to 3 years.  Infested wood is often re-infested by the next generation. Hardwoods like oak, ash,walnut, hickory, poplar, cherry, and tropical hardwoods including bamboo are susceptible to attack.  These types of wood are used in furniture, flooring, paneling, and other decorative situations. Soft wood like pine or cedar that is normally used in construction is not attacked.

Why are they Pests?

While important as natural decomposers, powderpost beetles can destroy furniture and flooring made from hardwood.  Infestations can go unnoticed for years, resulting in a good deal of damage.  We have found infestations mainly in imported furniture in our area.  I did find an infestation of powderpost beetles in hardwood flooring in 2019.

Powderpost Beetle Prevention

Wood manufacturers should inspect wood before use

Wood that is painted, stained, or varnished are safe from attack

Powderpost Beetle Control

Wood that was infested before being painted, stained or varnished can be protected from future infestation by sealing the beetle exit holes.  If infestation is limited to a small area of flooring or decorative wood, replacing the wood is often the best approach to control.  For small decorative pieces of wood, freezing the wood for a few days will remove the infestation.  Larger pieces of furniture can be heat treated DIY style by placing the furniture outside under black plastic on hot days.  Adding a Nuvan Pest Strip under the black plastic with the furniture can ensure this process is successful.

https://entomology.ca.uky.edu/ef616

Scott's comments so far (5/22/18)

You can't buy any fumigation materials without having a fumigation license.  It's VERY dangerous.  You can use heat to kill them.  Easiest way would be to cover it in black plastic for a couple of days once our outdoor temperatures get above 90 or so.  Sometimes, you can use vapona pest strips to fumigate under plastic, but it doesn't always penetrate deep enough to get control.  Using heat plus vapona can be more effective.  You could also build an insulation chamber and use a space heater plus vapona to kill them.  That may be too much work though.  Here is a link to a video for UF Entomology Department where they build heat chambers for bed bug control: https://youtu.be/1MRLY6TU9ZU  The same thing could work here.  If it was me, I'd wait till it got hot and cover with black plastic.