It’s Termite season again. Spring doesn’t just bring rain, new flowers, and beautiful weather but we also need to watch out for termites this time of year.

Warmer weather mixed with the rain we have gotten this year creates perfect conditions for termites to flourish.

There are certain things that we can do to help keep them out of our homes.

• Do not store firewood, lumber, cardboard or paper products, or other wooden materials right next to the foundation. Common offenders that people forget about are wooden garden trellises, mulch, old newspapers, cardboard boxes, or wooden stakes left by the home builder.
• Try to avoid excessive moisture right next to the foundation. Termites are attracted to moisture. The surface next to the foundation should be graded to drain water away from the foundation. Plants should be kept away from the house so that you do not have to water by the foundation. Not only does it attract termites but it can also wash away the termite barrier put there during the pre-treatment.
• Make sure that the concrete foundation is visible above the dirt all the way around the house. When the soil comes up over the stucco or siding it provides the termites undetectable access to the home.
• It is good to keep in mind that not only will termites show up on the exterior foundation but it is also very common for them to show up in the garage at the expansion joints. It is good to keep the edges of the garage visible to be able to detect termites quickly if they pop up there.

It is rare to see termites out in the open except when they are swarming.

When they swarm they look very similar to an ant with wings but instead of three distinct body segments there will be only two (the head and a segmented abdomen).

Usually you will just find signs of them. Termites usually show up as a trail of dirt about as wide as a pencil on the foundation of the home or in the garage.

These tubes can also appear inside the house on the wall or even a tube of dirt hanging from the ceiling.

Other signs of termites include tunnels inside wood or pin holes in the wall.

The best way to tell if you have termites is to have a licensed professional inspect your home.

Let’s say you do all of this and you still get termites.

If you should have the misfortune of finding termites in your home, great care should be taken when choosing a company to get rid of them for you.

There are a lot of mistakes that can be made when doing a termite treatment so find a company that has the experience to not make those mistakes at your home.

Make sure they are stable enough that if they do make a mistake it is not you that ends up with the bill to fix it.

Many of the discount termite companies are no longer in business due to the bad economy.

Make sure you pick a termite company that is not in danger of going out of business.

A termite warrantee is useless if that company no longer exists.

A lot of the discount companies out there will use inferior products as a way of lowering costs.

This is especially tempting to companies that are failing.

Make sure you know that the company you use will use a good product and use it properly.

Tags: termites