Each year, termites can cause over $5 billion dollars worth of damage in homes and other buildings.
Life is too busy for most of us to think twice about termites. However, once the damage is done, it’s done.
If you’re like most people, you don’t have a few thousand dollars sitting around for termite damage. No matter where you live, it’s always important to know the signs of termites.
Make sure to keep reading to read 9 signs you have termites in your house. Taking a moment to check out these facts could save you from serious damages.
1. clicking noises
These little pests are apparently complete metal-heads. To alert other termites of danger, a group of them will headbang into a wall.
Not only do they get a bit rowdy, but they are also loud eaters. If you place your ear to the wall and hear faint clicking noises, there’s a good chance you have termites in your house.
Most movements and noises from your side of the wall can send these creatures into a fit. They are highly sensitive to vibrations, and it doesn’t take much to send them into a frenzy.
Luckily, there are plenty of people who have received help to stop the clicking!
2. stubborn doors and windows
If you live in humid states such as Florida, you are probably used to some extra moisture in the area, sticky windows, and unfortunate cases of warped wood.
Oddly enough, termites can have the same effect. It’s kind of gross, but termites produce moisture as they eat and travel through the wood in your home.
The result of this extra moisture can produce obvious signs you have termites in your house. Wood will start to slightly bend and windows will be more difficult to open.
Take some time to open and close the windows and doors in your home.
3. termite frass
Your random fact of the day is termite poop is typically referred to as frass. If you notice piles of frass around small holes in the wall, you have reason to be concerned.
The frass looks like tiny, brown pellets and can be found in large piles. They look almost like tiny seeds.
If you have a suspicion of termites, walk around your home and look for small piles of frass. Make sure to check behind furniture.
4. wing piles
Unlike pests like spiders or rats, some termites can actually fly. The flying termites, called swarmers, are looking for new places to further colonize.
As they fly around conducting business, they will leave piles of wings around your home. While looking for piles of frass, check the floor and furniture out for small wings as well.
Once you find a few wings, it’s time to call pest control and kill them off before they establish more colonies. Don’t waste any time.
5. hollow wood
If you have any suspicion of termites in your house, spend an hour inspecting the inside and outside of your house. Knock on wooden areas.
When knocking on wooden areas, listen to see if it sounds hollow. Termites like to eat from the inside to the outside so even if there isn’t a visible hole, there still might be missing wood.
You might look slightly insane to the neighbors by knocking on random parts of your home, but it’s better to look crazy than to spend a few hundred dollars on damaged or worn parts of your home.
6. misunderstood ants
When searching for pests, people complain of small, white ants walking around their apartment. It may not actually be an ant at all.
Some termites and ants look the same but there are a few quick and easy ways to tell if it’s a termite or not.
Termites are cream or white-colored and have straight antennae. The waist section of a termite is also a lot thicker than an ant’s.
If you look at ants, they have two sets of wings but of different sizes. Each set of wings on a termite is the same size.
The next time you see one crawling across the floor, try to get close enough to inspect it. No matter the pest, call pest control.
7. wood tunnels
The next time you notice a broken-off piece of wood on the ground, pick it up for a quick inspection. As you can see, not only is your wood becoming damaged and broken, it might have tunnels eaten into it.
If there are tunnels, that’s a sure sign of termites in your house. As termites make their way through your home, they eat away channels and tunnels for their own personal transportation routes.
8. mud tunnels
Because termites are smart, you have to be even smarter. For their own shelter and food transportation, they create tunnels of mud on the outside of the walls.
If you notice tunnels that seem to be made out of a soft, earthen material, take a closer look. The tunnels are usually as wide as a pencil and run along walls.
Do not try to clean up the tunnels yourself. Make sure to call a professional to come in and take care of the job for you.
Also, remember that just because you can’t see the actual termites along the tunnel doesn’t mean they aren’t there. They know how to hide.
9. tree blowholes
If you start noticing small holes in the trees around your home, call a professional to come out and take a hard look.
Subterranean termites often form their colonies in tree trunks. That’s right, they aren’t just always in your walls.
Once again, don’t attempt to fix the problem yourself. Make sure to call pest control before the tree starts to rot and weaken.
signs you have termites in your house
There are many signs you have termites in your house, but the above signs are some of the strongest. Make sure to check for tunnels in the wood, frass piles, random wings, and clicking noises.
Waste no time if you have any suspicions because the cost of damages can build up. Never try to fix the problem yourself, and always call a professional.
If you need pest control or are curious about control for other kinds of pests, make sure to check out the rest of our site.
