We just had our checkup for termites (on a century-old house, needed every few years) and I noticed the termite guy using a great big Streamlight.
He said he bought it at a local “cop shop” and that termite inspectors generally were really into good flashlights.
His outshone anything I had handy.
So I figured I”d mention this for several reasons. Y’all ought to call around for a cheap/free termite checkup inspection if it’s been a while. And see what kind of flashlight he’s carrying.
For the record there are three kinds: drywood, dampwood, and subterranean.
Spot control is pretty easy. Make sure there’s no dead wood or stumps in contact with earth around your house.
Don’t expect to rid the area of termites, they’re everywhere (or we’d be up to our eyebrows in dead wood). You just want to control them to protect your building.
Was curious… how “thorough” are then when inspecting a house?
I was actually in-contract for a house that thankfully I got out of and didn’t lose my deposit. Outside posts not 10’ from the house were all chewed up at the base.
Generic house-inspector and the sellers’ agent said, “Don’t worry, that’s covered, we’ll do the removal and you’ll have a 1yr guarantee from Mr Terminix or Mr Orkin or whomever.”. Except the sellers themselves said, “Nope, not doing anything about termites, deal with them yourself.”.
Hmm, sounded like the sellers knew there was an issue with termites, and just wanted to dump the house fast and stick the sucker buying it with the problem.
Anyway, I imagine I’d need permission for us to get into the house, go poke around, etc., which the seller would not give. Anyway, didn’t know if he’d have to poke holes in the walls or anything like that, to be absolutely sure there weren’t any “termites or other wood-eating insects” like the contract itself said.
I was eyeballing a house that’s just around the century mark, and wanted to have that checked, of course.
Our guy was quite thorough. You do need someone given access all around the perimeter — outside foundation and inside crawlspace as well as whatever support posts are holding up the floor joists and attic wood.
Drywood and dampwood termites live in the wood. Subterranean termites live in the ground and come up to forage for edible wood, and we were told they’re the more significant worry to deal with — the colonies are very large, likely extend well past property lines, and can’t be eliminated, just blocked off from access to your building. And to repeat — don’t leave any wood in contact with the ground, no stumps, no sawdust, no timber or trash piles.
Indoors, crawlspace storage, put down sheet plastic then cinderblocks and then wood over that for stacking stuff. And learn to watch for the tubes the termites build to get up from the ground to cross concrete foundations, etc.
A regular “home inspector” will be looking at. lot more issues, so perhaps less thoroughly, and will just call out that you need a termite pro to look for trouble.
The lesson we learned was, don’t go years between inspections, after buying a house — get the property checked every few years, as termites are ubiquitous in the environment and will find any accessible wood eventually.
Ditto beetles and ants that also damage wood, ditto any moisture problems.
Ya know they say a boat is a hole in the water into which you throw money. Houses, similar.
Yeh, I know someone who “got” termites from his neighbor. Busted fireplace, left the pile of would-be firewood outside to rot, and that turned into a tick’n’termite factory.
And when they swarm, they’re like smoke, and will find the smallest pinhole to get into. Hence, the through exam I wanted for the house before buying it.
What is your 100 year old house framed with? Many old houses in Ca. (like the one I used to own), were framed in redwood. Termites never bothered the redwood, only fir framing