# Noisy wood pile



## cmnash (Sep 19, 2012)

I've kept a leftover stack from last year of seasoned oak in my house next to my stove. It's from last winter.
For the last week and 24/7 now there's an chewing sound coming from the individual pieces.
I thought maybe insects ? Wood fibers separating ? Can't see any evidence of bugs or their trails.
It's really creeping my wife out. It's a dry crackling noise like rice crispes. Not loud but surely audible.
Any ideas out there what's causing the sound ?  Thanks guys....


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## blujacket (Sep 19, 2012)

Sounds like a borer, but you would certainly see a pile of wood dust. I had Locust borers using my Mulberry as a buffet early this summer and that's what they sound like.


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## dafattkidd (Sep 19, 2012)

Woah. That's weird.


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## Wood Duck (Sep 19, 2012)

I have heard bugs in my stacks, I assume they were borers, and they always leave small piles of sawdust and clearly visible holes in the wood. If you can't see any outside indication of holes or sawdust maybe you are on the right track thinking it is a non-bug related sound. If you can figure out that the sound is coming from a particular split I'd take that split outside and resplit it to see what you find inside.


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## rideau (Sep 19, 2012)

Wood Duck said:


> I have heard bugs in my stacks, I assume they were borers, and they always leave small piles of sawdust and clearly visible holes in the wood. If you can't see any outside indication of holes or sawdust maybe you are on the right track thinking it is a non-bug related sound. If you can figure out that the sound is coming from a particular split I'd take that split outside and resplit it to see what you find inside.


 I'd be taking that wood out of my house, then investigating...


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## Vic99 (Sep 19, 2012)

Had the same thing in a stack of pine a few years ago.  Both interesting and eerie.  Never did split one open as it was tough to pin down which split(s) in the HH it was.


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## firefighterjake (Sep 19, 2012)

Sounds like boring insects . . . but I usuallly find the tell tale signs of their work with a pile of sawdust . . . or if intrigued enough I'll split open a split to surprise them by playing a game of Peek-a-boo with them.


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## bogydave (Sep 19, 2012)

They're making some air holes to help the center of the splits season better, 
They  probably have some BTU content too. 
Roasted up I hear the big ones are good tasting, & live, they make good fishing bait 

I wouldn't worry to much unless they started hearing them chewing on the house.


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## ScotO (Sep 19, 2012)

They were in my honey locust last summer, you could go out there on a quiet evening and it was amazing to listen to them.  They are harmless to your home, especially after they go dormant when it gets cold.  Those buggers (and spiders) are among the many reasons I do NOT bring wood into the house until it gets cold out....


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## etiger2007 (Sep 19, 2012)

Scotty Overkill said:


> They were in my honey locust last summer, you could go out there on a quiet evening and it was amazing to listen to them. They are harmless to your home, especially after they go dormant when it gets cold. Those buggers (and spiders) are among the many reasons I do NOT bring wood into the house until it gets cold out....


 
I agree with Mr. Overkill, my wood stays outside, i do store some in the detached garage to keep the elements off it. When im burning strong and its freezing out i bring in what i need in the morning for the day and replenish it the next morning.


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## cmnash (Sep 19, 2012)




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## cmnash (Sep 19, 2012)

Okay!! Just made the grisly discovery !! Peeled away the bark and there they were. Plenty of real fine sawdust AND these naked crawling maggot like creatures. I'm sure mother nature gave them a purpose BUT.....
Moved it all outside. Lesson learned. Nothing inside unless its going in the stove soon. Thanks guys.


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## Backwoods Savage (Sep 19, 2012)

Many will see this in there wood piles. Very common. Powder post beetles.Note the very super fine sawdust.


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## billb3 (Sep 19, 2012)

those borers are usually quite content to continue boring while you are watching the football game and eating cheese puffs.
I've never seen one open the door to the stove from the inside and start yammering and complaining about the poor accommodations either.


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## ScotO (Sep 19, 2012)

cmnash said:


> Okay!! Just made the grisly discovery !! Peeled away the bark and there they were. Plenty of real fine sawdust AND these naked crawling maggot like creatures. I'm sure mother nature gave them a purpose BUT.....
> Moved it all outside. Lesson learned. Nothing inside unless its going in the stove soon. Thanks guys. S


 Those look like Sawyer beetle larvae.  Good on ya for getting it outside.  My wife would KILL me if she saw half of the chit that's in that wood in the summertime.......


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## Thistle (Sep 19, 2012)

Powderpost beetles love the sapwood of most hardwoods,especially oaks,honey locust,mulberry & hickories,its like filet mignon to them.In early spring on a calm day I've heard them munching in several newly cut green logs 10 ft from me.And my hearing's not the greatest either...lol


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## osagebow (Sep 19, 2012)

Came home from work today, splitting area is along my driveway. Big pileated woodpecker was working my pile of gnarly old locust rounds for those beetle larvae.


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## rideau (Sep 19, 2012)

osagebow said:


> Came home from work today, splitting area is along my driveway. Big pileated woodpecker was working my pile of gnarly old locust rounds for those beetle larvae.


 Had the biggest pileated I have ever seen in my garden at my birdbath last week.  Didn't think I'd ever see such a site.  He was so old some of his feathers were grayish.  He flew into a treee next to the garden and hopped up the trunk to an upper branch.  I got some pictures, but none were really clear.  He had more red than he is supposed to above his eye...I'll try to locate the best shot and post it...


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## etiger2007 (Sep 20, 2012)

I saw some in if i remember correctly my ash this past weekend.


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## Backwoods Savage (Sep 20, 2012)

Thistle said:


> Powderpost beetles love the sapwood of most hardwoods,especially oaks,honey locust,mulberry & hickories,its like filet mignon to them.In early spring on a calm day I've heard them munching in several newly cut green logs 10 ft from me.And my hearing's not the greatest either...lol


 
Around here, the elm is what gets hit the hardest. Lots and lots of sawdust wherever we stack the elm.


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## infinitymike (Sep 20, 2012)

I built a shed 2 years ago and I went out this summer to grab something and saw a pile of sawdust . I mean it was a huge pile and it was super fine almost looked like parmesan cheese.
Dennis, It looked like your pictures.
I cant see where in the world it came from.


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## gmule (Sep 20, 2012)

Scotty Overkill said:


> . My wife would KILL me if she saw half of the chit that's in that wood in the summertime.......


 
So would mine.


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## ScotO (Sep 21, 2012)

etiger2007 said:


> I saw some in if i remember correctly my ash this past weekend.


The ash and honey locust is what gets hit the hardest in my woodstack.  Never had any problems burning the wood, but it does irritate me that they are eating my fuel without my written permission.  I have no problem turning those grubs into BTU's when the time comes, either!


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## firefighterjake (Sep 21, 2012)

The buggers here seem to like my white ash and pine . . . it's all good though . . . I get the final revenge on them for eating my wood . . . just a few more weeks!


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## Backwoods Savage (Sep 21, 2012)

infinitymike said:


> I built a shed 2 years ago and I went out this summer to grab something and saw a pile of sawdust . I mean it was a huge pile and it was super fine almost looked like parmesan cheese.
> Dennis, It looked like your pictures.
> I cant see where in the world it came from.


 
The holes the PPB leave are super small.


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## rideau (Sep 21, 2012)

Backwoods Savage said:


> The holes the PPB leave are super small.


 
and the holes the pileated woodpeckers leave are super super big....I wouldn't like it if one decided to attack my stack.


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## Ralphie Boy (Sep 21, 2012)

Backwoods Savage said:


> Many will see this in there wood piles. Very common. Powder post beetles.Note the very super fine sawdust.
> 
> View attachment 74406
> View attachment 74407
> ...


 
Very interesting! This thread answered my question before I asked again! My Honey Locust stacks are covered with very fine locust dust. Whatever the little critters are they don’t, as yet, bother my oak or ash and strangely enough they haven’t attacked my black locust either. Too bad I’m so deaf; they must be cool to hear working.
Cockroaches, disgustingly enough, are plentiful in most of my stacks. I’ve even found them running out burrows in rounds I just cut from freshly dropped trees. YUCK!!


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## infinitymike (Sep 21, 2012)

Backwoods Savage said:


> The holes the PPB leave are super small.


So before my shed falls down, what can I do to kill the little buggers!


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## Backwoods Savage (Sep 22, 2012)

Don't worry about the shed.


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## infinitymike (Sep 22, 2012)

Backwoods Savage said:


> Don't worry about the shed.


Why not?


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## Backwoods Savage (Sep 23, 2012)

Because the bugs won't bother it. Too dry for them.


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## infinitymike (Sep 23, 2012)

Backwoods Savage said:


> Because the bugs won't bother it. Too dry for them.


They all ready have. That's what I was saying. There was a huge pile of very fine and fluffy saw dust on the floor. So I think they are already in there.  :-(   I was doing some reading on them and they do like moist wood. I built this shed from a lot of reclaimed wood from a demo job I did. Then it was stored under a tarp for a year or two before I built it. So maybe the nested in there. I will have to keep an eye on it. Usually around June or July they tend to hatch which only the babies eat the wood. And push it out of the hole they borough.


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## velvetfoot (Sep 23, 2012)

I had some hatch in my garage and they made some holes in unpainted window frames.  They don't like paint so I painted them.  This summer I sprayed some ant stuff on the stack and I saw a lot of dead bug bodies on the floor.


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## Backwoods Savage (Sep 24, 2012)

I can understand why they are in the wood then Mike. However, I don't think you'll have to worry too much anyway. They will bore some holes but the wood will still last a long, long time. I recall one of our old grainaries that got the beetles in the wood. Danged thing did finally fall over....about 55 years later.


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## infinitymike (Sep 24, 2012)

Backwoods Savage said:


> I can understand why they are in the wood then Mike. However, I don't think you'll have to worry too much anyway. They will bore some holes but the wood will still last a long, long time. I recall one of our old grainaries that got the beetles in the wood. Danged thing did finally fall over....about 55 years later.


Awh man I was hoping this shed would last at least 60 years.  
Thanks Dennis. As always a plethora of good information.


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## BoilerMan (Sep 24, 2012)

I spray my wood with ant/termite spray.  Mix it with water, and spray it on the wood when I bring it in.  A garden sprayer with three gallons of water / pesticide mix does 4 cord.  I have found the bugs on the floor in about two days.  The water / spray dries out in no time. 
I had some Elm and the larve were all under the 1/2" thick bark, once dry though the bark peeled right off and I burned it all in the campfire pit.  That stuff stunk! 

TS


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