Wood and rattan furniture can look more elegant and eye-pleasing to the Filipino home, but they have one big drawback: they can serve as breeding grounds for various pests.
The recent incident at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) where rattan furniture was allegedly infested with bed bugs (surot) has spurred scientists in a research facility in Los Baños, Laguna for ways to prevent the infestation of pests in wooden furniture.
According to Rico Cabangon, officer-in-charge of the Department of Science and Technology - Forest Products Research and Development Institute (DOST-FPRDI), the institute has been tapped to help address health and safety concerns arising from locally-made furniture, particularly those in key government facilities such as airports.
“Like any lignocellulosic materials, rattan furniture and handicrafts are prone to attacks of biodeterioration agents. Proper maintenance is key to using indigenous materials like rattan,” he said.
Rattan furniture, in particular, is vulnerable to the bedbugs that are attracted to the woven pattern furniture and thrive in items with tiny cracks and crevices.
Likewise, rattan furniture can be infested with biodeterioration agents such as fungi, termites and powder-post beetles or "bukbok".
Cabangon said there are available technologies and methods to prolong the service life of non-timber forest products (NTFPs), and his office will be applying these technologies to preserve furniture and woodwork in select facilities.
Chemical and non-chemical control methods may be used such as application of wood preservatives to freshly cut and conditioned materials, and achievement of low moisture content through kiln drying.
Meanwhile, the institute is currently researching eco-friendly ways to safeguard wood and NTFPs such as thermal modification to use high heat to change the kind of chemicals in a piece of wood.
Cabangon is also recommending minimizing exposure of treated materials to prolonged wetting to extend their service life.
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