Replies

1. 
   bd | Jun 16, 2008 04:43pm | #1

   Kiln drying is one way. Somebody should come along & post the temps & times req'd to insure kills. Also, there are some chemical treatments that are supposed to penetrate. Call the folks at Do-it-Yourself Pest Control, 800-476-3368,

   http://www.doityourselfpestcontrol.com/

   I bought something from them a while back to treat some buggy white oak, but can't remember the name. It's expensive, but it sounds like you have a limited amount to treat. The usual borate based treatments (Timbor or Bora-Car) are good for treating wood to prevent infestation, but once the wood's infested, they don't penetrate far enough to wipe out the larvae according to what I've been told.

2. 
   dkellernc | Jun 16, 2008 05:00pm | #2

   You can use ammonia fumigation to kill everything, including deeply encased insects and eggs.  For pieces as small as this, you can use household cleaning ammonia - just leave it sealed inside the bag with the ammonia in a cup for 3 or more days.

   For a faster treatment, you can use stronger ammonia, purchased as an ammonium hydroxide solution.  You can get 30% from a local chemical supplier (such as Thermo-Fisher), or possibly a blueprint supply house if one is located near you.  One caution - concentrated ammonium hydroxide is dangerous;  you must use a chemical respirator that's designed to work with ammonia fumes (i.e., the filter canisters contain activated carbon).  Most home improvement centers carry these.

   Ammonia fuming can change the color of the wood, though the color change is most pronounced with high-tannin content woods such as oak.  I suspect apple or other fruitwoods wouldn't change much, though I'd test it on a small piece before you proceed.

1. 
   martyk | Jun 16, 2008 05:36pm | #3

   Thanks bd. Thanks dkellernc. The ammonia solution had occurred to me since I once fumed some oak for a bookcase. The color change from fuming generally does not run very deep, but perhaps the color change alone is not indicative of how far it is getting into the wood. Do you think the ammonia will penetrate the wood far enough to do the job?

    

1. 
   dkellernc | Jun 17, 2008 04:52pm | #4

   Absolutely.  All terrestrial insects require oxygen, and they're getting it through pores or bored tubes in the wood, no matter how deep they are.  Gaseous ammonia will diffuse very rapidly, and will be more than sufficient to displace the oxygen in the insect's bored tubes.  Just  to be sure, though, I would seal it and wait 3 days.

   There is an alternative method that was published in (I think) the Wooden Artifacts Group postscript archive that involved sealing an infested piece of furniture in a plastic enclosure with oxygen-scavenging packets.  I believe these oxygen scavenging packages were finely divided iron, and the oxygen in the enclosure was removed by the iron in these packets converting to rust.  The article reported that the infestation was neutralized in several days, and the piece of furniture was left in the enclosure for a couple of weeks just to be sure.

   Personally, I think the ammonia method is simpler, quicker, and easier to obtain the materials, but the oxygen-scavenging method would have the advantage of not coloring the wood.

3. 
   Landman | Jun 18, 2008 09:55pm | #5

   I've never tried it, but have wondered if a couple of weeks in the freezer for pieces that size would kill all the bugs?

1. 
   martyk | Jun 19, 2008 02:21am | #6

   I talked to a friend of mine who is an arborist and her suggestion was to seal up each log in a big black hefty bag and set it out in the sun for a day....I don't know, maybe longer. A good steady dose of summer sunshine will supposedly raise the temperature inside the bag pretty high...enough to kill any insect life forms. I've read that a temperature of 140 F/60 C is enough.

1. 
   dkellernc | Jun 19, 2008 04:19pm | #7

   True enough, but I'd be concerned that enclosing the wood in a plastic bag and using solar heating to that temperature would cause trouble with surface checking or warping.

1. 
   KiddervilleAcres | Jun 25, 2008 06:04pm | #8

   I'd also bet you'd have a lot of moisture build up in/on the wood also.

   Regards,Bob @ Kidderville Acres

   A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!

4. 
   PCM | Jun 25, 2008 08:16pm | #9

   A local exterminator uses mineral spirits, then tightly wraps the wood in plastic and lets set.

   I have very old cabinet boards that were infested, made a cocktail: mineral spirits, boron from Wal-Mart (used as a roach inhibitor in new construction), applied heavily and wrapped in visqueen for several weeks. End of problem. Lindane is now illegal to buy, but if you can get some from an acquaintance, it will end the problem very quickly. 

   Pete