Termite Control Options

One of the biggest threats to your home is a tiny menace that lies in hiding, quietly inflicting costly damage on your home’s wooden foundation. Termites live off of wood which is why your home is a target because its made primarily out of wood.

If you live in the Kingwood, Humble, Atascosita, Porter, New Caney, Roman Forest, Cleveland, Splendora, TX area then calling FullScope Pest Control for your termite inspection and treatment will be the best call you have ever made.

Termites will sneak their way undetected into your home, usually from underground, and create large colonies that feast on the precious wood elements of your home. And they usually do it all without you even knowing you have a problem until it’s too late.

Statistics show that termites cause upwards of 30 billion dollars a year in damage in the US because of their destructive habits. For the average homeowner, it costs an average of $3000 to repair homes damaged by termites. Worst of all, termite damage is usually not covered by insurance so you’ll be having to fit the bill totally out of pocket!

If you don’t want to face a hefty bill to fix damaged wood, it’d be wise to invest in termite specialists that will put a stop to termites via conducting a full termite inspection and treatment of your home. Need more convincing? Read on below:

Termite Trouble In Houston

Termites are a problem nationwide but they are especially an issue in areas that have more hot and humid weather than other parts of the country. This makes Houston a hotbed for termite activity and puts Houston homeowners on notice to watch out for termites and put into place preventative measures to keep their homes from being a target.

What makes monitoring for termites especially tough is that termites are very sneaky and are not normally seen out in the open. You’re not going to find a huge mound or nest of them easily because they either active within the dark secluded bowels of your home or they stay underground.

Most homeowners that have a termite infestation usually do not have a clue that there are termites present and munching away at the wood of their home. Action is not taken until they signs of their presence is clear as day, and by the time it is obvious that there are termites present, there’s probably already thousands of dollars in damage that they’ve already caused.

By that time you not only will have to deal with controlling the population, which may have already multiplied exponentially, you will also have to repair the damage caused. That’s a double whammy to your bank account. Rather than go through the expensive ordeal, we suggest you make a smart decision and hire us to treat your home or at the very least, let us do an inspection to make sure termites aren’t already making their presence felt.

Having a professional thoroughly check through your home is your best bet because if you decide to just check around your home yourself, you may miss some of their signs or hotspots. It’s best to leave termite inspection to a highly trained and experienced specialist.

The Most Common Termite Infestations

What may alarm most people is knowing that there are over 4,000 species of termites which have been discovered across the world. Thankfully, the type of termites that infiltrate and damage homes can be narrowed down to a handful of termite species.

Subterranean Termites - Also known as Eastern Subterranean termites, subterranean termites are the most common termite in the world and by far the most destructive of the species, responsible for nearly 95 percent of all termite damage in the US. A single queen can produce 5,000 to 10,000 eggs annually so their populations can reach from several hundred thousand to several million in little time.

Within the subterranean species is a subspecies known as the Formosan termite that is infamous for causing massive amounts of destruction and forming gigantic populations.

Formosan Termites - Nicknamed the “super termite”, formosan termites are known to ravage homes from floor to ceiling. The damage they inflict can get so bad that your home could be unfit to live if there is no intervention.  

How are they able to cause so much destruction? Look no further than the way they can multiply.  A single colony of formosan termites may have millions upon millions of worker termites because of how quickly they reproduce. With those numbers, it’s no wonder that formosan termites are the most destructive termite on the planet.

Drywood Termites - The rest of termite damage is done so by the drywood termite. While it’s not as big of a threat compared to subterranean termites, they are still a threat to take seriously and will also require a different treatment approach because unlike subterranean termites that live underground, drywood termites choose to live where they eat, inside of wood.

The main difference between these species has to do with moisture. Subterranean termites need moisture to survive, which is why they live under moist soil. Drywood termites, like their name implies, can live in dry wood and do not need moisture to live.

Termite Infestation Warning Signs

As we noted earlier, because of Houston’s warm and humid weather and the termites love for warmth and moisture, termites and Houston make a perfect match for one another (and a dreadful match for a Houston homeowner).

Because termite infestations can go undetected for years, you don’t want to sit idly by and wait until you start seeing crumbling damaged wood before deciding to do something about an infestation.

While an expert can inspect your home in a much more skillful way, if you keep your eyes peeled for certain signs, you will be able to detect a termite infestation early and do something about it sooner, saving from further damage being done. Below we will break down the most commonly and obvious signs of termite activity for each termite species.

Subterranean/Formosan Termite Infestation Warning Signs

• Mud tubes - A subterranean termite needs moisture to survive so you won’t see them out in the open. They may live underground, but if they want to move around, especially to get and consume wood, they create mud tubes. These are tunnels made with mud that they create to travel from their nest to a wooden structure. Mud tubes are thick and are one of the clearest signs of an infestation present. They are commonly found around foundations, support posts and along wood they have been targeting.
• Winged Termites or Discarded Wings: Termite colonies have reproductive termites which have wings who are tasked with growing the population and expanding. They can be seen traveling out in the open during their search or may leave behind wings which you may find. This is an obvious sign that a large infestation is close by.
• Damaged wood: Look around your property for damaged crumbling wood. Use a screwdriver to problem wood and check for termite galleries that have been made.

Drywood Termite Infestation Warning Signs  

• Flying Termites: Drywood termites don’t infiltrate the home from underground like subterranean termites. They instead have swarmer termites fly in from outside and then set up shop in your wood. So it goes without saying that seeing a flying winged termite is the most obvious sign of drywood termite infestation. Often, flying drywood termites fly around in large swarms in hopes of finding a good place to form a colony, but even if you just see one lone flying termite, it’s enough of an indication that an infestation is present.
• Frass: Frass refers to the wood fecal pellets that drywood termites drop from their bodies when they are eating wood and building their galleries. Drywood termites like to keep their tunnels neat so they push out these pellets which look like saw dust from a designated exit in the gallery. Sometimes you may even see sizable piles of frass which should immediately tip you off that there is a termite infestation to worry about.
• Damaged wood: If you see tiny subtle bits of damage to wood around your home and even your wooden furniture, this is also another indicator of termite activity.

The Importance of a Routine Termite Inspection

If you don’t have termites in your home, consider yourself fortunate. But you cannot be totally sure that you do not have termites in your home unless you have an experienced professional come inspect your home.

Inspections are the best way to keep termite infestations away. Ideally it would be best to get 1 inspection done a year, especially around the springtime when the weather starts to warm up because that is when termites will start becoming very active.

If you don’t have termites now, you can’t be sure you won’t have them target your home next year so make sure that if you want your home protected from the threat of termites to have a professional give your home a look.

How We Treat Termites

Depending on the type of termite, the treatment approach can be different. After a careful inspection, a technician will determine what type of treatment will be best for the type of termite infestation that is present and the severity level of the infestation.

The options usually fall under a few categories: preventative treatment, spot treatment, and treatment of the entire home.

Treating The Entire Home

Treatment of the entire home is usually done when there is a sizable infestation. For subterranean termites who create a large network, the termite technician will apply a termiticide treatment around the home and also treat the hot spots where termites have been traveling and consuming.

Often the termiticide is a non-repellent so the termites will not be able to detect or realize that a poison has been laid out to kill them. They will travel over the termiticide and go back and forth from the home structure back to their nest carrying the poison back and affecting the entire colony.

The best case scenario of a full termite liquid treatment is that the termite population will be killed in a few weeks.

Spot Treatments

Spot treatments are conducted when there is a smaller infestation of termites and they are concentrated in a limited area rather than all around the home. In these cases, it is a cheaper option to do a spot treatment to apply termiticide to those affected areas.

Usually spot treatments are done via drilling holes and injecting termiticide in areas where there is termite activity or laying out termite bait stations or systems that will lure unsuspecting termites to a lethal trap.

Preventative Treatment

A preventative termite treatment is done when either the termite population has been wiped out or there are no termites present and will ensure that there will not be an emergence of termites for up to 10 years.

Preventative treatments are usually conducted via placing termite monitoring systems out which will monitor termite activity and then kill the termites found or a preventative barrier treatment around the perimeter of the home that will contain a lethal insecticide that will keep termites away.

The Drawbacks of DIY Termite Treatments

You may be a handy person or a person not afraid to get their hands dirty so you may think that doing a DIY termite treatment will be a wise choice to save you money. There are lots of places online and even stores that offer DIY termite treatment products.

While it may be nice to try to use DIY as a way to save money, a termite treatment is one of those tasks where its best to just leave it to a trained professional. An experienced termite technician is learned about termite tendencies, habits and hot spots and will do a much better job of conducting an inspection and finding out where the termites are hiding. They are also licensed to use termiticides properly to ensure the biggest success.

The best thing about hiring a professional, like FullScope Pest Control, is if the treatment doesn’t work, we will come back out for free and retreat whereas you using DIY products and failing to eliminate the infestation will just lead to a waste of time and money.

Termite Control Starts With a Professional Termite Inspection

How long has it been since you’ve had a professional inspect your home for termites? Or maybe you’ve never had a termite inspection done on your home. No matter the case, living in the Houston area makes it all the more crucial to get your home inspected for termites to control or prevent future termite problems.

You can’t afford to not take action and hope for the best. Be proactive and call to schedule your termite inspection today and be one step closer to having peace of mind with a termite-free home! 832-898-0190