Are you wondering, “What happens during a termite inspection?”

Several things are done to assess your home’s interaction with termites. Your professional pest inspector will take specific steps to inspect each part of your home and property to make the most thorough report possible.

Continue reading to find out exactly how termite inspections are done.

What Are Termites?

Termites are wood-eating insects that destroy buildings and homes by eating away at wood foundations and wooden cabinets or bookshelves.

These bugs are common to find in your home or on your property. Three of the most popular types of termites in Australia are the Subterranean Termite, the Damp Wood Termite, and the Dry Wood Termite. While these termites all share the same appetite, they vary in preferences of climate and living spaces.

For example, the Subterranean Termite prefers to live underground in a nest when the Damp Wood and Dry Wood Termite prefer to live in their preferred wet or dry climates.

Termites are unwanted pests and are widely disliked and feared because of the damage they cause to homes, buildings, and properties.

What Damage Do They Cause?

Termites cause more damage than you might think they do.

If you have termites in your home, you’ll likely notice when you find damage such as small holes and track marks in your baseboards, hollow wood, and dirt on the walls. You can also identify termites using our helpful guide.

Termites are a danger to the structural integrity of your home due to the eaten-away wood. They not only cause ceilings and floors to collapse but can also chew carpet, flooring, and wooden furniture apart.

Having certain areas of your home be more damp or dry than others can encourage more termite activity.

How Do Termites Get Into My Home?

Simply having wood throughout the exterior and interior of your home is a natural drawing force for termites.

Along with eating at wooden doorways, wooden cabinets, bookcases, or staircases, termites are attracted to warmth and cozy spaces in your home. They might find their way into your home through cracks in your foundation or by being transported inside a woodpile for your fireplace.

However, some states are more prone to having destructive termites than others. This can mean that your home is more susceptible to being infested by termites and could be affected by them right now.

What to Do if You Have Termites

If you find signs of termites in your home, call a professional pest control company as soon as possible. This is the best way to have termites safely and effectively removed from your house.

After you’ve set up a termite inspection with your pest control specialist, there are several things you can do to prepare your home and property for an effective inspection.

Start by clearing your kitchen and bathroom cabinets in order to let your inspector have easy access to each area. If you have structures or furniture touching your walls, take initiative and move each item roughly two feet away from the wall.

If you have a crawlspace or attic, you’ll want to clear as much as possible to allow for room to inspect each space.

Outside, make sure the exterior of your home isn’t covered or blocked with tall or unkempt landscaping. An excessive amount of ground cover or creeping bushes can cause issues by encouraging nesting termites.

Once you’ve squared away the organization, rearranging, and cleaning of your home and property, you’re ready for a proper termite inspection.

What Termite Inspections Look Like

When your pest control professional arrives, they will conduct a thorough inspection of your house and property that will last up to two hours.

Your inspector will take a look at all the visible damage, inside small spaces, and outside in your landscaping. This will help them gather the most evidence and information they can get before recommending the next step.

If your home is infested with termites, you’ll need to hire a pest control company to conduct a thorough and safe termite treatment. If it was a false alarm, your inspector will recommend subtle methods for you to continue in order to keep your home and property termite-free.

Interior and Exterior Inspection

When beginning their inspection, your pest control professional will start inside your home and assess any damage potentially caused by termites.

This involves checking for termite droppings, broken termite wings, and damaged wood. Along with looking at baseboards, windowsills, and door frames, your inspector will check cabinets, crawl spaces, and attics.

Since bathrooms and small spaces can create humid environments, the inspector will check in crevices and other areas of these places to ensure termites aren’t nesting.

The inspector will also look in your garage, at the exterior walls of your home, and in the foundation of your house.

Next, they’ll assess your property.

Property Inspection

After your pest control inspector finishes inspecting the interior and exterior of your home, they’ll need to take a look at your immediate property.

Since termites are drawn to natural wood and soil, it’s very common to find them nesting directly outside your front door in your woodchips, bushes, or other landscaping.

Inspecting your property’s plants, trees, soil, and wood will help determine if termites are living nearby. If termites are on your property, chances are that you will find them in your home soon.

Once your inspector has finished their thorough assessment, they’ll put together a report and recommendation for you.

Recommendations For The Next Step

After your inspector finishes their report, they’ll go over the details with you.

Your termite results will vary depending on the state of your home, your property, and where you live. Your inspector will tell you what damage and remnants of termites they’ve found.

They will also recommend a course of action for what to do next in your situation. This might mean recommending preventative or corrective methods in order to save your home and property from termites.

Keeping Your Home Termite-Free

Once you’ve had successful termite inspections, you may need to contact a pest control company to set up termite extermination.

If you’re ready to begin the process of ridding your home of termites, begin your termite treatment with us today.

• termite inspections