When making furniture using old oak or butternut barn wood with worm and termite holes, should the lumber be treated to ensure that there are no living pests? I have been told that since the lumber is dry it does not allow the pests to survive and I do not have to worry.
Sandor Nagyszalanczy: I’ve also been told things like “applying that crème to your face every night will make you look 20 years younger” and “driving this car will make you popular with all the girls.” In your case, yes, it’s possible that all the bugs that once moved into your barn wood have long since checked out. But do you really want to take the chance that they’ve taken out extended leases (as witnessed by little piles of sawdust all over your kitchen floor)? To make sure, I’d suggest having the boards fumigated prior to schlepping them into your shop, to prevent barn wood bugs from taking up new residence in your shop’s lumber pile. Look in your local phone book for a pest control contractor that will bag and fumigate your barn wood until all the buggies go bye-bye.
