When you hear a bump in the night you tend to get jumpy and know that something is wrong inside your house and immediately do something about it. Termites on the other hand are silent destroyers of homes. If you are not vigilant enough, you might end up without a home. So be observant. Look for signs of termites in wood floors in your home.
Bad insect or not. The first sign that you have termites in your wood floors is the presence of the pest inside your house or within the vicinity of your home. You must be knowledgeable enough to differentiate termites from other common insects such as ants. This is important in order to treat the pest with the right type of pesticide. Some tell-tale signs that a pest is a termite are as follows:
1. Worker termites have soft pale yellow bodies. Ants have hard exoskeletons and are darker in color.
2. Termites have straight antennae as compared to the elbowed antennae of ants.
Look for clues. Even if you are unable to see the termite itself, you can still see tell tale clues that a termite infestation is happening within the wood floors of your home. Here are some of the visual clues that can be observed:
1. Termites live inside wood floors and cannot be easily observed. However, they push out fecal pellets or frass that can be seen near wood floors where termites are thriving.
2. Termites produce shelter tubes made up from fecal pellets, saliva and other materials. The presence of these shelter tubes inside your home is a clear indication of a termite infestation.
Listen. One way of knowing for certain that you have termites in your wood floors is to tap the suspected area with the butt of a large screwdriver. If the wood produces a hollow sound, then this means that most of the material below the wood has already been eaten by termites.
Inspect the damage. If you suspect that your wood floors are being infested by termites, it is advisable to remove a portion of the floor (one board may be enough) to check if the bottom part is indeed been damaged by termites. Pest control experts will be able to identify exactly what species of termites are in your wood floors by simply examining the damage patterns left in the wood.
Knowing the tell-tale signs that your wood floors is being attacked by termites will prevent your home from being destroyed by them.
