In reply to A newbie all over again! by Annec
In reply to A newbie all over again! by Annec
We used a company called Romani from Lucca and we are very happy with their work. They may be able to travel or recommend somebody from your area. See:
[url=http://www.romanidisinfestazioni.com/]Disinfestazione insetti, roditori e volatili Servizi di Igiene Ambientale Romani Disinfestazioni S.n.c.[/url]
In reply to A newbie all over again! by Annec
I'm familiar with what I call borer - visible holes in beams, furniture etc, dust on floor when they are active. But where I live and in a house that I look after, there is something munching very audibly somewhere in the beams - not visible holes, no dust. What is it and what should I do? It's actually the noise that bothers me more than the worry that the building is about to collapse - the munching is loud enough to disturb sleep.
In reply to A newbie all over again! by Annec
Is it death watch beetle? You will need to call someone in pronto if it is.[url=http://www.bodley.ox.ac.uk/dept/preservation/training/pests/watch.htm]Conservation and Collection Care Service · Pests Training pages[/url]
In reply to A newbie all over again! by Annec
It is a crunching, scraping sound rather than knocking. Both houses are recent restorations. One has been treated recently by a disinfestation company that claims to be effective against tarli and indeed the areas with visible dust have improved, and there are lots of dead scorpions etc. The other house has been treated with aerosol bombs, said to be effective against tarli.
In reply to A newbie all over again! by Annec
Wasn't there a programme fairly recently where a couple (in France, I think) had the same problem (noises in the door frames and beams etc.) and the place was being eaten away at an alarming rate by some type of beetle?
Sorry, I cant remember what type of beetle it was, but perhaps someone else here may remember the same programme and be able to help.
In reply to A newbie all over again! by Annec
There are lots of xylophagous insects and beetles. Do you recognise any of these?
[url=http://www.nhc.ed.ac.uk/index.php?page=24.25.124]Natural History Collections: Wood Boring and Pestiferous Beetles[/url]
It is better to call the experts and ask them to tackle the problem.
And don't believe what they say about chestnut wood being safe from borers. They love chestnut wood....
In reply to A newbie all over again! by Annec
[quote=Stella;95479]It is a crunching, scraping sound rather than knocking. Both houses are recent restorations. One has been treated recently by a disinfestation company that claims to be effective against tarli and indeed the areas with visible dust have improved, and there are lots of dead scorpions etc. The other house has been treated with aerosol bombs, said to be effective against tarli.[/quote]
Stella
If the noise is crunching and scraping, are you sure it might not be mice?
In reply to A newbie all over again! by Annec
Its amazing how creatures can live in the walls of old houses!Bats, rats,mice,snakes to name but a few.
The reason; there is an out and inner wall with area between filled by earth/rubble mortar which once they gain entry to animals will tunnel in and nest. We've actually pulled out pieces of clothing from inside our wall when we've been repointing!Can you find any gaps between stones on the outside of the house where animals are able to get in?
In reply to A newbie all over again! by Annec
Stella,
That's exactly it, you hear either a ticking sound or a munching sound. A neighbour has had the species identified and they are as myabruzzohome says [B]related[/B] to the death watch beetle.
Many thanks to all those who have offered helpful advice and comments, I shall follow these up in particular Gala's suggestion of the Lucca firm.
Bw
M
In reply to A newbie all over again! by Annec
I have used the charmingly named Flauto Magico disinfestation company in the past at several properties for the more common insect problems (wasps, scorpions, spiders) and have found them very professional. [url=http://www.ilflautomagico.it/]Il flauto magico derattizzazione, disinfestazione, derattizzazioni, disinfestazioni, sistemi di derattizzazione, sistemi di disinfestazione, disinfezione insetti, monitoraggio controllo degli infestanti, controllo prevenzione, topi, zanzare[/url] They operate in Umbria.
I'll be calling them tomorrow about the munching beetles (I'm sure the sound isn't from mice or other animals - it is too constant in its position and seems to be coming from inside the beams).
In reply to A newbie all over again! by Annec
It would be good to check whether the people wih the cute name really do the type of specialist pest control which is required for woodwork, etc. They look more like an ordinary pest control company but not dealing with the sort of problem Mona has. Normally, the ones who do these jobs are not ordinary pest controllers. This is a very sophisticated job.
Also, Mona, ask whoever you call to check for the possible presence of termites. It would give you peace of mind.
You could try your local yellow pages, under the heading "Disinfezione, disinfestazione e dirattizzazione". Alternatively, you could have a look at [url=http://www.sivaonline.it]Siva - Igiene e cura ambientale[/url] (I haven't yet looked, just seen this address in the yellow pages.)
That firm, based in Firenze (but clearly with operators all over), promises to microwave away your tarli! Would you believe it?