www.ultimatehandyman.co.uk

Hello folks.

I have been doing some electrical work in my garage and have noticed that I appear to have active wood worm infestation in most of the joists. Most are only a few holes but one or two are getting a little soft in places and this is a worry.

i live in a house with attached garage but I dont think this has spread internally.

What are the possible treatments for this i.e. spray on, paint on, smoker etc etc. Should I be attempting this myself or should i call in the wormbusters.

Thanks in advance.

How do you know they are active
You can spray yourself but i would personally call a company in as with there experience they would be able to tell you if any timbers need replacing and if they do the work you get a guarantee which is handy if you are selling at a later date

There is dust emerging from the holes when i knock the jooists which i am led to believe indicates recent activity.

Is this not the case?

Just had a local pest and damp surveyor come around and he says its a current or rcent infestation. quoted me £100 plus VAT for the garage ceiling. Is this reasonable?

common source of reinfestation is recycling timber and furniture often stored in garages often on the roof timbers

if you are worried about structural strength of timbers prod hard with a screwdriver if you need to replace timbers have them handy ad get them treated at the same time

also if your roof timbers are say 4x2" and only the odd one is suspect for strength then you can strengthen with a 4x1" wooden plate each side again treated timber

also worth checking what you have done with the wood or furniture that may have caused the problem