4 Reasons You Need to Clear Your Property of Termites Immediately

You might already know that having termites in your home is a problem, but it could be more serious than you think. Many people don’t understand the full extent of the damage that termites can cause, or the secondary threats they could be facing if they don’t deal with them properly.

Termites aren’t just a technical term on a property sales contract. They can cause extensive structural damage to your home, costing you heaps of money and a tonne of inconvenience. They can be a serious liability, and it’s important to clear your property of them immediately—for a number of other reasons you might not have even considered.

1. Protect your property’s value

2. Protect your furnishings

Most people know that termites eat wood. But that’s not all they eat: they’re nasty little critters with huge appetites, and they’re also partial to other fibres in fabric, paper, plastic, plasterboard. That means if your property is infested with termites, there’s a good chance it’s not just structural damage you need to worry about: they could also destroy your soft furnishings and carpets, valuable documents, insulation, and even swimming pool filters!

Termites enjoy anything that has a high cellulose content or is fibrous. There’s a veritable feast for them not just in your walls and floors, but in places you don’t check very often, like storage boxes in the garage or shelved books. It’s a good idea to regularly check your storage areas for signs of termites, especially if you’re storing cardboard boxes or there’s a history of water damage there.

Having a pest control professional examine your property for termites won’t just save your property value: it could potentially prevent you from losing the most valuable and important belongings in your home.

Inspections are well worth the expense just to protect your sentimental possessions, let alone to avoid the cost of replacing all the carpets and soft furnishings in your house.

3. Protect your yard

It might seem obvious, but termites can also destroy your yard. They eat wood, and for most suburban homes, there’s an abundance of plant fibre for them to live on just outside the back door.

If you have tall trees in your yard, a termite infestation can be a serious source of danger. It does depend on the species of termite, the size of the colony, and the type of tree you have, but over time it’s certain that your tree will become weak and at risk of falling, particularly during storm season. This is especially dangerous for your family or tenants if they have small children who play outside, powerlines overhead, or the tree is close to the house.

There are many other sources of food for termites in your backyard as well. They thrive in high-moisture areas, including in your mulch, any water-damaged areas between the garden and house, and in wooden fencing and retaining walls. These areas not only give them proximity and access to your house, but they can destroy your trees, plants, and landscaping.

Don’t hesitate to hire a pest control expert to inspect your yard all the way to the fence line: you could not only be protecting your yard and surrounds, but you could be stopping an infestation in your home from beginning in the first place.

4. Protect your family

Dealing with trees on your property will certainly go a long way towards keeping your family safe, but it’s not the only risk they face when your home is infested with termites.

The most serious threat to your home is the structural damage they can cause.

Termites can eat a long way through your home’s support beams before you even notice they’re there. Replacing plasterboard or architraves they’ve gotten into is expensive, but it’s not usually a major safety hazard; but if they’ve eaten through the framework of the property, you could have both a big financial burden and serious safety risk on your hands. Once the damage has been done, your home could be uninhabitable, and your home and land could be worth a fraction of what you paid.

It’s so important to attend to the first signs of termites in your home. They could include:

• Shed wings lying around
• Droppings
• Scratching sounds in your walls
• Hollow, papery, tunneled or bowing timber
• Tight-fitting doors and windows

If you notice any of these signs, contact Pestige Solutions immediately for an inspection: we’re third-generation professionals with a stellar reputation and decades of experience in protecting homes like yours.