My previous past time was restoreing Irish pine furniture, I dipped most large pieces for days in a tank of water charged with caustic soda. This stuff at times when recharged took only seconds to strip even the most heavily painted pieces I had come across.
One piece in particular was a Galway dresser, it was so heavily laden with paint I thought it would take a week to strip, being experienced and realizing the amount of worm holes all over the thing, I decided to leave it for a week, turning it over every couple of days to keep the stripping at an even level on all parts of the piece. Paint is a hard thing to get out of the worm tracks near the surface of the wood.
Five days later I decided to take it out of the tank thinking that for sure, all worms would be dead. Was I in For a supprise. The dresser was needless to say a great lump of furniture, and when you are on your own accidents do happen, especially when trying to grop a slippy caustic covered piece of pine. It went to the concrete all on its own with my heart thumping, thankfull not too much damage was done to the thing but a piece of its rotten sledge foot broke away.
This being only a tiny piece about an inch by an inch, sitting on its top comming out of a hole, bigger than any wood worm hole I have ever seen was a wriggling white maggot. Man I couldnt believe it to the point I jumped back startled. It was not unlike a baby cabbage butterfly maggot or worm, what was it you tell me?? Are there more out there?? Watch out for the Galway bugs I say.
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