Inspecting Your Home For Termites

Sep 21
15:42

2012

Bob B. Hamilton

Bob B. Hamilton

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Buying a home can be one of the most enjoyable moments in your life. However, that joy can come crashing down if you buy a home that has termites in the act of ruining your new-found happiness. Read on to learn what you may actually do on these situations.

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Buying a home can be one of the most enjoyable moments in your life. However,Inspecting Your Home For Termites Articles that joy can come crashing down if you buy a home that has termites in the act of ruining your new-found happiness. Any termite infestation of the house can put all types of damage control into a costly and frustrating situation. It's preventable though. With a little bit of knowledge, potential homeowners can inspect the structure making sure there is no termite infestation as well as producing a plan that will prevent termites from bothering you in the future.

Inspect Before Planting
It’s always a good idea before spending a lot of money on expensive landscaping and other yard modifications that you conduct a thorough termite inspection. This would include examining the home to see if it already has effective termite barriers in place. Make sure they are active and toxic, but not enough that affects the soil in the area around the home's foundation. Keep in mind that the biggest threat you are going to face will come from subterranean termites. These are clever little devils that tunnel underground looking for damp wood. They do not like the light of day so the ground under the house is a great place for these bugs to thrive. A colony of subterranean termites could number in the millions.

Another Type Of Termite
A different type of termite that is quite visible is known as a Drywood. It simply flies straight to its selected wood and sets up shop nesting right where it lands. And, even the appearance of a single termite can lead to an entire colony since if this single termite finds a tasty spot it sends word out for its friends and relatives to join it. Usually that problem never manifests itself until something structurally collapses. Consider doing the following:

•    Make sure the home is dry and always properly ventilated. This is specifically true for under the house
•    If using termite barriers, make sure they are active. Replace any damaged ones.
•    When installing new types of landscaping, make sure not to disturb or damage any termite barriers present
•    Always refrain from conducting any gardening activities near the walls of your home since soil moisture can easily seep through
•    Always make sure that your downspouts and gutters face away from the house. It is important that the water is prevented from splashing back into the home. Make sure that they are cleaned out frequently so the water will flow away from the house