Field od use
Field equipment
Type of equipment:
Other equipment
Department:
Department of wood science and technology
Chair:
Chair of Wood Pests, Modification and Protection of Wood
Responsible person
Research group
Wood pathology and protection
Access
The equipment is available at the Chair of Wood Pests, Protection and Modification of Wood, Rožna dolina VIII/34 (Department of Wood Science) and is available by prior arrangement with the person in charge.
Purpose
The equipment makes it possible to heat wood that has already been installed. Although these methods are time-consuming, they are effective for smaller infestations. To kill wood pests, it is usually necessary to heat the wood to over 56 °C for 24 to 48 hours. The equipment consists of a microwave generator and six wood wrapping jackets and offers two approaches for biocide-free, repressive wood protection:
- heating with microwaves– EcoWood and
- heating with contact heaters – Heat Wrap.
EcoWood is a portable microwave heat solution against the xylophagus. It is light (weighs about 8 kg) and easy to use. Microwaves penetrate deep and rapidly into wood (it takes about 10 minutes to reach approx. 60 °C at a depth of 150-200 mm) and kill wood-eating insects from egg to adult. It consists of a main unit and a remote control with a touch screen from which the main unit operates remotely. In addition, the product includes a microwave leak detector to ensure that the user is always outside the radiation hazard area. An area of 30 x 20 cm can be treated at once.
With the modular Heat Wrap heating panels, the wood is heated using infrared technology. Although the heating process is slower than with EcoWood (it takes approx. 4 hours to reach approx. 60 °C at a depth of 100 mm), all 6 panels measuring 885 x 605 mm can heat a total area of 2.16 m at once.