How Often Do You Need a Termite Inspection for Your Home?
Your home is not merely your shelter and refuge, but your largest investment. It’s important to take steps to protect it, including staying vigilant against a termite infestation and other destructive insects.
Termites perform an important role in nature, helping to break down dead trees by eating the wood. However, if a colony of termites sets up shop in your home or business in Utah, they can do extensive and costly damage. That is why it is critical to have regular termite inspections.
When you should get a Termite Inspection:
When Buying a House
Once you are under contract to purchase a home, you should order a home inspection to alert you to the presence of any current termite activity or damage, as well as signs of past activity. If the house requires termite treatment or repairs, you can include these in the negotiations for the final purchase price.
If the current owner has a certificate from a recent inspection, you may decide to forego your own inspection. However, you should verify the certificate with the provider.
Annual Inspections
Termites are insidious and can get into your home and do a lot of damage without being noticed. It’s a good idea to schedule an annual or biannual inspection to make sure any infestation is caught and treated early.
When You See Signs of Termite Activity
The most obvious sign of termite activity is swarming, generally in the spring or summer months. Swarms occur when hundreds or thousands of occupants of a current termite colony are ready to leave and expand into nests of their own. They swarm out of the current nest and fly off in various directions.
If you see a large number of winged termites in or near your home, it’s a signal that there is a colony nearby. If the colony is inside your home already, you need prompt treatment. However, if you have a lot of wood or abandoned houses around your home, the swarm could be coming from elsewhere. It’s still important to have your home checked, you may even want to to consider obtaining a preventative termite treatment to keep those swarming insects from choosing your house as their new home.
Other indicators of potential termite activity include:
- Mud tubes on non-wood walls of your home. Termites don’t like light, and will build tubes from mud to travel across areas of brick or stone, like a foundation or basement wall.
- Clear insect wings with no other sign of an insect. When termites swarm and find a new location to settle, they chew off their wings and leave them behind.
- Termite excrement, which looks like tiny wood pellets or coffee grounds
- Sawdust along edges of walls or wood structures such as cabinets or shelves
- Newly sagging floors or ceilings, which can indicate termite damage in the underlying support structures
When you are Preparing to Sell Your Home
If it has been a few years since you had an inspection, it’s a good idea to obtain one before you begin the selling process. Such action will prevent you from getting an unpleasant surprise during the inspection process. Some lenders also require a wood boring insect report as a part of the sale paperwork.
Catching a termite problem before you list your home for sale will give you a chance to have it treated and get any damage repaired on your schedule. Otherwise, you could face a large and unexpected expense when you already have a long to-do list as you prepare to move. Or worse, you could risk having the sale delayed or having the buyer back out altogether.
Contact Alpine Pest Control in Utah
Hungry termites can literally eat away at the value of your house, in addition to its actual structure. It’s vital to take steps to make sure your house is not harboring these unwelcome guests, and also to discuss options to protect against future invasions. Contact Alpine Pest Control in Utah to schedule your free in spection, (801) 300-2979.