apple wood question

[ldrus]

scored a small load of apple wood today the bark had a lot of moos on it
so i decided to strip the bark after which i discovered small holes in the wood with trails leading from one to the other is this TERMITES??? also some of the wood is dead wood that has been aged on the tree is this any good for smoking?

 

[adiochiro3]

How much termite damage and rot is there? Does the wood feel lighter than it should, or nice and dense? Rotten wood is not good for any fire, and I certainly would not smoke with it. I'd be less concerned with mild termite damaged wood in my smoker, but I would prefer to use clean wood.

Dead wood aged on the tree is probably fine, but a lot of folks on this site prefer to use wood that is aged between 6 months and a year. I personally have used woods aged beyond 2 years in my mix and have nice results (ie: no complaints at the dinner table!).

 

[rickw]

Do you see any critters?