Firewood is a common commodity during chilly Tumwater winters, but that warm pile of logs may be bringing more than heat into your home. The proximity of the city to wooded areas, combined with the relatively mild, moist climate for most of the year, makes unsheltered firewood a five-star hotel for pests seeking shelter and feeding.
Carpenter ants, termites, rodents, and spiders do not require a formal invitation to your home; your woodpile will often suffice. The issue here is not only spotting a handful of bugs but also structural damage and bacteria that come from an infestation that could have been avoided in the first place.
A few signs of pest activity around your firewood mean it is time to contact pointepest.com before it spreads further inside the house.
The Pest Magnet Effect of Firewood
Firewood provides an ideal habitat for pests. In fact, they also support shelter, moisture, and sometimes food for wood-boring insects, among others, that inhabit these logs. And when you load firewood into your house, you may be introducing dozens of slumbering pests into your dwelling.
In warmer months, carpenter ants and beetles like to tunnel into wood, where they remain dormant until the logs warm up once you bring them inside. Huddled in firewood stacks away from Tumwater’s rainy weather and, of course, predators are rodents like mice. Spiders even string up webs between logs to trap other insects.
The longer the wood stays out there, the longer it takes for those colonies to get established, and your fuel source becomes a pest-delivery system.
Firewood Placement Mistakes Tumwater Homeowners Make
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Stacking Against the House
For convenience, many Tumwater residents pile firewood directly against the side of their home. This provides a pathway for pests into your foundation, siding, and, ultimately, into your house. Pest control data from Thurston County indicates a 60% higher incidence of carpenter ant activity at homes where firewood is stored within 5 feet of structures.
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Ground-Level Storage
Firewood on the ground will quickly absorb moisture and start to rot. With Tumwater receiving 50 inches of rain per year, ground-contact wood is always wet. This makes the wood full of termites, slugs, and fungus, which, in turn , create ideal breeding conditions, further breaking down the wood.
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Covering Too Tightly
It only makes sense that the wood would need protection from rain, but covering stacked firewood entirely with tarps traps moisture and blocks airflow, creating a humid microclimate where pests thrive throughout Tumwater’s mild winters.
Best Practices for Pest-Free Firewood Storage
- Stack wood in a single row, not deep piles, to achieve maximum airflow.
- Do not cover the entire pile; only the top, leaving the sides free for ventilation.
- To avoid months of pests colonizing your wood pile, be sure to run through older wood first.
- Check every log before bringing it into the house for holes, sawdust, or live bugs.
- Bringing enough wood limited for indoor burning only, do not store logs in the home
When to Call Professionals?
Even effective prevention techniques sometimes go awry, especially if you already have pests in your firewood or around your house. If you spot trails made by carpenter ants stretching from your woodpile to your home, you see termite tubes on other nearby buildings, or you find rodent droppings close to your stack, it is time for a pest control professional.
Pointe Pest Control provides Tumwater homeowners who have pest problems caused by firewood with expert pest control services. They are aware of the challenges posed by the local climate and pest species. They can inspect your home for live infestations, treat affected areas, and advise you on how to properly store food items that will withstand the wet environment in Tumwater.
