One thing that should alarm every homeowner is the presence of termites in their area of residence. Termites can infiltrate your home and cause insurmountable damage to your home’s foundation, walls, and also taint the image of your house. Unfortunately, termites often go unnoticed until they’ve caused real damage.
Identifying the signs of termites in your home can help you prevent severe damage by spotting an infestation early. Once you do this, you can take the steps needed to get rid of the termites. In this article, we will look at the 7 signs that will enable you to know whether you have termites in your home.
1. Termite Tubes
Usually, subterranean termites build mud termite tubes across the surface to protect themselves from the environment and predators. Mud tubes are among the most obvious signs of the presence of termites. The mud tubes allow them to pass between their source of food and the colony. Therefore, once you spot a mud tube or mounds in your home, then you should know that there must be termites in your home.
2. Damaged Wood
Damaged wood is the other sign of the presence of termites in your home. Termites feed on wood from the inside out, leaving a unique pattern on the surface of the wood. Upon feeding on the wood, it becomes hollow and weak. This causes costly structural damage to your home.
It is hard to spot a damaged wood since the insects start feeding on the wood inside out. However, you may notice swaying or creaking wood, or find it hard to open some windows and doors. In some cases, the damaged wood may also buckle or crumble under pressure.
3. Head Banging
The other sure sign that you have termites in your home is the quiet clicking sounds from the walls or other wood parts of your home. Termites are known to shake their bodies and bang their heads against the wood to signal danger. Luckily, the worker termites that love feeding on the wood are noisy eaters, which makes it easy for you to note their presence in time.
4. Papery or Hollow Sounding Timber
As mentioned above, termites feed on your wood from the inside out, which leaves a hollow-sounding timber. This means that the inside part of the wood has been chopped off and eaten, making it one of the obvious signs that you have termites in your home. With a simple knock on your walls, you should be able to hear the hollow sound.
5. Termite Droppings
Termite droppings are another sign of the presence of these insects in your home, especially in the case of drywood termites. The sign is usually checked for every time there is a termite inspection. These droppings are small, round-shaped particles. They may look like a mound of pepper and can be scattered around your house.
6. Hard to Open Doors and Tight Fighting Doors
The other possible sign that you have termites in your home is warped doors and stiff windows. Termites produce moisture when feeding on the wooden door and window frames, which causes the frames to warp. This makes it hard to open the windows and doors. This sign alone doesn’t necessarily mean you have termites, but when accompanied by other signs of termites, can signal an infestation.
7. Discarded Swarmer Wings
Shedding of swarmer wings is one of the most common signs of the presence of termites in a particular area. Swarmers refer to the winged adult termites, which act as the future queens and kings of a colony. Swarming termites will shed their wings before locating a new nesting place. Therefore, when you spot discarded wings within your home, there is a possibility that has active termites in your home. However, it is important to be keen on the wing length, body type, and antennae since you can easily mistake them for flying ants.
Termites can cause severe structural damages to your home if not spotted in time. However, with the signs that we have discussed above, you may be able to spot an infestation before it becomes too bad. You should check your home regularly for these signs. The more proactive you are, the better!