We had cabinets installed several years ago and one of the toe kick plates has ppb. We are removing the infected pieces. What are the chances of it spreading into our floorboards, plywood, etc.

Anytime you introduce new, unfinished wood to a pre existing structure, it should be treated with BORACARE to insure the wood does not have any type of wood destroying beetle. And once you have in place wood which is infected and displays exit holes from emerging adult beetles, the possibility of some mating and laying eggs is very real.

At this point I would treat as much of the cabinets with Boracare, along with any new wood you install, to insure there is nothing being missed.

Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:

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

Powderpost Beetle Article: http://www.powderpostbeetles.com/powderpost-beetle-control#furniture

If you read our POWDERPOST BEETLE ARTICLE, you'll learn this pest doesn't like to move from one wood species to another. You'll also learn they tend to focus on where the original infestation is active. Most likely due to the smells (pheromones) on the active piece, they'll want to be where other beetles are living and active. That being said, you don't want to have any piece of infested wood in such close proximity so as I see it, you have a few options.

One is to get rid of the table. This would no doubt take away all inherent risks. Second would be to treat the table. You state it's urethaned but if you take a moment to look on the bottom side, you may find it unfinished in this area and that's all you'd need to do a treatment with some BORACARE.

Lastly, you could opt to keep the table and treat the exit holes with PHANTOM as explained in our article. I mention this because there is a good chance the exiting beetles you're seeing will soon "dry up" and run out and therefore pose no risk. And by treating their exit holes, you'd be securing the table is not being used again.

Personally, if it was my table, I'd treat if I was able to find at least one side that's not sealed with urethane. And I'd use the Boracare. Now if I couldn't find an untreated area and the piece was entirely sealed, I'd move the table to my garage or someplace "hot" and humid. I'd treat all exit holes with Phantom and then I'd get some clear "painters drop cloth" and seal the table in plastic as air tight as possible. This would essentially "cook" the piece which in turn would cause the developing stages to succumb to both the lack of air combined with the Phantom making for a deadly environment to any bug inside the wood.

The hot and "more humid" conditions would then cause them to speed up their development which in turn would make them "run out" cycle wise that much faster. Using this process I'd monitor the piece by looking in the plastic once a week to see how many beetles emerge, how frequently the population I see changes, when the activity subsides, etc. My guess is within2-3 months most all the activity will have run it's course but I'd wait 6-12 months before I brought it back inside depending on when the last bit of activity was noted and how many beetles emerged.

Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:

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

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

Powderpost Beetle Article: http://www.powderpostbeetles.com/powderpost-beetle-control

Exit Holes: http://www.powderpostbeetles.com/powderpost-beetle-control#post_treatment

First, since this scenario is so common, I do not believe your wood floor is "contaminated". Second, it's not for me to determine "who should be responsible". To me, the insect is responsible because it's the one drilling out of the wood (probably why I'm not a lawyer..). Third, what should you request the installer to do? I have no idea. This is something you'll need to work out between you and him and if an agreement cannot be reached, then I'm sure attorney's will get involved. Sorry I cannot help regarding these concerns but if you want some advice on the beetle problem, this is where my expertise may come in handy so maybe I can help you to better understand what you're dealing with, what to expect, etc.

For now, I suggest you read our article on this insect so you can best prepare yourself for what it does, how it behaves, etc. Once you understand it's biology, you'll be better prepared to deal with the current and all future situations. In the reading you'll learn that hardwood floors will commonly display this kind if activity following the initial install. You'll also learn that many people actually "like" the holes because they feel the holes "add character" to the wood. In fact, a very popular wood used for furniture, flooring and other around the home projects is known as "worm wood". This wood is essentially "chewed" out by boring pests and to many people, very much desirable.

But to others, the holes aren't attractive and when they continue to appear, they'll no doubt disrupt your daily life and in general, make you depressed. Now are your feelings valid? Maybe. I say this because clearly too many holes can make the wood unsound. And if they keep emerging for years, they'll effectively be making a mess. So if you only have 3-6 holes and the activity ceases, you probably don't have to do anything. But if you have 10-20 holes and the install is just a month or two old, I'd consider treating.

As for treating, there are two ways which are explained in our article. No doubt this will involve a lot of work but if you want to keep the floors in place and the exit holes show no sign of letting up, treating will be necessary. Regardless of who does the work, apply either JECTA GEL or BORACARE. This will knock out the current beetle population and protect it for the life of the flooring inside the home.

Now if you decide to rip out the flooring and install new flooring, don't make the same mistake again. Instead, treat the new wood to be installed with Boracare so that no matter what the condition of the wood, the problem you have right now will be avoided. In my mind it just makes sense to pretreat every inch of any wood flooring being installed to avoid this exact thing from happening but for some reason, installers don't sell this kind of service or even think to offer it. But if you treat the wood prior to having it finished, you won't have any worries no matter after it's installed and that will buy you peace of mind for sure.

Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:

Jecta Gel:  http://www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/gel/jecta-gel-10-oz

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

Powderpost Beetle Article: http://www.powderpostbeetles.com/powderpost-beetle-control

Wood Floor Treatments:  http://www.powderpostbeetles.com/powderpost-beetle-control#wood_floor_beetle_treatment

If you treated properly last summer, than what you're seeing are most likely POST TREATMENT EXIT HOLES. This is a common phenomena relative to powderpost beetle treatments and in most cases, normal. The key here is whether or not you treated with enough BORACARE. So if you applied enough and the wood is now thoroughly impregnated with the material, any eggs that hatch larvae won't be able to live. This is the important and why the right treatment will kill the infestation.

But as our article explains, any pupae in the wood when it's treated cannot be killed so some will commonly hatch 6-12 months following the initial application and I suspect that's what you have happening now. So should you do anything? Maybe.

Personally I know that these hatching adults can cause trouble. And since the most likely place for them to cause trouble will be the old infested wood from whence they came. So to insure they don't have any success in this area, I'd treat with some PHANTOM. It's easy to apply, odorless and won't make a mess since it goes on "dry". Give the holes a real quick squirt along with the cracks and crevices you'll no doubt find in any wood floor. This will insure any eggs that get laid won't thrive.

Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:

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

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

Post Treatment Exit Holes:  http://www.powderpostbeetles.com/powderpost-beetle-control#post_treatment

There is no need to scrap this wood. In my opinion, wood that shows signs of insect activity adds character to it. Worm wood is a prime example of just how much some people like this look and how common wood that shows signs of insect activity will be used for both furniture and construction. Furthermore, hard wood that shows this sign is even harder to find making it even more rare and probably more valuable.

So what about the insect sign? Should that be a concern for anyone that might want to acquire furniture made with this wood? Not if you pretreat with BORACARE. Since it's so inexpensive to use, I would treat all the stock with the Boracare (prior to building), let it cure and then go about using it with the knowledge that the insects have been treated and shouldn't be a concern for the life of the pieces you make from the treated stock. Furthermore, the treatment will not pose a hazard to you, the furniture maker, nor to the eventual furniture owner because Boracare is so safe to use and once absorbed into the wood, poses no hazard to people where the piece is displayed.

Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:

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

Powderpost Beetle Article: http://www.powderpostbeetles.com/powderpost-beetle-control#furniture

No doubt you have some kind of wood beetle living in the frame. Unfortunately there is no way for us (or anyone for that matter) to tell if this is a new problem or one that has been going on for some time. Nor are we able to tell if it's an isolated case. In most situations, if you see one there are more and a treatment is warranted. There is just no practical or efficient way to "test" or inspect wood so the industry has learned to handle it as "active" when at least one is found. From there, the logic is easy. Following the treatment, the problem will be solved with certainty.

In this case, if you want to keep the frame, you have two choices. The first is to do nothing and hope the situation "dies out" and the beetles don't spread to other parts of the home. This would be a poor choice.

The second option is to treat with JECTA GEL. This would be a fairly easy project. Basically the back side of the frame would require small holes drilled into which the gel would be applied. After allowing it and allowing the gel to soak in over a week or two time period, the treatment would permeate throughout thus killing any feeding beetle larvae and breaking the cycle. Within 1 month the holes could be sealed back up and you could keep the frame without further worry.

Of course, the frame may have no value to you at this time and discarding it from the home would also take care of the problem. Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:

Jecta Gel:  http://www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/gel/jecta-gel-10-oz

Powderpost Beetles in Furniture:  http://www.powderpostbeetles.com/powderpost-beetle-control#furniture_beetle_treatments

There is no need to tent the home. In all likelihood, this would be massive overkill. In the cases where I've dealt with infested wainscoting that was painted, we used one of two treatment options both of which worked fine.

The first method was to remove the wainscoting, treat the back side with BORACARE and then put it back in place. There is a 99.9% chance the back side is untreated and unfinished making it perfect for a Boracare treatment. Any decent handyman can do the removal (without destroying the wood) for a nominal fee and after it's treated, replace it with little to no damage. After it's reinstalled, you may need to touch up some of the pieces to make them like there were prior to being removed but this would be minimal.

The second option was used when the pieces of wainscot  were glued to the wall. In this case, pulling them off would break the pieces so instead we opted to drill holes every 6-12 inches and then applied JECTA GEL through the holes. The gel then permeated throughout the wood with the net effect being a complete and thorough application. This process did require more finesse afterward because we had a lot of holes to fill and paint. But once complete and the holes filled, there was no clue anything had been done.

Worth mentioning is the option of simply removing the old and installing new wainscoting. No doubt this can be done. But if they decide to follow this path, have them treat the new wood with Boracare prior to installing it. Wood installed over an area with previous beetle activity is highly likely to develop the same problem so it would be wise to treat and remove this possibility.

Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:

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

Jecta Gel:  http://www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/gel/jecta-gel-10-oz

Powderpost Beetle Article: http://www.powderpostbeetles.com/powderpost-beetle-control

You most certainly can use JECTA GEL in the way you're asking about. You could either remove the trim, drill holes on the back side and inject the jel there or you could do so from the front. For obvious reasons, doing so from the back side will make it cosmetically easier to fix.

I also suggest angling the drill holes down at least 15 degrees. This way when you inject the gel, it will seep down and stay in the hole a lot better compared to holes that go in straight.

Jecta Gel:  http://www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/gel/jecta-gel-10-oz

So I need to treat but I don't know where to start? Do I treat everything? And what about my furniture? We have alot of cherry and oak pieces and I don't them in any of my furniture.

Deathwatch beetles mostly target hardwoods like cherry and oak. If the molding is a hardwood species, it would explain how they've gotten inside some sections. As for the wall space; if you have normal pine studs commonly used in construction, its not likely deathwatch beetles will be in there since they need hardwoods for food.

As for treating;  you'll first have to make sure any wood you want to save is accessible. That means it cannot have a finished coat of something on it like varnish. This is all covered in our BEETLE ARTICLE. So if you wish to save moldings that show deathwatch beetle activity, you'll probably have to remove the molding from the wall, strip it down, treat it with BORACARE and then reinstall it after it's cured. Since cherry wood is expensive, it will probably make sense to save it and recycle the treated the pieces.

As for the wall void; I doubt you'll have to treat it. The chances are high only the molding is infested and after getting those pieces treated, simply wait and see if anything new happens. I'm willing to bet it won't be cause I bet the problem will be confined to just the molding.

Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:

Powderpost Beetle Article: http://www.powderpostbeetles.com/powderpost-beetle-control

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

Round headed borers commonly infest live trees and in most cases will die off when the tree dies. But this could take some time and if these are actually some other species, it is entirely possible they'll migrate to other wood in the home. You didn't mention if the piece is finished or not and this factors into the decision on whether to save it or trash it.

If the pieces have unfinished sections, treating with BORACARE as explained in our WOOD BEETLE CONTROL article will take care of the current infestation and protect the wood from future problems. Boracare needs to be applied to unfinished wood in order to penetrate through and through so if the pieces are completely finished, you'll have to decide whether removing the finish to treat and save the piece is worth the time and effort. If not, you may want to discard infested pieces and start anew.

As for any live trees with activity; there are a couple of treatment options that will both control current round headed borers and help prevent the infestation from spreading to other trees. For trees currently showing activity (holes, chambers, sawdust, etc.), inject galleries and holes with PT-CYKICK AEROSOL. Following this you should spray the limbs and trunk with CYPERMETHRIN. The aerosol will kill live beetles and the Cypermethrin will both kill any it contacts as well as provide a month or two of residual so that new borers won't be able to migrate onto any tree sprayed.

Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:

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

PT-Cykick: http://www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/aerosol/pt-cykick-17-5-oz

Cypermethrin: http://www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/liquid/viper-cypermethrin

Furniture Treatments:  http://www.powderpostbeetles.com/powderpost-beetle-control#furniture_beetle_treatments