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Bug In My Kit?!


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Hello everyone! 

I am having a peculiar problem and I immediately knew that I had to come here for advice. I bought a McKinley Dollhouse kit from Overstock.com. The kit is in excellent condition, as usual. It is also not an old kit. I was doing inventory of the parts today when I noticed that two sheets of wood had these tiny holes all over it. I hope you all can see them in the photo I am attaching. They are so small, they are hard to photograph. Anyways, as I was examining and wondering what these little holes are, I see teeny tiny bugs coming out of the holes! I have never seen anything like this, in all of the years I have been assembling. Does anyone know what these can be and more importantly, what do I do about them before assembling? Are they harmful to the finished product? 

Thank you in advance!

DSCN0983.JPG

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Ugh. I don't know about the bugs but if you actually see them on the wood then I wouldn't take a chance on it. I think you should throw it out and contact Overstock for a refund (not a replacement in case it's a problem with all of the kits).

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I had thought about freezing their little butts! I just doused the wood in vinegar and tomorrow when it's dry, Ill pull the parts off and freeze them. Thank goodness it's only two sheets. The rest of the kit looks just fine. 

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Yikes!! I'd get rid of the whole deal asap. I'd be petrified it would infest my home.

Potentially finding bugs in an online purchase is one of my biggest fears. It stops me from ordering a lot of things. Good money saving fear for me.

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Well, the kit has already been in my house for months so if there is going to be an infestation, it's already started! lol I'm in Florida, so I'm not really surprised by any infestation. I've seen it all and been through it all. Funny thing is that I have seen these little holes in other kits and have ignored it because they have been minor. I never even bothered to find out what caused it, but these sheets caught my attention because there were so many holes. They seem to be caused by powderpost beetles. I've seen these little bugs before, but never bothered trying to find out what they were. Good thing is they hate treated, painted, stained or wood that's been finished in any way. They only like raw wood. That's probably why I haven't seen an infestation until now. 

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4 minutes ago, Sable said:

Borax might work too. It’s a salt that explodes bugs. Great for fleas, for certain.

20 Mule Team borax is also good for killing weeds in brick and stone sidewalks, patios, etc. Sprinkle it on dry, sweep it into the crevices, and watch the weeds disappear.

Don't know how useful this is, but lately I've had some centipedes in my house. I discovered quite by accident that a light spray of Lysol room disinfectant and deodorant will kill them.  One of them was in the bathtub and just happened to be under some overspray. I like the idea of using this product instead of an insect poison.

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You have wood worms. I would also check any other wood in the vicinity of where this kit was stored. The wood can be treated with pesticides but I don't think it is worth it. Vinegar won't phase them nor will freezing. They overwinter in wood quite easily. If there are still egg casings left they will just hatch out later.

I had an antique that had been treated and assured there wouldn't be a problem and years later they were boring in the furniture again!

Hope this helps.

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Me too I would contact the, if they will eat plywood which is in effect treated wood as it has something bonding the plys together then they may eat your polished furniture.. The other sheets may have minute eggs in them which would show holes once they had hatched and feed. It would scare me to death,

I know very little about it  but I do know woodworm is a= the  generic name for many wood eating pests, we saw it  in an antique desk bought at an auction but it was treated before it came home, the company that did it said it could one of a number of beetles, the desk was a UK antique  part  of a load bought and shipped over for auction. It was polished wood but I would think they can get in from the the unpolished side/

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Being s the kit has been lying round for months in S FL the wood borers could have entered the kit/s at any time.  We used to get them from time to time when I was growing up in West Palm Beach; my mother would take the Flit can to whatever she saw those little holes in.

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Yes, there are a number of beetles lumped into the wood worm category and the holes are made after the larvae hatch and as they tunnel there way out. Funny the piece of furniture I have with the damage is a British piece. Anyway, with all that damage I wouldn't try and keep it. That's a hefty infestation and yes it could have happened at any time.

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Sup everyone!  Glad to see a lot of old friends in this thread!  I hope all are well and enjoying the season!

Gina, very sorry about your McKinley.  Drop me an email with what sheets you need and I'll send you replacements.   As it has been explained to me by my wood suppliers, these are classified as wormholes.  They are caused by the critters burrowing into the tree that the veneer was cut from.  As they turn down a log, these anomalies can present themselves deep into the stock as the actual borrowing may have taken place decades ago.  These defects are similar to knots and other imperfections that are buried into the tree as the living wood grain grows around them.   When plywood is manufactured, the veneer is steamed/cooked which kills off any living organisms. 

Gina is a good friend of Greenleaf's... I believe she saw what she saw.  I hate bugs more than your average guy, so I've looked at a bunch of these things over the years and there has never been any sign of life.  Sorry that you had the unfortunate luck to see something Gina!

Again, very happy to see so many familiar names.  I thank you all for making this forum all that it is... the greatest collection of miniaturist in the world!

Dean 

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Thank you so much Dean! Greenleaf is the best! I dropped you a message with all of the information.

I think you are right about these holes possibility having been there since before manufacturing. If it was an active infestation, you would think all the sheets would be eaten away but it's only two. The other sheets are just fine and have no holes. I see little critters crawling in and out of the holes, but they could be just making a home in the holes made by the previous beetles. These little crawling ones might not be the original ones that damaged the wood. Im going to begin sanding parts tomorrow from the good sheets and hopefully I won't see any creepy crawlies on them. 

It is very nice to see all of these familiar names as well!

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Wow! For those of you wondering, I'm not talking about the bugs. I'm wowing because of Dean posting here and replying to Gina. It's incredibly unusual these days to have the head of a company actually contact the consumers of his products. If anyone here has ever had a problem with something they bought and has fought to get the company to respond to them, you know what I'm talking about. And in this case, Gina didn't even directly buy her kit from Greenleaf. Dean didn't have to offer what he did, but he did it anyway. That puts him head and shoulders above a huge number of corporate CEOs of large companies I could name today.

I'm as impressed as can be by the service and commitment Greenleaf shows to their community. People, please take note. In today's corporate world, you're not going to see this very often. Dean, thank you so much for showing what it really means to be concerned about the welfare of the people who buy from you. My hat is off to you, sir!

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