Log Home – Bugs are Eating My Logs…

Every spring we get calls from log home owners saying, “I hear a chewing sound inside my logs” or “There are piles of dust on the logs” or “I have holes in my logs”. What’s going on?

These are all signs that boring insects have found their way into the log home or cabin. The next question asked is: “What can be done?”

Here is what we recommend:

Insect holes in log
Little holes like this are evidence of insects

Assess where the infestation of insects is concentrated. Look around the area and ask yourself why they may like this particular section of log. Look for the insects’ little holes. The reason they are there in the first place is because they are looking for rotten wood to feed on.

Poke around the logs in that area and look for soft spots and small holes like the ones show here. Once the area of concentration is found, there are two steps to figuring out a solution.

First you need to get rid of the bugs that are there now. You’ll need to use a poison to kill the bugs. Your local hardware or pest control folks can help with selecting the right product.

Next, it is important to figure out why this happened so the bugs don’t return. The wood boring insects we have in the Northern part of the country are attracted to rotten wood. Are there any rotten logs that are close to the infested area? Is there a pile of firewood or a rotting tree stump that may be attracting them to this area of the house?

If there are rotten logs involved then they need to be fixed and if a pile of rotten wood or a rotting stump is the problem – then these issues will need to be addressed, as well. You don’t want any rotten wood around your log home.

If you discover that there are rotten spots on your logs, it is likely that the rotten area(s) of the log needs replacing to resolve the problem. Once rot starts to develop in a log, it will continue to rot unless it is repaired/replaced.

Attacking problems with insects from two fronts is the key.  Getting rid of the actual bug population is important but you must also resolve the underlying reason they are there in the first place..  

Below you’ll find some useful links to our website that will add additional information to this discussion: