If your property is infested with drywood termites, here’s how to get rid of them fast.
Drywood termites can cause extensive damage to your home or business, resulting in thousands of dollars in repair costs if you don’t take care of the situation right away. These termites begin to swarm toward the end of May and through the middle of June, so now’s the time when home and business owners need to start paying close attention and understanding what they must do next if an infestation occurs.
Let’s start with the warning signs that these termites have invaded your home or office:
Warning Signs of Drywood Termites
The idea of discovering a drywood termite infestation in your home or business is quite scary. But the earlier you can figure out that you have an infestation, the better off you’ll be. Here are some of the most common warning signs that you have drywood termites:
Wood Damage
As everyone knows, termites love to eat wood. They’re not the neatest eaters, so they often leave piles of wood shavings or sawdust nearby. You might also find other evidence of wood damage, such as small holes, tunnels, or hollow wood. A lesser noticed piece of evidence is a tight-fitting door or window, which occurs because the wood inside has been ingested.
Termite Droppings
Termite droppings are called frass, and they can actually look a bit like sawdust but are light brown to black in color.
Discarded Wings
During mating season (late May to mid-June), drywood termites swarm and then shed their wings after they mate. When this happens, you may discover discarded wings in a few different locations, such as near doors, windowsills, or other entry points into your home. This is very often the first indication that a home is in danger of a termite infestation.
Clicking Sounds
Another good indication that you have a termite infestation is a clicking sound or what may sound like a dry rattle or paper rustling in your walls. This is the sound of termites communicating with each other. Tapping or clicking could also be the sound of drywood termites chewing through wood, though you would need to be relatively close to an infested area to hear it.
How to Get Rid of Drywood Termites
Realizing that you have termites is only the beginning. Once you discover an infestation or even just a few of these wood-devouring creatures, you need to exterminate them. Many people have been wondering how to get rid of drywood termites, and here are a few of the most popular techniques that have been employed by pest control companies in the past:
Fumigation
If you have an extensive infestation of drywood termites, then an exterminator may want to fumigate your home. This means that the home will be tented, at which point a toxic gas will be pumped inside to kill off the termites. This is a very effective treatment, but, as you can imagine, it’s also quite inconvenient.
Heat Treatment
In recent years, heat treatments have become very popular for killing bed bugs and termites. It works by raising the temperature of your entire home to a level above what termites can withstand. This method requires special equipment and expertise, so you need to call a professional, and they will determine whether or not it’s a feasible option for your home.
Boric Acid
Boric acid has been a popular method for exterminating termites for many years. That being said, this is typically only used for minor or localized infestations, not for extreme problems. With this method, boric acid is injected into the wood to kill any nearby termites. There’s a good chance that this could take several applications to kill all the pests.
Orange Oil
Orange oil is very similar to boric acid. D-limonene is what kills the termites once you inject it into the wood. This is a good natural alternative to using chemicals and will kill termites on contact. It’s not as effective as fumigation or heat treatment, however, but can be a useful method if you only have a few termites or a small infestation.
Contact ProHealth Pest Control to Get Rid of Drywood Termites
ProHealth Pest Control can help you get rid of drywood termites and any other pests that have invaded your home or business. If you have any questions about residential or commercial pest control or would like to schedule an appointment, reach out to us at (727) 308-4087 today.
