Found Termites in Your Home? Find Out What it Takes to Eradicate Them

Termites are one of the most dangerous pests that can invade your house. They will eat the timber structures in your home until you do something to stop them. If you find out your home has termites, call a termite control service immediately. Through the following processes, they will help stop the ongoing termite damage and save your home.

Inspections

Once the termite inspection team gets into your home, they will start by checking which areas are affected. They will do so using specialised equipment such as moisture detectors that tell if your wood has the ideal condition to house termites, thermal imaging devices to check for termite infestation, and sound machines to listen for termite movement. They may also use ultrasound machines to check for hollow wood. In addition to the above, they will also check for termite mud tunnels. All this will enable them to identify affected areas and to gauge the degree of infestation.

Termite treatment

Termites generally create housing structures, or nests. Your home may have one or several nests if infested. These nests are often located near the food source (timber) e.g. near fencing, or next to the house foundation. Termite control technicians will identify these nests and apply chemical pesticides so as to have maximum effect on the termites.

They will then seal these nests to prevent termite relocation. Next, they will apply pesticide to affected areas to deter termite habitation (optional). They will also apply pesticide to possible entry points such as subfloor stumps, piers, crawlspace posts, outdoor perimeter and around ground piping.

Sealing termite entry points

To further dissuade future termite infestation, the control technicians will seal any areas that termites can use to get into your home. This includes cracks in your walling, floors, subfloors (if applicable). The sealing can be done using injection of treated silicone, concrete emulsion or other sealers. If you have open vents, especially in the basement, the technician may recommend installing a mesh.

Preventive measures

As a preventive measure, the technicians will advise you on certain termite triggers to avoid. One of this is to avoid idle wood in your compound. Another is to avoid cramming wood or junk in certain rooms in the house, especially garages. This makes termite infestation easy as you will hardly notice their activity. They may also advise you to ensure you have proper ventilation in your home to avoid moisture buildup. This can be done through damp proofing and installing proper ventilation.

Since termites can infest your home and live under you without notice, seek termite inspections regularly each year. It's also highly recommended that you seek similar inspections before buying a house.