Termites: 

Termites are a necessary part of our environment, but they are persistent, destructive creatures in our homes. Each year they cause over $1 billion in damage to homes in the United States alone. Treating a home for termites requires a trained professional, licensed and certified to treat termite infestations. Termite treatments can be far more expensive than prevention. Many people have never seen a termite. They stay well hidden. Termites thrive in dark, moist conditions, and prefer soil. They live in large organized colonies, and each individual has a specific task as a worker, soldier or reproductive termite. They operate much like a factory supporting each other and the queen and king, whose purpose is reproduction. Most of the termites in a colony are workers, and they have a crucial role to collect enough food to feed the entire colony. Termites feed on cellulose material, particularly wood. The workers will continuously probe through the soil until they locate a food source, as far as 500 feet from the colony. Then they will build a path for thousands of workers to transport the cellulose back to the colony. The path can not be exposed to light or open air, and they will build tubes composed of soil particles to keep themselves protected. Usually once each year in the spring, after a termite colony is several years old, some termites will leave the colony to mate, become queen and king, find a new location and start a new colony. This process is known as “swarming”, and the swarming termites will have wings. There may be many swarming termites from a colony, but they don’t live long. You may see dead winged termites or discarded wings after a termite colony swarms, often in a window sill or around another light source in the home. They are trying to get outside to mate. Some ants and other insects have wings similar to termites, and also have swarming events. Get the advice of a pest control professional if you think you have swarming insects in your home. Early detection of a termite infestation will allow effective treatment before significant damage is done. Be on the lookout for mud tubes on the side of the concrete foundation or inside the home, particularly around bath tubs, showers, sinks, and other slab penetrations. Termites will eat the paper on sheetrock walls and ceilings, and leave a granular, “salt and pepper” looking residue. Termites will enter a home built on a concrete slab through slab penetrations, cracks, or at the perimeter. Unfortunately, most brick homes in this area on a slab foundation have the perimeter brick ledge below the soil level, so termites can enter the perimeter of the home undetected. If termites have invaded your home, it is time for corrective measures, but it is not an emergency situation. Termites can do serious damage to a home, but it usually takes several years. Have a pest control company evaluate your situation to confirm whether you have termites, and to recommend a treatment approach. Treatments can vary in terms of the area protected and the type of chemical or bait used, and of course in the cost of the treatment. The most common treatment approach creates a chemically treated zone or barrier in the soil at all places where termites could have access to the structure. The chemical will either repel or kill the termites that get into the treated soil, and prevent them from entering the home. Termites already in the home when it is treated will perish because they can not return to the soil without going through the chemical barrier. [ Back to General Home Information ] Schedule Your Inspection Today