Are You Bugged?

Services Products Flat Headed or Round-Headed Wood Borers Look for small oval shaped holes in the log or timber. Also, bores lay in small pits in the bark. We have found there are two types of wood borers found in log and timber homes, known as round head and flathead wood bores. Their eggs hatch in 2 to 4 weeks. These borers feed deep into the wood as it dries, boring deeper into logs and timber. The life cycle is usually 1 to 2 years, but the larvae may feed up to seven years, if the wood moisture is low. If you are building a new log home, it is recommended to have kiln dried logs treated with Tim-Bor or Pene-Treat. Both products are the same though Tim-Bor is less expensive and can be purchased from Log-Pro. 

Powerpost Beetles

Powerpost beetles prefer unheated areas. Their size is about 1/8" to 5/16". We have found them in seasonal homes. They prefer sapwood of ring-porous and diffuseporous hardwoods with a high starch content. The tell tail sign is a small pile of fine brown flour-like wood material. We recommend for treatment Bora-Care, or Tim-Bor and Bug Juice. Call Log-Pro to order product. 

Carpenter Ants

If you find that your log or timber home has a moisture problem or one side is always wet or damp, look for ants. Carpenter ants are large and black in color. You may want to follow them and see where they are leading you too. They can enter your home by way of vegetation that overhangs or touches the home. Be sure to keep all trees or shrubs cut back from your home. Keep moisture from your home and treat area with Tim-Bor or Bora-Care. When staining, use Bug Juice as a deterrent. Call Log-Pro to order product. 

Carpenter Bees

Every year we are inundated with phone calls about carpenter bees. The bees drill holes 3/8", make a right angle, and lay larva. Woodpeckers eat this larva, making large scars in the wood, which may need to be repaired or replaced or treated for wood decaying fungi. Additionally, other insects may enter the hole. Insecticide sprays and dusting products like Sevin and Dursban have been banned. Products available are malathion and resmurthrin or the use of Bug Juice. These products are commonly used and should be applied every two weeks in the active season. We treat bee holes with Tim-Boor at night when the bees are less active by mixing up a solution in a spray bottle and spraying it in the hole. You can also use the powder and a puffer to fill the hole. We do not recommend plugging the holes. Bees tend to return to the same hole or use a hole already made. If you plug the hole the bee will drill another hole causing more damage to the logs and starting the cycle all over. If he returns to a treated hole the chemical application will help to end the cycle. 

Log-Pro Log Home Restoration is a licensed Pesticide Applicator in all states. We service PA, NJ, DE, MD, and NY. We recommend you call your exterminator or the Department of Agriculture for information on insecticides that are banned or are a health risk. You have a right to Know!! 

Are you bugged? Be sure to use additives like Bee-gone® or NBS-30® in your stain or sealant when doing a maintaince coat on your log home. Apply Delta Dust® to bee holes for carpenter bees often.