Wood – is this due to termites? any idea what’s causing the wood to turn to sawdust

maintenancepanelingpest-controltermitewood

Pics below.

I had this gouge on some wood paneling. The area inside the gouge seemed to be crumbling, and there was always a pool of sawdust below it. I covered it up with some caulk (brown caulk). And after a long time, today, I again noticed some sawdust below it.

2 Questions:

  • what are your thoughts on what's causing it?
  • what are your suggestions on fixing this? (e.g. if it's termites, then please suggest any ways you know of to get rid of termites — professional help, or DIY)

Update: House is located in mid-west USA, on the 44N latitude.

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Best Answer

Not termites , may be something called "powder post beetles" ( which I have never seen). Carpenter ants leave coarser sawdust. You should check it out.

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