Termites

It’s a sinking feeling when you find them, confusion and panic often not far behind.

I blame the media.

Termites eating through concrete, glass, even steel!  I’m sure you’ve heard it all before and this is what causes panic within the home or business owner.

 There’s no need to panic, in fact panicking is the worst thing you can do.

Try to resist the urge to grab the can of Mortein  - they are more useful to us alive (for the time being)

If it’s too late and you’ve already drowned them in household spray, it’s not the end of the world but be sure to let your technician know.

Try not to go ripping up skirtings or other affected timber in your haste to see “how bad it is”

 At this point in time, the less the termites are disturbed the more treatment options we will have.

Whilst it’s true, termites can cause significant damage to a home or timber structure in most cases I’ve dealt with, the damage is discovered well before the demolition crew needs to be called in.

Often the homeowner will notice a door or window architrave or floorboard with a bit of undulation in the timber – a warped appearance or even put the vacuum cleaner through a skirting board (if it’s made of timber)

On a balmy night, termite alates (the winged reproductives) will often take a flight to start up new colonies, they might take flight from a tree or tree stump in the yard OR if they’re attacking a home, they might take flight within that home.

A termite flight within your home can be very alarming, they look a lot like flying ants.

Clumsy looking flyers – more like flutterers – will gravitate to whichever room in the house has the lightest, quite often this will be the one where everyone is watching TV.

A timber pest inspection must now be a priority for the home or business owner.

The inspection is performed to an Australian standard and will provide you with the following valuable things

1.     What has made your house conducive to this unwanted attack.

2.     Details on the extent of the damage.

3.     A clear proposal to eradicate.

4.     Details on what you can do to make your home less conducive to termite attacks.

5.     Confidence that you’re inexperienced and capable hands.

There is a common misconception that termites only attack homes with timber stumps.

This couldn’t be further from the truth.

Termites feed on cellulose,  they forage through the soil for their food and will climb concrete stumps, steel stirrups, even up the inside of plastic conduit to get to a potential food source.

They are very secretive creatures that will exploit their environment in order to sustain a growing colony; this is why timber pest inspections need to be so thorough.

Make it D-Day for your termites.