Identifying the Signs of Subterranean Termite Damage

You can stand before a typical house and register no visible signs of damage at all. The roofing may look fine, the walls may appear to be as sturdy as ever, and the foundations may look like they could withstand the elements and survive several more decades in its very same spot. And yet, the property could be disintegrating at this very moment — ever so slowly, but inevitably moving toward the reality of a house that is crumbling down.

The culprit? Subterranean Termites

Termites are organisms living underground that feed on wood that is exposed or that they are able to reach. Once they find their way inside a house, they can cause significant damage to structural features constructed using timber, such as floor and ceiling supports, posts, wall studs, and subfloors. Given access, they can also cause damage to non-structural components of a house like furniture, carpets, paneling and drywall paperboard.

It may not be immediately apparent that a house is under termite attack since they can build nests for at least five years before the damage can be detected. To the untrained eye, the damage left behind by termites can be mistaken for damage to property caused by water and moisture.

So how will you be able to correctly identify subterranean termite damage, especially in your own home?

Here are some of the most tell-tale signs:

Peeling or bubbling paint
Wood that makes a hollow sound when tapped
Tiny holes (the size of pinpricks) in drywall
Doors or windows that have become jammed
Sagging or buckling floors/laminate floors
Tiles that have come loose
Hardwood floor slats that seem to pop up
Wood that easily crumbles
Sagging or discolored sheet rock on walls or ceilings

What can you do to ensure that you don’t become a victim of a termite attack?

Having termites nesting in your property can translate to thousands of dollars’ worth of damage — and a great deal of inconvenience for you and your family. To protect your existing home, it’s ideal to get in touch with trained termite control professionals who can perform annual inspections of your property so all signs of damage (both obvious and easy-to-miss ones) can be properly identified and provided solutions to.

If you’re considering the purchase of a house in Modesto, regardless if it’s newly constructed or a pre-owned one, hiring a Modesto pest control specialists to look for termites and apply the appropriate extermination methods is the best move you can make to protect a potentially substantial investment, as well as the safety, comfort and security of your household.