Discovering termites in your home can feel like a nightmare, but don’t panic—you can immediately minimize the damage. Termites may be tiny, but they can cause structural damage. You must act quickly to handle a termite emergency and protect your home. In this blog, we’ll walk you through the immediate steps to take when you find termites and how to ensure your home remains termite-free. At ABC Termite & Pest Control, we’ve got your back through every step of the process.
How to Handle a Termite Emergency: Immediate Steps to Take
Recognize the Signs of a Termite Emergency
The first step in handling a termite emergency is recognizing the problem early. Termites are sneaky, and it’s easy to miss the signs of an infestation until the damage has already been done. Keep an eye out for these common signs of termites:
- Mud Tubes: These pencil-sized mud tubes, by subterranean termites, are used to travel between the termite colony and food source—your home.
- Discarded Wings: After swarming, termites shed their wings, often near windowsills, doors, or entry points.
- Wood Damage: Termites hollow out wood, leaving behind a thin outer layer that may appear blistered or brittle.
- Droppings (Frass): Drywood termites leave small, pellet-shaped droppings around areas they are infesting.
If you spot any of these signs, you could be dealing with a termite infestation. Now, let’s dive into the steps you should take to handle the emergency.
Step 1: Stay Calm But Act Fast
First things first—don’t panic! While a termite infestation can be alarming, termites work slowly. This gives you time to act strategically and stop the damage before it worsens.
However, the longer you wait, the more extensive the damage can become. So, while staying calm is essential, you should move quickly to address the problem.
Step 2: Inspect the Affected Area
Once you suspect a termite infestation, inspect the affected area thoroughly. If you can, check for visible signs of termite activity. This includes mud tubes, droppings, and wood that sounds hollow when tapped.
Don’t limit your inspection to one area— be sure to inspect nearby walls, ceilings, and floors.
If you’re unsure where to start or feel uncomfortable with the inspection process, call in a professional to conduct a comprehensive inspection. Professionals will have the experience and tools needed to confirm termites’ presence and assess the damage’s extent.
Step 3: Don’t Disturb the Termites
While it may be tempting to tear into the damaged area to eliminate the termites yourself, this is not a good idea. Disturbing the termites could cause them to scatter and spread to other areas of your home. Leave the affected areas intact and focus on calling in a professional termite exterminator for help.
Step 4: Contact a Professional Pest Control Company
The next step is to call a trusted professional pest control service. ABC Termite & Pest Control offers emergency termite control services. They are ready to help with effective treatments that address the problem at its source. A local exterminator will be able to confirm the extent of the infestation and recommend the best course of action to eliminate these types of pests.
Several treatment methods are available, and your termite control specialist will suggest the one best suited to your situation. Treatment options include:
- Liquid Treatments: Applying a liquid termiticide around the perimeter of your home creates a barrier that kills termites as they try to enter or exit the property.
- Bait Stations: Bait stations are strategically placed around your home to attract termites. They then return the bait to their colony, eventually eradicating the entire colony.
- Fumigation: In severe cases, tent fumigation may be necessary to exterminate dry wood termites from your home completely.
Your exterminator will guide you through each option, helping you choose the best treatment based on the type of termites and the severity of the infestation.
Step 5: Protect Your Home from Future Infestations
Once the termites have been eliminated, it’s time to take steps to protect your home from future infestations. Preventing termites is much easier than dealing with the damage they can cause. Follow these termite prevention tips:
- Eliminate Moisture: Moisture attracts pests. Repair any leaks in your home, clear clogged gutters, and prevent water from pooling around the foundation.
- Remove Wood Debris: Keep firewood, mulch, and any wood debris at least 20 feet from your home’s foundation because termites love to feed on decaying wood.
- Seal Entry Points: Inspect your home’s foundation, windows, and doors for cracks or gaps, and seal them to prevent termites from entering.
- Schedule Regular Inspections: A professional termite inspection should be part of your home maintenance routine. At ABC Termite & Pest Control, we offer regular inspections to catch any signs of termite activity early and keep your home safe.
Step 6: Repair Termite Damage
After the termites are gone, you may be left with some damage that needs to be repaired. Depending on the severity, this could range from cosmetic repairs like replacing trim or drywall to more extensive work, such as repairing structural beams.
Make sure to work with contractors experienced in termite damage repairs to ensure the affected areas are properly fixed. This restores your home and helps ensure that termites don’t return to weak spots.
Why You Shouldn’t Wait to Handle a Termite Emergency
When it comes to termites, time is your biggest enemy. Termites may be tiny, but they are relentless and work 24/7 to consume the wood in your home. Ignoring or delaying action can result in serious, costly consequences.
1. Termites Don’t Take Breaks
Termites are often referred to as “silent destroyers” for a reason—they can work undetected for months or even years, quietly feeding on your home’s wooden structures. Unlike other pests that might be more seasonal or sporadic, termites are active all year round. They don’t take breaks or holidays, which means the longer you delay addressing the problem, the more damage they will cause. Every day that passes allows termites to tunnel deeper into your walls, floors, and support beams, making the repairs more extensive and expensive.
2. Structural Damage Can Happen Quickly
While termites typically start with soft or decaying wood, they can eventually move on to the structural elements of your home, such as:
- Support beams
- Joists
- Studs
As termites chew through these vital components, the structural integrity of your home is compromised. Left untreated, it can lead to sagging floors, warped walls, or even, in extreme cases, the collapse of parts of your home. What may start as minor cosmetic damage can quickly become a safety hazard.
3. Repair Costs Will Skyrocket
The longer you wait to handle a termite emergency, the more extensive the damage and repair. What could have been a quick fix could escalate into thousands of dollars in repairs.
Replacing weakened beams, subfloors, or wall framing is costly and requires more time and labor. You can avoid these sky-high repair costs by addressing a termite infestation as soon as you spot the signs.
4. Damage May Spread Beyond Your Home
If you wait to handle a termite emergency, the infestation may not be confined to just one part of your home. Termites can spread quickly from one area to another, moving through walls, ceilings, and even underground to reach other sections of your property.
In some cases, they can even move from one building to another. If you have a garage, shed, or other wooden structures near your home, they could become infested. The longer you wait, the more likely the termites will spread, leading to a much bigger—and more expensive—problem.
5. Termites Can Go Undetected
One of the most dangerous aspects of a termite infestation is how long termites can go undetected. Termites typically live inside the wood they are feeding on, making it difficult to see the damage from the outside. Many homeowners don’t realize they have a termite problem until the damage is extensive.
When visible signs appear, the termites have likely been at work for months. Waiting to address a suspected termite problem only gives them more time to cause hidden damage that could compromise your home’s foundation.
6. Potential Health Risks
While termites themselves don’t pose direct health risks to humans, the damage they cause can lead to secondary issues. Termite infestations can weaken structural elements in your home. This could increase the risk of accidents, such as floors caving in or walls collapsing.
In cases where termite activity leads to moisture buildup, mold, and mildew may become a problem. As a result, health issues for your family, such as:
- Allergies
- Asthma
- Respiratory problems
7. Your Home’s Value Could Drop
If termites have been actively eating away at your home for a while, they can significantly impact the resale value of your property. No prospective homebuyer wants to hear the word “termite” when looking at homes. By waiting too long to address the infestation, the visible damage may reduce your home’s marketability.
You could be required to disclose the issue during a sale. In some cases, an untreated termite problem could even cause your home to fail an inspection, making it difficult to sell until the issue is resolved and repaired.
8. Infestations Can Reoccur
If you don’t address the problem quickly and thoroughly, there’s a higher risk of re-infestation. Termites are persistent creatures, and if the root cause of the problem—such as moisture issues or wood-to-ground contact—isn’t resolved, termites could return even after initial treatment.
The best way to prevent future infestations is to handle the problem early and implement preventive measures, such as regular inspections and maintenance.
Protecting Your Home from a Termite Infestation
Discovering termites in your home is never fun, but handling a termite emergency doesn’t have to be stressful. You can immediately protect your home and eliminate the infestation by staying calm, inspecting the area, and contacting a professional termite control service like ABC Termite & Pest Control.
Remember, the faster you respond, the easier it is to control the problem and prevent long-term damage. Whether you’re dealing with a small infestation or need a comprehensive termite treatment plan, our experts are here to help you every step of the way. Contact us today to schedule a termite inspection and get your home back on track!
Hire a Professional – ABC Termite & Pest Control Company – Omaha & Lincoln
If you’re concerned about pest infestations, or if you want a professional to evaluate your home’s pest prevention strategies, don’t hesitate to reach out to a local Nebraska pest control expert.
Find a reputable pest control company in Omaha or Lincoln that you TRUST and ask about their termite inspection and pest management services. You may think you are saving money however, a single misapplication could have significant and adverse or deadly consequences for you or your loved ones. Contact ABC Termite & Pest Control in Omaha & Lincoln, NE to talk with an exterminator today!
