09-06-2011, 11:41 AM
(09-06-2011, 09:45 AM)fido Wrote: Surely existing exit holes would be an ideal place for the beetles to lay the next lot of eggs though? When I was treating the roof timbers etc I was looking for wood dust deposits under the holes to identify active areas. My thinking was that not all the larvae would emerge at the same time, some would still be munching bits of my building.
It's possible, of course, but I don't think it's probable, though there's no harm done in treating such radio cabinets 'just in case' and I think that most of us would probably do that. I particularly wanted to emphasise that the holes are exit holes. Rather than evidence of woodworm beetles burrowing into the wood - the holes are evidence of emerging beetles in their final life phase, which lasts just a few days after several years in the larval phase before pupating, and exiting through the holes after slowly burrowing away unseen up and down the timber as larvae for up to five years. If you cut longitudinally along a piece of timber that's been infested with woodworm, you'll see that there isn't much wood left to consume, so it's not a very attractive proposition from the beetles perspective to go back into that piece of timber to lay her eggs. The sheer bulk of dry untreated softwood timbers in roofs and floors make that a much more attractive proposition. As to their entry points, the beetles aren't fond of varnish, so are more likely to enter through the vent holes in the backboard (if the set has one) and attack the bare wood on the inside of cabinets.
The issue with woody radio cabinets when the damage is done, is more a question of how to make them look presentable when they've been peppered with woodworm holes. There are wax 'crayons' available made by the likes of Liberon, which can be forced into the holes to disguise them, then polished, but really, it's a bit of a bodge, and if the radio is one which is cherished, there's little that can be done short of re-veneering the cabinet. Perhaps the best example of what that can involve is the TV cabinet restoration by Colin ('Retired') which was nothing short of miraculous, but probably beyond the abilty of most of us.
Best of luck to Luke, with the restoration!
David
