Signs of Termites

Have you seen these signs?

Termites eat 24-hours-a-day, 7-days-a-week. This means they are constantly consuming wood and damaging it. If left untreated, termites can weaken the wood within your home leading to costlier damages.

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1. Mud tubes on wall - Subterranean termites build shelter tubes made of mud, dirt and debris in order to travel to and fro the food source without being seen. These tubes are about the size of a coin and are usually found on exterior and interior walls leading up to the entry points of the building.
2. Sightings of termite swarmers (flying termites) or discarded wings – Usually the first sign of infestation noticed by property owners are the presence of swarmers or alates. Another common indication is the remnants of discarded wings on windowsills and floors. While they may quickly disappear after they found their mating partner, the identical and disembodied wings are sure signs of an indoor termite swarm.
3. Papery or hollow sounding timber - Termites usually consume woods from the inside out, leaving a thin veneer of timber or paint. So when you knock or tap on an area that has termite damages, it will sound hollow or papery due to parts (or all) of the timber having been eaten away.
4. Tight fitting door or hard to open window - As termites devour timber, their excrement or ‘mud’ creates a protective environment that traps heat and moisture. This causes timber to swell, making it harder to open or close the infested windows and doors.
5. Tunnels in the wood - Also known as 'galleries' which are quite difficult to see from the outside.
6. Termite droppings - After consuming wood, dry wood termites often leave behind brown-coloured and grainy faecal mounds. These faecal pellets are usually found beneath the infested wood.

termite pathway

Trails of underground termites are often built from the soil. mud or dirt It looks like a long black line. The reason why termites have to build these pathways is because their skin is fragile. It had to find something to cover itself from the heat. Don't let it dry out while searching for food. These traces are often found around the walls. wooden corner edge or the point that is the entrance to the building

Wing fragments of moths

If the fragments of its wings fall on window sills and on the floor in the morning Be careful that termites lurk in your house because moths are termites in the breeding caste. Its wings are thrown off after they have mated. Later, it will disappear underground to create a termite empire below. and become the termite king The queen termite lives in a nest under your house.

Sound hollow in the wood

If you want to check whether there are termites inside the wall of your house or not, try knocking on the wall, cornice, door edge if you hear a hollow sound. (sounds like crumpling paper) It can be assumed that Some of the interior wood has already been eaten by termites. Because termites tend to eat wood from the inside. Leaving only a thin bark on the outside, making it difficult to notice.

termite droppings

for dry wood termites (Tree-eating termites) after they have eaten the wood. Dried wood termites leave brown droppings. These droppings are often found under decayed wood,
courtesy of wikimedia.org.

Doors and windows that are stiff or hard to open

Termites create an environment from their excrement or mud to cover themselves. Retains heat and moisture As a result, wooden doors or windows are swollen. Makes it difficult to open and close
Thanks to the image from freepik.com