The worst termites in Texas are subterranean termites. As the name suggests, these termites live below the surface of the ground. Since ground temperatures change much slower than air temperatures, the ground in Longview never gets cold enough to exterminate these insects. Termites also infest the wood inside our homes. In your walls, floors, ceilings, and support beams, termites are as snug as bugs in a rug. Year-round termite control is essential if you hope to avoid termite damage. Join us today as we cover the facts you need to know most about termites. We'll discuss termite identification, how termites damage your home, and five eco-friendly tips to prevent termite damage. If you already have a termite problem, help is available. Connect with us through our contact page for industry-leading termite pest control in Longview. We use professional-grade materials and established strategies to get results you can trust.
What Do Termite Swarmers Look Like?
The best way to prevent termite damage is to recognize termites when you see them. While it is rare to see a termite worker because workers avoid the light, you may see a swarmer in your yard. Termite swarmers don't mind the light. In fact, they're attracted to light, but don't get too excited. Swarms last less than an hour and once swarmers are done mating, they disappear from view to start new nests. You may get a short window of opportunity to actually see a swarm, or an individual swarmer.
If you see a termite swarm in your house, you know you have a problem. It is an easily identifiable warning sign of a termite infestation. But swarmers rarely enter homes unless there is a severe infestation. A severe infestation is when a nest is inside the home, or close to the exterior of the home. In both cases, proximity allows workers to do more damage. We'll get to that in a moment.
If you see a termite swarm on your home, it doesn't mean you have an indoor nest, but it is a warning sign that there is a nest near or on your property. Termites don't travel far. So, contact a pest control service provider if you see swarmers on your exterior.
If you see one swarmer crawling around outdoors or you find one on your skin, it is possible that you're looking at a warning sign of an imminent termite threat. Unfortunately, termite swarmers are tiny and easy to miss. You have to watch for them.
Whether you're keeping watch for a swarm, or you are hoping to catch one little termite swarmer when you see it, here are some identifying characteristics to help you tell swarmers from other flying insects:
- A termite swarmer is about ? of an inch long. That is about the size of an apple seed.
- Termite swarmers have white or yellowish wings, depending on the species.
- The wings of a termite swarmer are teardrop shaped and stack on top of each other.
- The wings of a termite swarmer hang well past the end of the abdomen.
- The body of a termite swarmer is black or orange, depending on the species.
- Termite swarmers group together during the mating process.
- After mating, swarmers shed their wings.
When will you see termite swarms in Texas? You'll most likely see termite swarmers from around February to May. But you should keep watch all year long. It is possible to see swarmers at other times of the year.
How Quickly Termites Can Destroy A House
Termites won't destroy your home in a day. They're also not going to destroy your home in a month. It takes many months, or even years. But some infestations are worse than others. How quickly termites can destroy your Longview home depends on several factors. Here are a few to consider.
- A nest inside your walls or near your home will allow termite workers quick access and will increase the speed at which they can damage your property.
- If you have a food source in your yard, it will increase the speed at which termite colonies will grow. For example, a pile of dead branches is a perfect and plentiful food source for termites. Fast colony growth will increase the risk and rate of damage.
- Termite workers can travel a hundred yards in search of food. Therefore, more than one termite colony can feed on your home at the same time, increasing how much damage is done.
- Rotted wood is attractive to subterranean termites and will inspire an increase in colony growth. If you have areas of rotted wood on your home, you are at greater risk of extensive damage.
- Formosan subterranean termites are the most destructive termites in Longview. They tend to create much larger colonies, forage longer distances, and are more adaptable than other termite species. They also have the ability to create indoor nests with no contact to the ground.
We can't tell you how much damage termites in Longview can do to your property, but we can tell you one thing for sure; it is better to keep termites from feeding on the wood in your home. There are a few steps you can take to deter termites and protect your property investment from the tiny mouths of hungry termites.
Five Eco-Friendly And Effective Termite Prevention Tips
Gecko Pest Control is committed to providing you with smart and eco-friendly pest control solutions first. When it comes to protecting your home from termites, there are several things you can do.
1. Keep Watch
When you do yard work, you may catch a glimpse of a termite swarmer or worker. Swarmers will appear out in the open, but workers are sneaky. We already talked about detecting swarmers. Here, we'll focus on workers. It is important to keep in mind that worker termites are a mere ? of an inch long. They're also not quite what you'd expect to see. You may pick up a dead branch and see worker termites on the bottom and mistake them for maggots, or fat ants. We hope you don't. Seeing worker termites in your yard is a reasonable sign that you have a termite infestation in your home.
2. Check Your Home
Routine inspections of your home can help you catch evidence of active termites. When looking for drywood termites, inspect your home for wood damage or frass. When looking for subterranean termites, inspect your exterior for shelter tubes. Also, check for shed termite swarmer wings on the ground or caught in spider webs.
3. Address Wood-To-Soil Contact
There are many ways wood-to-soil contact can increase the risk of extensive termite damage. We aren't going to dig into that in this article. For the sake of brevity, we'll just give you some examples of issues you can correct.
- Replace old, decaying wood fences with vinyl fencing.
- Put wooden deck posts on concrete foundations.
- Store dead branches and other wood debris in a plastic bin.
- Put campfire wood on a rubber mat or elevated platform.
- Replace wood borders around flower beds with other organic border materials, such as stone or brick.
- Remove tree stumps, logs, and definitely termite-infested trees.
Remove all wood-to-soil contact if possible. Doing so will remove the food that attracts termites and inspires population growth.
4. Address Moisture Issues
Subterranean worker termites are attracted to damp soil. If you have a clogged gutter, damaged downspout, dense landscape vegetation, leaking water hose, or some other moisture issue, these insects will take notice. You don't have to make soil bone dry, but reducing moisture is a smart preventative step.
5. Seal Potential Entry Points
Drywood termites can attack your home by air, but what you might not know is that swarmers don't eat wood. Only the workers eat wood. Swarmers won't tunnel into your home. They'll use entry points that already exist. Since they target hardwood, your door and window frames are critical areas to check first. Look for the slightest gaps and seal them using a caulking gun and high-quality silicone caulk.
These all-natural steps will give you quite a bit of protection. Unfortunately, it takes a lot of work. If you don't want to have to think about termite control, there is another option.
Call The Pros For The Best Termite Control And Protection
When you want to know for sure that your property is protected, and you want to put termite control out of your mind, contact Gecko Pest Control. We use the most trusted names in professional-grade termite control: Termidor and Trelona. Termidor termiticides with their patented transfer effect, stop termites and eliminate colonies. Trelona provides a bait solution that makes termite detection a breeze and also assists with colony elimination. If you'd like to learn more about these termite control solutions, or to request a visit from one of our certified technicians, navigate to our contact page and drop us a line, or give us a call. We look forward to helping you get the right protection for your Longview property.
What Gecko Pest Control Customers Are Saying
"I just wanted to say that y’all have some of the best and kind hearted employees working for Gecko. Landen came out today and went above and beyond to represent the company and who he is as a person. I am very thankful for his hospitality and professionalism. Great team you have!! Proud to be a Gecko customer."
"Love this company. Very professional. All there employees are professional, knowledgeable, helpful and just darn nice!"
"Ryan did a very thorough job in spraying around the house. He walked the exterior of the house with me to learn my specific needs. He was even very helpful to help move the humming bird feeders before this initial spray. Daren was also very informative I’m explaining the services. They were able to come out the day I called and were prompt arriving."
