Anoxia with oxygen absorbers

Anoxic disinfestation is being more and more widely used by museums as a safe and poison free method to control insect pests. Anoxic disinfestation presents no risks for the works of art as long as climatic parameters are kept constant during treatment. Unfortunately there is little reliable scientific data about the necessary treatment time (and no data at all for temperatures below 20°C). For a long time 22 days at 0,3% O₂, >20°C and 55% RH were said to be sufficient. In recent times some users claim some insects having survived these conditions.

Until further scientific evidence we therefore rely our advice on experience of a professional pest control expert who has done a lot of anoxic treatments and checked efficiency of the treatment by test insects.
At 20°C he recommends 7,5 weeks at 0,3% oxygen at 55% RH, At 23°C you will only need 6 weeks. He reports not to have noticed a big difference in treatment time between 0,3% - 0,8% oxygen, but it's certainly no mistake to treat at 0,3% oxygen. To be completely sure that your treatment has been succesful it's a good idea to add test insects, such as available from MPA Eberswalde. You might find similar sources in your country.

There are different options of treatment depending on the volume:

• 0-20 m³: Oxygen absorber
• 10 - >100 m³: Nitrogen generator

We have put together all equipment you might need for anoxic disinfestations in bags, bubbles or chambers. Please feel free to contact us for further assistance.

You will find a manual for the anoxic treatment with oxygen absorbers HERE.