Bugs in Hardwood for Woodturning: What I Check Before Drying Wood Blanks
Updated: Jul 3
When you start collecting your own hardwood for woodturning, bugs can be one of the first things that make you nervous. I know they worried me in the early days.
A fresh log can have bark beetles, grubs, small insects, old tunnels, bark damage, soft patches and, occasionally,
signs of woodworm. Some of that is normal. Some of it is harmless once the bark is removed and the wood starts drying. But some of it needs to be taken seriously, especially if you are bringing wood into a shed, workshop, home, or anywhere near finished pieces.
This post is not meant to scare anyone away from using local hardwood. I use Irish wood all the time, and I think learning how to process and dry your own wood is one of the most rewarding parts of woodturning.
But it does need a bit of judgement.
Not every bug hole is a disaster. Not every insect in bark is a problem. But if I find signs of woodworm or tunnelling that gives me any doubt, I do not take chances.
The above piece is a good example of why I still check wood carefully right up to the final stages. It had made it through my earlier checks during cutting, sealing and drying, and it should have gone on to become a finished piece. But while I am very diligent about looking for bugs, I do not have x-ray vision.
Sometimes a small tunnel or worm hole only reveals itself when the wood is turned closer to its final shape. When that happens, I stop, inspect the area properly, and decide whether the wood is still safe to use or whether it needs to be rejected.
Most of the time, with a piece like this, I simply put it in the fire. It is not worth the risk to me, my workshop, or my customers.
If you are new to working with local wood, insect checks are only one part of the bigger picture. The way the wood is found, cut, sealed, dried and inspected all affects whether it is worth keeping or whether it should be rejected before it causes trouble.
I cover that wider process in Wood for Woodturning: A Beginner’s Guide to Finding, Processing and Drying Hardwood Blanks, which brings together the main things beginners need to understand before filling a shed with logs, blanks and questionable timber.
Why Bugs Appear in Woodturning Wood
Freshly cut hardwood is still part of a natural environment.
Before a tree is cut, the bark, cambium layer and outer sapwood may already contain insects, eggs, larvae, old galleries, fungal staining, or soft areas. If the tree has been down for a while, there may be even more activity.
That does not automatically mean the whole piece of wood is ruined.
Many insects are mainly interested in the bark, the soft outer layers, or already decaying material. Once the bark is removed, the wood is cut into blanks, sealed, stacked and dried properly, the environment often becomes less attractive to them.
That is why you may sometimes see one small hole in a drying blank with no other sign of activity. In many cases, the insect has simply left.
The bug has bugged out.
But there is a big difference between a harmless visitor in the bark and a wood-boring insect that has been tunnelling into the usable wood.
That is the difference I am looking for.
Woodworm Is the One I Take Seriously
The word “woodworm” is used for the larval stage of several wood-boring beetles. It is not usually the adult beetle causing the damage. The damage is done while the larvae are inside the wood, feeding and tunnelling before eventually emerging as adults.
That is why woodworm can be awkward.
You may not see an obvious entry point. Eggs can be laid in cracks, pores or rough areas, and the larvae can live inside the wood for years before you notice anything. What you usually see later is the small round exit hole where the adult beetle has emerged.
Depending on the species and conditions, woodworm activity can last for several years inside the wood. That is why I treat it with caution.
If I find one suspicious hole, I do not just shrug and move on. I investigate it. Usually, I cut the area with a bandsaw or chisel to see if it leads to chambers and tracts. When this happens, the wood is fire grade. If it stops before that, chances are I can use the wood as the bug has left.
Common Wood-Boring Insects You Might Come Across
I am not an entomologist, and I do not pretend to identify every insect species in Irish wood. As a woodturner, I am more interested in the practical question:
Is this piece of wood safe and sensible to keep, or should I reject it?
That said, there are a few broad groups worth knowing about.
Common furniture beetle
This is one of the beetles most people are referring to when they talk about woodworm. The holes are usually small and round, and the larvae can tunnel through the wood before emerging later.
This is the type of thing I do not ignore.
Powderpost beetles
Powderpost beetles are another group that can attack hardwoods. They are often associated with fine powdery dust, known as frass, and small exit holes. Some hardwoods are more vulnerable than others, depending on the pore structure of the wood.
Again, if I suspect this kind of activity, I would rather lose a blank than risk keeping it.
Deathwatch beetle
This is another wood-boring beetle people may hear about, usually in relation to older buildings or older structural wood. It is not something I expect to see every day in woodturning blanks, but it belongs in the same general category of insects I would treat seriously.
Bark beetles, grubs and other insects
A lot of insects found in logs are not trying to destroy the heartwood. Some live in the bark. Some feed in the cambium layer or outer live wood. Some are there because the wood was already starting to decay.
These are the ones I am less worried about, especially if they are only in the bark or outer waste area.
I still clean the wood properly, but I do not panic every time I see insect life in a fresh log.
Why I Remove the Bark from Blanks
When I cut spindle blanks or bowl blanks, I normally remove bark from the edges.
There are several reasons for this.
Bark holds moisture. It can hide cracks. It can hide grit and dirt. It can trap fungal activity. It can also hide insects.
Removing the bark gives me a much better look at what is actually going on in the wood. I can inspect the outer surface, look for holes, check for soft areas, and decide whether the blank is worth keeping.
This is especially important when I am cutting wood for storage rather than turning it straight away.
If a blank is going into my drying shed, I want to know what I am putting in there.
What I Do When I Find a Hole
If I find a single hole in a blank, I do not automatically throw the wood away.
But I do not ignore it either.
I usually chip or cut into the area so I can follow the path. I want to know whether it is a small isolated tunnel, an old exit hole, or part of something more active.
If the tunnel fizzles out quickly, and the affected area will be in waste wood anyway, I may cut a bit more off to be sure, then seal the blank again.
If the tunnel runs deeper, branches into more tunnels, or gives me any sign that the activity is more than isolated, I reject the piece.
That might sound harsh, but it is not worth the risk.
Wood is replaceable. A finished piece, a drying shed, or a customer’s home is not something I want to gamble with.
My Rule: If in Doubt, It Goes
This is the simplest rule I follow.
If I have doubts about a piece of wood, especially where woodworm is concerned, I do not keep it.
Sometimes that means cutting a blank shorter.
Sometimes it means cutting away a whole section.
Sometimes it means the wood goes into the fire.
That can feel wasteful, especially if the wood is attractive or hard to get. But I would much rather lose one blank than bring questionable wood into my workshop or home.
Woodturning already involves enough judgement calls. This is one area where I prefer to be cautious.
Drying Wood Can Make It Less Attractive to Insects
Fresh wood and damp wood are more attractive environments for many insects than dry, sealed, well-stored wood.
As wood dries, the conditions change. The moisture level drops. The bark is gone. The soft outer areas have often been cut away. The blank is no longer as inviting as it was when it was part of a fresh log.
That is why some insects leave during the drying stage.
But drying wood is not the same as magically solving every problem.
If woodworm is already inside the wood, or if I see signs that make me suspicious, I still treat that blank as risky. Drying may reduce activity, but it does not make me comfortable enough to ignore the signs.
Bugs are really just another part of the same process. When you collect real hardwood, you are not just dealing with wood. You are dealing with moisture, bark, cracks, fungal staining, insect activity and all the other surprises that come with using material from a real tree.
If you are trying to understand why wood cracks, moves or behaves badly during drying, this post may help too: Wood Moisture & Why Bowls Crack as They Dry.
My Drying Shed Routine
Before I place bandsawn sealed wood in my drying shed, I inspect it.
I look for bark pockets, cracks, soft edges, holes, tunnels, loose frass, or anything that suggests insect activity.
Once the wood is on my drying shelves, I still check it regularly.
Every week, I go into the drying shed and inspect random pieces. I am mainly looking for two things:
End checking or cracks that need attention.
Any fresh sign of insect activity.
If I find a crack, I may recut the blank and reseal it.
If I find a suspicious hole, I investigate it. If it looks isolated and is in a waste area, I cut back further and reseal. If it looks deeper or more active, I reject the wood.
This is one of the reasons I prefer processing my own wood carefully rather than just cutting it, sealing it and forgetting about it.
Drying wood is not passive. You have to keep an eye on it.
For smaller spindle blanks, I have also written about my own drying method here: Drying Spindle Blanks on a Budget. That post explains how I seal, stack and monitor spindle blanks as they dry.
Final Inspection Before Wood Comes Indoors
At the end of the drying process, I inspect every piece again before it comes into the house or clean storage area.
● I brush it off.
● I check the ends.
● I check the edges.
● I look closely for new holes, dust, soft patches, bark remnants or anything that feels wrong.
● If the wood looks clean, sound and stable, I am happy to keep it.
● If I have doubts, it does not come in.
That final inspection matters because a piece of wood can look fine at a quick glance, especially if it has been stacked for months. But if there has been insect activity, end cracking or movement, I want to catch it before it gets mixed in with better stock.
Should Beginners Be Afraid of Bugs in Wood?
No, not afraid. You should be aware of them though, at every stage.
I admit I was terrified of woodworm early on, but the more experienced I became at harvesting and finish-turning my own wood, the more I understood that bugs are simply part of the whole process. You can work around most of them once you know what to look for.
If you are collecting logs from gardens, farms, storm damage, hedgerows, fallen trees or tree surgeons, you will eventually come across deeper insect activity. That is part of using real wood.
The important thing is to learn the difference between normal rough log material and wood that should not be kept.
A few insects in bark are not the end of the world.
A bit of surface damage in waste wood may not matter.
But small round holes, tunnels, powdery dust, repeated activity, or anything that suggests woodworm should be taken seriously.
When you are new to woodturning, it can be tempting to keep every piece of wood because free wood feels valuable. I understand that completely. I was the same myself.
But bad wood is not free if it brings problems with it.
My Practical Advice
If you are cutting your own hardwood for woodturning, I would suggest the following:
● Remove bark where practical, especially on blanks you are storing.
● Inspect the outer wood before sealing.
● Look for holes, tunnels, soft areas and powdery dust.
● Cut into suspicious areas rather than guessing.
● Reject wood if the tunnelling goes deeper than expected.
● Keep drying wood away from finished pieces and clean indoor storage.
● Check drying blanks regularly.
● Inspect everything again before bringing it indoors.
● Do not take risks with woodworm.
This is not about being paranoid. It is about building good habits.
The more wood you process, the better your eye gets. You begin to recognise what is normal, what is harmless, and what needs to be cut away or burned.
If you would like to learn more about my own approach to woodturning, I have written a more personal follow-on here: My Process: How I Approach Woodturning From Log to Finished Piece.
Final Thoughts
Bugs are part of working with local hardwood.
If you collect your own wood, especially from fallen trees or freshly cut logs, you will see insect activity at some stage. Most of it is manageable. Some of it is harmless. But woodworm is one area where I do not compromise.
My approach is simple.
● Inspect the wood.
● Remove the bark.
● Cut away anything suspicious.
● Keep an eye on the blanks while they dry.
● Check them again before they come indoors.
● Keep batches of wood separate on your dry shelves.
And if there is any doubt, the wood goes into the fire.
It might feel severe, but it gives me peace of mind. And when you are storing wood for future turning, peace of mind is worth a lot.
If you want to explore more of my woodturning posts, I keep the main list here: Woodturning Guides and Articles.
Thanks for Reading,
David
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About the Author
I’m David Condon, a woodturner and small business owner based in Tralee, Co. Kerry. I’ve been working with wood for most of my life at this stage — 11 years as a carpenter and over a decade running my own woodturning business.
Over the years, I’ve learned that woodturning is as much about patience and problem-solving as it is about tools and technique. I work mainly with Irish hardwoods, teach woodturning full-time, and spend most days learning something new in the workshop myself. On this site, I share the same practical knowledge I pass on to my students, shaped by experience, mistakes, and time spent at the lathe. If you’re interested in learning in person, I offer woodturning lessons in Tralee, with details available on my Woodturning Tuition page.
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More Woodturning Pages to Explore
● Hampshire Sheen - Fine Finishing products that will highlight your project pieces
● Hamlet Tools - Fantastic Woodturning Tools from a well trusted brand
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● Sanding Essentials - Essential sanding products for Woodturners & Woodworkers.
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● Crafter's Haven – A vast range of craft supplies for crafters and gift givers!
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