San Diego County's Complete Guide To Subterranean Termite Control

The Worst Way To Discover Termites

Subterranean termites don't crawl around on your walls to let you know they're eating the wood of your home. They feed on the inside. What you're likely to see first are slight changes in the structure of your home. Cracks may start to form in paint as your home shifts. Floors may start to sink down in areas. Hardwood floors may start to become noticeably uneven as subflooring is attacked by termites. You may start to notice windows that stick. Termites weaken the structure of your home and this can cause the structure to warp. This is not how you want to learn that your home is infested with termites.

The Next Worst Way To Discover Termites

When a termite nest matures, it produces winged termites. These are often called swarmers because they gather together in a swarm. The purpose of termite swarmers is to mate and establish new nests. While only a fraction of the swarmers survive, the appearance of a swarm is a very bad sign. It means there is a good chance your property has been attacked by termites for years. It also means it is about to have more nests nearby.

Uncovering Termite Activity

You might detect subterranean termites as you're doing yard work. If a branch has fallen from a tree, you could pick it up and notice tiny, pale insects crawling on it, but you won't see them for long. Termite workers will go into hiding. They don't like to be out in the air or in the light. This is only one of many ways you might uncover worker termites.

These insects can be found underneath wood or cardboard in your yard. If you suspect that termites are in your yard and you want to know if they're feeding on your deck (or some other structure that has wood-to-soil contact), you can dig around the supports and look for termite damage or the presence of termites in the soil. Keep in mind that termite workers can be as small as ? of an inch long, so they can be difficult to spot.  

What To Do About Termites In San Diego

Discovering warning signs of termite activity in your yard is not something you should shrug off. A colony can have hundreds of thousands of individual termites and you can have more than one colony feeding on your home. If you actually see termite workers, you're only seeing the tip of the iceberg. The ground could be filled with termites. So could your home. If you suspect that you have termites, you should contact a licensed termite control professional for San Diego termite extermination services immediately.

A Word Of Caution

Termite protection is one of those things that can be put on the back burner. It is also something that you might think is unnecessary. If you purchased a home in San Diego that has had liquid termiticide installed in the ground around it, you might think you don't have to be concerned about termites. Unfortunately, those products break down over time and re-treatments are necessary to keep your property protected.

You might think that you don't have to worry about termites because your home is made of brick, but no home is entirely made from brick. Flooring, subflooring, trusses, and framing can all be damaged by termites. There are many factors that can make a homeowner think their property is resistant to termites. Don't believe any of them. If your home has wood (and it does) subterranean termites can damage your property; no home is immune to a termite infestation.