What you need to know about Termites

Living in Virginia has its perks. We get to enjoy all four seasons without any one season overly dominating the other. This is a perk for anyone who enjoys the outdoors and makes for reasonable heating and cooling bills.

These moderate climates, however, also make Central Virginia a favorite location for subterranean termites who never take a break from eating the cellulose of decaying wood and the soft layers of pine wood most of our homes are made of.

According to the National Pest Management Association, in the U.S. alone, termites cause more than $5 Billion dollars of structural damage each year! Coupled with the fact that most homeowners’ policies do not cover damages caused by termites – if you own your home do not neglect the most damaging pest to your wallet.

I have seen first-hand the awesome destructive power of these meek insects as they secretly gain entrance to inner walls and silently wreak havoc behind sheetrock walls of homeowners. These homeowners had no idea of their existence with thousands of termites eating their framing for many years before any damage could be seen to the common eye. The aftermath was quite honestly thousands of dollars in construction repair and an expensive curative termite treatment.

What can you do now and in every season to help prevent termites from infesting your home

The good news is that with a few ounces of prevention you can prevent paying for a pound of cure – as the old adage goes.

First, you need to remove any wood that is stockpiled next to your home or shed. Do not think that just because you have this wood elevated off of the ground that you are safe! Termites are experts at finding their food sources and build tunnels above ground to access their favorite meals.

Also, remove any scrap wood from your crawl space or basement. Do not be fooled into thinking that a plastic liner will stop the tiny but powerful jaws of these wood-eaters!

Next, be careful of those truck-loads of mulch your landscaper brings in. Oftentimes, there are colonies of termites, ants or other pests riding along and are about to be deposited right next to your foundation.

Finally, at the very least have a professional inspect your home annually. In the pest control industry, an expert will have attained the Commercial designation Category 7-B, Wood-Destroying Pest Control. However, that’s no guarantee that these elusive creatures haven’t accessed some crack or crevice completely blind to even the pros eyes. Having a warranty attached to your annual inspection to mitigate the high cost of a treatment is sound wisdom.

Keeping in mind that an ounce of prevention leads to a pound of cure, the next level of structural home protection would be a preventative termite treatment after your home is at least (3) years old given that most homes receive a preventative treatment at the construction phase. Another option is to install termite monitoring stations strategically positioned around the exterior foundation and checked regularly.

Let Vine & Branch Help You. We are Certified in Wood-Destroying Pest Control (7-A) and we care about your home! Contact us today for a free inspection and consultation. Just so you know, we are sensitive to the current pandemic and can set up a Zoom video call with you following your inspection if you like.