Wood beetle: types of grinders and methods of dealing with them

A wood bug is an insect that infects wood. Several types of grinders are combined under this name, and this is very important to understand, since bark beetles are also pests of wood, but they do not belong to grinders.

An interesting feature of some types of grinders is that their males give special ticking sounds, like from a clock, to the mating season. Knocking their heads on the wall of the passage punched by them in the wood, they attract females. So such sounds of many nations are called the "hours of death."

Grinder Biology

Wood beetles grinders are a very wide group of insects. Their similarity is that by the action of special enzymes they are able to break down cellulose, and therefore are able to feed on wood. In addition to the tree, some woodworms feed on grains, paper, and similar rough foods.
The size of insects can range from one to ten millimeters, depending on their type. The greatest harm is brought not by adults, but by the gluttonous larvae of tree beetles. Biologists claim that only one percent of the eaten is the share of the grinders themselves, the rest is eaten by numerous offspring.

Varieties

Depending on the type of wood beetle and the damage from it in the house is different. Among the huge number of grinders, we chose the most typical pests, which are most often found in our homes.

House grinder

This tree bug differs in that it feeds mainly on moistened wood. Therefore, it is practically not found inside houses. Most often, it damages the outer walls of log houses, baths, and other structures.

The size of the body of a tree beetle in length is only 2.5-3 millimeters.

Furniture grinder

But this enemy is already more dangerous, it damages wood in dry rooms, that is, inside our houses and apartments. As the name implies, he not only eats the walls of wooden houses, but also devours furniture. These beetles are struck by picture frames, roots and pages of books and much more that is based on cellulose.

Since this bug is the most dangerous for our life, let us dwell on its description in more detail. The color of the chitinous cover of this beetle is dark brown, the body length can reach up to five millimeters. At the same time, it is almost impossible to see these insects, they are very shy and hide in the darkest and most inaccessible corners of the building.

Larvae are also not visible from the outside, since the beetles do very few moves, and the larva hatched from the egg leaves the massif of the tree only after its complete destruction. Mating occurs also in the thickness of the wood.

Nevertheless, it is possible to determine if this insidious enemy is possible in an apartment according to several criteria:

1. The characteristic tick of the "hours of death." If you heard an extraneous clock in the house, this is a characteristic sign of the presence of a grinder.
2. The presence on the wooden furniture or walls of neat holes with a diameter of 2-3 mm. These holes and gnaw bugs to exit.
3. Detection of a wood beetle indoors.

Attention! The sooner the presence of a furniture grinder is detected, the more chances there are to save a wooden product or the walls of your own home.

The lifespan of a furniture grinder ranges from 1 year to 3-4 years, depending on the duration of the larval developmental stage. Biologists have divided the whole life of the bug into such periods from the moment of laying the eggs by the female:

• Egg development lasts from one to three weeks.
• The growth of the larva at a favorable temperature, which is 26-29 degrees Celsius, lasts three weeks. At low temperatures, a winter pause in development may occur, and this period can be up to three years.
• The larva pupates and spends in this state for two weeks.
• Actually, the bug does not live long either. His term is measured out only two to four weeks.

It should be noted that during a year, the generation of a species can take place only twice. Under the most optimal conditions, when there is a warm spring, beetles lay their eggs for the first time. New bugs will appear only in the fall, and if the conditions are favorable, then by the beginning of winter they will be able to produce second offspring of the year. But this happens extremely rarely.

Crested Grinder

This beetle differs from its brothers in an unusual mustache, for which, in fact, it got its name. The length of his body is usually within 3-5 millimeters. Having penetrated the thickness of the tree, this beetle sometimes does not come out of it until it is completely destroyed.

Bread grinder

The next type of grinder is bread. This beetle among others is distinguished by some selectivity in food. He just will not eat a tree, give him grain, cereals, pasta or dried fruits. In general, it is also a dangerous pest, only it strikes from the other flank.

Attention! Use damaged foods bread grinder dangerous! There is evidence that the products of his life may be toxic.

Prevention

To prevent a tree beetle in the apartment, it is necessary to carry out preventive measures. It all comes down to elementary control and simple wood processing.

1. Carefully choose a tree intended for the construction or decoration of the building.
2. Impregnate wooden structures with antiseptic compounds, such as Antizhuk, Wood Healer, and others.
3. Closely monitor the condition of wooden products and structures during operation.
4. Avoid high humidity in the room. After washing, it is advisable to dry and ventilate the baths well.
5. Wipe wooden surfaces with a damp sponge with a composition including turpentine, creolin and pre-melted paraffin.

Fight

Now consider how to deal with tree bugs, if they still appeared in your house. With a small lesion, several simple methods are used.

1. Vaseline oil. It is poured into a syringe and injected into the holes left by the beetle. After filling the moves, you can fill the holes with paraffin or window putty.
2. The second version of the composition: mix three parts of turpentine with one part of kerosene.
3. Naphthalene dissolved in gasoline also does not leave bugs a chance to survive.
4. Warming up a wooden product to a temperature above 60 degrees.
5. Freezing to -2.

With a strong defeat of wooden structures, such actions are unlikely to save them. Imagine how many syringes you need to pump with a total damage to the walls of the house, for example. In this case, more effective remedies for wood beetles are effective. Such methods are applicable on a large, industrial scale.

1. Apply drugs applied to wood with a brush. Among them can be noted such as: “Karbofos”, “Funanon”, “Passage” and many others.
2. To permanently get rid of the tree bug, fumigation of the interior space is used. It is carried out by spraying a gas of phosphine, followed by ventilation. Separate elements of furniture can be placed in a large plastic bag with its subsequent filling with the same tool.
3. Microwave radiation.Devices with an action similar to that used in a home microwave process wooden walls of buildings, and instead of products you will have boiled wood bugs.

Attention! All types of treatments are best done between the beginning of May and the middle of June. It was at this time that adult individuals emerged from the pupae. After they eat poisoned wood, their ability to procreate ceases to exist.

Introducing video About the new drug, which is designed to combat wood bugs: