Cause of small holes in floorboards?
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Anonymous
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We moved into a 14 year old house last year have dark brown wood floors that are stained and sealed. I had noticed some knots and flaws in the wood that seemed intentional and no big deal. But last week I noticed a bunch of individual ball-point pen sized holes in general clusters in a number of the floor boards. Like five percent, or about maybe 10 of the boards, not located near each other. One board has like 50 holes in it. I also noticed the same types of holes in a distressed wood built-in cabinet in the kitchen. None of these areas hold food (the cabinet has surplus dishes).
Called an exterminator to inspect and he said there’s no problem because there’s no evidence of sawdust or any type of bugs, and the house is clean. He said the holes have probably been there all along. I am sure that is not the case, and it’s especially alarming that the holes in the cabinet match the ones in the floorboards. What do you think could be causing this? I do have a second opinion exterminator schedule for later this week. |
Anonymous
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Are they new since you moved in?
I have small holes in my wood floor where the crappy installer nailed or stapled the planks down. It always looks like a scattering of dirt or bugs until I go inspect it. |
Anonymous
The ones in the cabinet definitely are new. The ones in the floor seem to be a new development in that maybe there were a few before, but seem to be way more than a normal amount now. They definitely aren’t nail holes because some I can stick a small skewer inside. Yet I’ve seen zero evidence of ants or anything else. Just the holes. It’s really weird. |
Anonymous
| Could be powder-post beetles? I saw something like that in the floors in my bedroom. If they don't treat the wood, or even if it is treated, they lay their eggs in wood and the holes are where the adult beetles exit. Usually if they are new, there are shavings around the holes. |
Anonymous
| Powder post beetles. The wood was likely harvested from dead trees, like chestnut trees that dominated the eastern US landscape until about the 30s. The beetles made those holes long ago and that wood is desired by furniture makers because of it's character. |
Anonymous
| Termites possibly. Google termite damage wood floor and compare images. |
Anonymous
Thanks, this is OP. The exterminator had said not termites because he didn’t see any tunnels or mounds or anything that indicated termites specifically. I agree that some of the pictures on google of pin holes in floorboards look similar. But in our case the affected floorboards are spread out from each other. Will have to see what they say. I don’t think it’s a beetle because no sawdust is being left behind. |
Anonymous
| do you have kids? ask them! |
Anonymous
| It's beetles. It may have been from long ago. Generally wood has to be somewhat moist to support continued infestation. |
Anonymous
| I would guess that there were pin holes in the wood when installed, and the builder/installer patched the holes. Overtime, the patch can dry and come out when you vacuum. |
Anonymous
| I would post pictures of the holes on reddit. Not sure which sub - maybe homeowners? You will get lots of eyes on it, surely someone else has had this too. |
Anonymous
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This is OP, thanks everyone for your replies. We had our home inspector come back to see what he thought, and it’s powderpost beetles. Never heard of them, but apparently they were in that stupid distressed wood built in cabinet and jumped ship to the floor boards. His exterminator said this is treatable and damage is not extensive.
The house is super dry because we have not run any humidifier all winter, so not sure why they chose now to come out. Maybe looking for more moisture? Anyway, the main mystery had been solved! |
Anonymous
| Can you link any image similar to yours op? We had new Mirage floors installed and I see some pin pricks on some boards |