Termites are the worst nightmare for a homeowner. They are infamous for their destructive nature causing more than $5 billion in property damage every year. Unfortunately, these financial losses are not covered by homeowners’ insurance policies. Termites are known as “Silent Destroyers” because of their ability to chew wooden structures including furniture and flooring. If undetected, these tiny, ravenous and wood-destroying pests will eat cellulose matter of your wooden furniture and component of your home.
Termites aka “Silent Destroyers” never stop eating and damaging properties. They eat 24 hours a day nonstop. They are a perfect foodie and never want to stop eating. They have very hard saw-toothed jaws that work like scissors and cutters. Thus, they can make damage to hard wooden components and furniture of the home. By eating your wooden structures, they can make significant damage to your property. Thus, they can be a possible threat and a real concern if you are looking forward to enjoying a trouble-free and pest-free life. Needless to mention that being careful and attentive about termite infestations, termite control, and termite extermination is imperative.
4 Types of Termites You Need to Know
There are approximately 2,000 types of termite species in this world. All of them in varying in shape, size, and behavior. But one thing common in all of them is a love for wood and making damage to property. Here I am going to talk about 4 types of termites that have been a great and real threat for homeowners.
Dampwood Termites
Dampwood termites are appropriately named as they are particularly attracted to damp wood pieces, moisture-rich wood logs, and decaying timbers. The area which is slightly wet such as a bathroom or kitchen or any open space can attract dampwood termites. They can make the damage any wood structure or piece of furniture that has contact with any sort of moisture or water source. By creating a series of champers in your wooden flooring, bathroom doors and other wooden structures that are open to water sources, dampwood termites can permanently damage wooden structures and the surrounding area.
Drywood Termites
Drywood termites, more often than not, do not need to be near the soil, do not create mud tunnels and prefer to eat dry woods such as dead trees, structure timbers, furniture, hardwood floors, and wooden support beams.
Subterranean Termites
Subterranean termites are, more often than not, live underground in the soul. They live in colonies that number in the millions. They build the largest nests than other termite species. Their nests are connected via mud tubes to food sources such as trees and structural timbers in a building. They are among the most destructive types of termites and can easily bite wood logs and wooden structures bit by bit.
Formosan Termites
Like subterranean termites, formosan termites are also very destructive and live underground in large colonies. These tiny destructive pests first make mud nests in the soil and then begin eating nearby wood components such as floors, walls, wallpapers, wood frames, and almost anything that comes into their way. They can attack everything from trees to shrubs to wooden structures in a home or office. You will be shocked to know that a single colony of formosan termites can destroy up to 1 foot of wood in 1 month or less.
Know the Signs of Termite Infestation
It’s no secret that termites are destructive and can be a real concern. It can be hard to detect the termite infestation in a home or office building for a common person. A common person cannot detect the same until severe damages have been made by the termites. More often than not, termites make their homes in a dark, humid and protected environment so that they cannot be found easily. But by monitoring and inspecting your premise attentively you can detect whether termite infestation is or not. Here are some common signs of termite infestations.
- Any cracked or bubbling paint on the wall
- Discolored or drooping of drywall
- Frass or termite droppings in and around home
- Hollow sounding wood
- Small holes in the drywall
- Mud tubes on the wall and wooden beams
- Stuck windows or doors
- Tunnels in wood structure
- Presence of discarded wings from swarmers
- Floor, wall, ceiling and foundation damages
- Maze-like patterns in furniture, floorboards or walls
Termite Control – How to Prevent a Termite Infestation or Get Rid of Termite Problems?
There are certain ways by which you prevent a termite infestation on your property. Here some tips through which you can ensure your home termite-free. You need to do only two things.
- Eliminate any moisture problem on your home
- Repair any leaking taps, water pipes, and AC units.
- Keep gutters and exit of water clean.
- Make sure water does not stand on the water roof.
- Keep all openings clear
- Seal any entry point around water and utility lines or pipes
- Remove termite food sources
- Don’t keep junk such as old cardboard boxes, old books, newspaper and magazines at your home.
- Regularly check dark areas, damp areas, and garages and make them clean.
- Make sure wood in your home does not make contact with soli.
Apart from you can opt for anti-termite treatment done by experts to prevent future termite infestations. You can also opt for professional termite infestation on a half-yearly or yearly basis to ensure you are living in a completely safe home. There are several pest control services in Gurgaon, Delhi, Noida and other parts of NCR that can provide you termite control services.
Hire Professional Termite Control Services
Generally, there are two types of termite control services provided by professional termite control companies or exterminators. They are the following:
Pre-construction termite control
Pre-construction anti-termite treatment, aka Soil Treatment, is executed in the initial phase of construction of a building. In this type of anti-termite treatment, pest control technicians create an anti-termite barrier in the building foundation. In the process, a specialized solution is applied to the areas under and around the concrete base. In this way, experts create a termite barrier that has a long-term effect and eliminates the chances of termite invasion in the future.
Post-construction termite control
This type of treatment is done on an existing construction (house or office building) to pro-actively and thoroughly safeguard the property against termite infestation. During the treatment process, experts treat the soil adjacent to or under the construction with highly effective pest control products that kill or keep away termites. The post-construction termite treatment consists of DRILL + FILL + SEAL techniques. Experts first drill the holes and then fill them with pesticide mixture and then seal the holes after treatment is done.
Over to You
On a closing note, I can say, termites are indeed harmful as they can destroy your properties very fast. You cannot afford the termite infestation in your property. But you can keep your home safe from termites by taking precautions that may include regular home inspection done by professional pest control technicians. It is recommended that you must make professional home inspection for any kind of pests done once in 6 months. Professional termite control companies in Gurgaon provide both pre-construction termite treatment and post-construction termite control services. If you have detected any sing of termite control then don’t hesitate to contact a professional termite control company in Gurgaon.