Borax for treating woodworm etc.

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Borax for treating woodworm etc.
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Dogwalker

Joined: 20 Mar 2007
Posts: 1231
Location: Mid Wales

Posted: Wed Nov 10, 10 9:08 am Post subject:
Have a look here, https://www.woodworm-info.co.uk/woodworm%20shop.htm#Boroninwater not sure if this is where I got it or not but looks familiar. I mixed it up as directions, painted in on to easily get to bits and used a garden sprayer to get to awkward bits. Didn't know it had been banned, do you know why.

Clara

Joined: 12 Feb 2007
Posts: 268
Location: the green green grass of wales

Posted: Wed Nov 10, 10 10:36 am Post subject:
Thanks. Which product from this page did you use and do you remember which size bag? Sorry, I'm in such a tizz not doing "thinking" at the mo, just moving and breathing BorAX I think got banned because of issues relating to hormones in the water, iirc. Not sure if BorON is different, must be I guess if it's still for sale.

vegplot

Joined: 19 Apr 2007
Posts: 21301
Location: Bethesda, Gwynedd

Posted: Wed Nov 10, 10 11:40 am Post subject:
I've used this product before and found it very good from my own perspective. https://www.safeguardeurope.com/products/probor_db_10.php

Cathryn

Joined: 16 Jul 2005
Posts: 19856
Location: Ceredigion

Posted: Wed Nov 10, 10 11:41 am Post subject:
Why don't you get a couple of quotes from a professional company before you start? It's not nice stuff, any of it.

Cathryn

Joined: 16 Jul 2005
Posts: 19856
Location: Ceredigion

Posted: Wed Nov 10, 10 11:50 am Post subject:
By the way, are you thinking of coming to the fibre do this weekend?

Clara

Joined: 12 Feb 2007
Posts: 268
Location: the green green grass of wales

Posted: Wed Nov 10, 10 12:05 pm Post subject:

Cathryn wrote:

Why don't you get a couple of quotes from a professional company before you start? It's not nice stuff, any of it.

500 quid is not an option at the mo, just gonna have to go with diy for now. Unfortunately this weekend I am completely installed in my new house and without kids, so i guess I'll be boraxing and painting and cleaning and so on. Have a good one, but I really ought to hook up with the DSers in these parts. It was really nice to meet dogwalker the other week.

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 45516
Location: yes

Posted: Wed Nov 10, 10 12:22 pm Post subject:
lift every forth timber and spray well using a proper treatment and follow the safety instructions rot and worms used to be my bread and butter and i advise a proper job .diy is fine but do it well with the right stuff for the job

Clara

Joined: 12 Feb 2007
Posts: 268
Location: the green green grass of wales

Posted: Wed Nov 10, 10 4:21 pm Post subject:

dpack wrote:

lift every forth timber and spray well using a proper treatment and follow the safety instructions

rot and worms used to be my bread and butter and i advise a proper job .diy is fine but do it well with the right stuff for the job

Oh then you might be someone to bear in mind. Fortunately the ground floor is slate and quarry tile and all ceiling beams are exposed. There is a lot of wood used as partitioning around the place (it's a bit ramshackle to say the least) which will eventually go and mostly be replaced with new partition walls, I just want to make sure that in the mean time I don't end up with the problem spreading to furniture (not that I have anything I couldn't burn if it did). Do you have any tips for using the Boron? I'm more attracted to using this (in fact I already ordered) because the house is going to be occupied by me and my girls by the time I get the stuff to treat with and don't want to be worried about chemical residue getting everywhere.

vegplot

Joined: 19 Apr 2007
Posts: 21301
Location: Bethesda, Gwynedd

Posted: Wed Nov 10, 10 4:43 pm Post subject:
Generally speaking boron based solutions allow re-entry in 8 hrs or when the surfaces are dry. While boron is potentially hazardous in humans we readily excrete it so levels don't tend to build up to the point where it becomes toxic. It is considered to be much safer than most other chemical treatments.

gz

Joined: 23 Jan 2009
Posts: 8615
Location: Ayrshire, Scotland

Posted: Wed Nov 10, 10 5:15 pm Post subject:
I heard that Borax was banned from shops because it is a white powder... just been in Wilkinsons today, and you have to ask at the till for citric acid

Clara

Joined: 12 Feb 2007
Posts: 268
Location: the green green grass of wales

Posted: Wed Nov 10, 10 5:27 pm Post subject:

gz wrote:

I heard that Borax was banned from shops because it is a white powder...
just been in Wilkinsons today, and you have to ask at the till for citric acid

I tried to buy some hydrogen peroxide in various high street chemists when I visited the UK from Spain one summer, was invariably told that "erm, we don't stock it" only to eventually work out (and confirm) that it could be used to make bombs. Finally managed to buy some in an independent chemist, perhaps ironically, from an asian pharmacist with a skull cap and a long beard......thing is I could buy it off the supermarket shelf in Spain and they aren't beseiged by suicide bombers (well no more than the UK).

ETA gosh that sounds really wrong, no offence intended just that at the time (and I guess still) the bogeyman is a muslim extremist and that the man I bought the HO from looked like a devout muslim (not that I am confusing that with a terrorist) - it was just an observation but no connection to be made...

vegplot

Joined: 19 Apr 2007
Posts: 21301
Location: Bethesda, Gwynedd

Posted: Wed Nov 10, 10 5:58 pm Post subject:
You can buy borax from Amazon or eBay. It's not banned from shops just people elevated to decision making positions beyond their capabilities.

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 45516
Location: yes

Posted: Thu Nov 11, 10 1:56 pm Post subject:

one problem with exposed timbers is that the surface is often waterproof (smoke ,oil,varnish etc over the years) and so water based spray on treatment solutions do not penetrate to where the beasties live ,
another is that water based treatment may raise the grain or ruin the patina ,try a bit you can hide if it goes wrong

as this is a holding job rather than full rip and replace taking the time to get into all the corners and crevises is a good idea

i recon a 25yr gnt job would require hardcore splosh and maybe injecting some timbers

while exposing as much timber as possible remove and replace any wormy bits that are structural and less than 70%uneaten and any redundant or easily replaced wormy bits ,try to remove any means for the timber to get damp

iirc screwfix do disposable suits for such jobs for about a £5 and a suitable mask for a bit more ,dont use a dust mask use one rated for harmful aerosol.gloves n goggles as usual

a good non chemical control is to reduce the water content of the wood with good heating and ventilation

dcmoore

Joined: 15 Apr 2014
Posts: 1

Posted: Tue Apr 15, 14 2:30 pm Post subject: Re: Buying Borax for Woodworm Treatment

Dear Sara,

'Borax' has not been banned - it is a Company name, (after a buyout now changed to Rio Tinto Borax) which unfortunately has become common parlance for a product - rather like Hoover and Biro did. The so called 'Borax' that people are referring to was mainly used as a Soap or as a soap component.

The reason that you are seeing the use given as 'cleaning' is that such chemicals have to be Licensed for use throughout Europe and in the UK this means that an HSE Number must be obtained for each type of Application. This is a very expensive process, requiring a huge dossier of Test Data, and many companies decided that they could not afford the costs when comparing them with the small profits.

So, for Woodworm Treatment you do not want Borax itself - neither the Company nor the Soap - you need the genuine, Licensed Rio Tinto Borax Boron compound tested for that purpose.

The compound is known as Boron Ultra 12 and has a 1 hour re-entry time. Unlike Permethrin and Cypermthrin based products it has no vapour, so no smell. At the 5% dilution required for Woodworm Treatment it has no hazards for humans.

You can purchase Boron Ultra from Property Repair Systems at The Woodworm shop:

https://www.woodworm-info.co.uk/woodworm_shop.htm

As a water based product it will only penetrate bare timber - remove dust and cobwebs - they stop the spray from reaching the surface properly.

Regards,

David Moore
Building Surveyor - Dampness and Timber

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 45516
Location: yes

Posted: Tue Apr 15, 14 9:22 pm Post subject:
hi david ,sensible advice but 4 yrs on the worms either ate the house or were deaded welcome on board

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