House Being Eaten Away
A house in the northeast area of Ivanhoe in California had been invested with termites for years before it was discovered when the family started redecorating and moving the furniture around they found what looked like a dried clump of dirt on the wall. The 6 inch piece of dirt was not down to bad housekeeping but was they found the sign of termites eating away their house.
Just a few feet away underneath the window sill they found more tell tale signs of tiny holes that looked more like grains of sawdust.
Kevin Bayne, owner of Bayne Pest Control was called in to investigate how much damage had been done to the family home by the termites and what was to be the outcome.
It was estimated that the family who live on Avenue 344 but do not want to give interviews or be named, would have to pay between $2,500 and $4,000 to eliminate the termites, repair and replace the wood damage and fumigate the house.
Bayne said that he has never known home insurance companies to cover termite damage and has seen damage caused in excess of $20,000 to $140.000. He went on to say
Ed Gill who is Centre Manger for Western Exterminator Co mentioned that if a house was allowed to 10 to 20 years without dry wood-termite treatment it can cause massive problems. "You let a house go 10 to 20 years [without dry wood-termite treatment], you're talking a lot of wood [damage]," he went on to say.
New Colonies Form
Termites ‘swarm’ between the months of July and August where they seek and build new colonies by breeding before they lose their wings. The ant sized insects enter houses through vents underneath elevated homes, as well as attic vents. Nests are also built under wooden roof tiles and slowly but surely the house can be eaten away if treatment is not applied.
Termites need to come into contact with soil every day and will build tiny tubes through the soft wood by eating it. They will then travel back and forth through the ‘shelter tube’. With every new batch of termites born in the next there will be new tubes built daily. Thousands of the burrowing creatures will carry on eating away until they are stopped. By then thousands of dollars of damage will already have been done.
Termite Treatment
To exterminate the pests there are two treatments depending on which type of termite is present.
One way to eliminate the termites is by heating the walls and wood up to 160 degrees and while tenting and fumigating a house will be done while the family has moved out for up to three days.
Experts will of course tell you that the best form of treatment is to catch the problem early by having your home inspected every two to three years.
Termites in UK
Timber treatment company McCoy-Hill while inspecting a house in North Devon in 1995 found the first case of termite infestation in the UK.
It was believed that the insects were brought back in a pot plant from the Canary Islands and treatment to eliminate the termites was carried out.
Two years later the critters appeared again in the same building. The bungalow had been left uninhabited and attempts were made to contact the owner.
The area was monitored very closely and inspections were carried out to ensure the termite colony did not migrate to other buildings. Wooden stakes with high doses of poison were driven into the ground as feeding stations
Although they found a winged termite on a second property a few years’ later experts insist all is under control.
When heavy items of furniture sink through the floor this is a good sign that homes have been infested with termites and only time will tell if colonies begin to grow and cause property owners in the UK to worry.
