Winter is here and many homeowners will be enjoying their fireplaces during the cooler days. But, those homeowners who plan on buying firewood from a “big box” store, corner market or a grocery store might want to be aware of new research published in the Journal of Economic Entomology. In the study, researchers found that at least 47 percent of all firewood purchased from these sources contained live wood destroying insects and their larvae.
Now, some of you may be asking why anyone should care about this problem. But, let me ask you how you would feel if you went into your living room to look at your grand piano, wood flooring or fine oak cabinets and you found they were full of holes? That’s right – it would look as if someone had used an electric drill and started boring holes everywhere! And, if that isn’t already bad enough, some of these wood destroying insects can be very difficult and very expensive to control.
If firewood is not properly treated, it can harbor destructive insects and pathogens that may be transported long distances and can lead to new infestations in your home. Today, there are no national regulations on the commercial firewood industry that require firewood to be treated before use or sale. Currently, the only efforts are that several states and federal agencies are attempting to reduce the risk of introducing invasive or exotic species of insects by restricting the distance firewood can move from its origin.
Most stores sell firewood in small bundles. Some firewood is also made available by private parties who obtain permits to collect firewood on public or private lands. Distributers for firewood are clustered on the West Coast and in the Northeastern States. The total amount of firewood used for heating and recreation is not known but the estimates range from 8,000 cords per state to 30 million households using over 57 million cords. There are about 142 bundles in a full cord.
Insects and pathogens are known to survive for varying lengths of time in firewood. 1 to 3 years is the average life expectancy, however, some have been known to survive for up to 5 years.
In this research paper, their main focus was to determine if retail firewood retains live insects and they wanted to quantify the presence (previous or current) of insect or fungal infestations. The firewood was randomly purchased from 241 retail outlets in 18 states for the National Retail Firewood survey.
Another survey was conducted in the State of Colorado where they purchased 48 bundles in 15 cities.
They also conducted 2 studies of firewood for the Southern Rocky Mountain region which included the states of Colorado, Utah, New Mexico and Wyoming. One study was conducted in the winter and the other was conducted in the summer. More than 370 samples were collected for these studies.
Study Results
Their study showed that the diversity and number of live insects emerging from purchased retail firewood was even greater than they had expected. Close to 47 percent of the firewood was purchased with live insects. They also found that live insects from more than 85 different insect families emerged from the purchased firewood.
The researchers said that pretreating firewood before it is sold would be the prudent choice. They recommend that firewood should be heat treated to eliminate insects and pathogens.
“Termite” Terry says that heat treatment would be a good thing for everybody. It would raise the cost of firewood slightly but it would provide consumers with a product that is free of wood destroying beetles and termites. It would also help to prevent the spread of these pests from one region of the country to another.
“Termite” Terry’s Hot Tips!
If you do have a wood burning fireplace, it is very important to store your firewood outdoors and away from your house. It is also important to store it off the ground, preferably on a metal rack. You should only bring firewood into your home when you intend to burn it immediately. By following these simple steps, you will greatly reduce your chances of being infested by these wood destroying beetles and termites.
For those of you who wish to totally eliminate this problem, you may want to consider converting your fireplace into using natural gas, instead.
Do you have a problem with termites or other wood destroying beetles? Call our office for a complimentary home inspection at (949) 631-7348 or use our online order form and we’ll be happy to schedule an inspection at your convenience!
