If termite workers were feeding on your home right now, would you know it? What would the signs be? Would you see them crawling on your walls? Would you hear them chewing on the wood inside your walls? It is not likely. Termite workers feed almost exclusively inside wood, and the noise they make is undetectable, even if you put your ear right up against the wood. But, there is one type of termite that you could see crawling on your walls, and there is one type you might hear inside your walls.
Termites That Climb On Your Walls
When a termite colony matures, it sends out swarmers. These male and female winged termites are not like any other termite in a termite colony. They don’t have any problem at all crawling around on your walls (both inside and outside). But there are a few problems with using swarmers as a sign of a termite infestation:
- The only time swarmers emerge inside a home is when a colony is under or very close to a home and those swarmers accidentally emerge inside. They actually prefer to be outside, so they can make new nests in new locations.
- Termite workers can travel as far as the length of a football field to acquire food. That means swarmers may be released into the air far away from your home, where you won’t see them.
- Swarms don’t last for more than 30 minutes. Even if swarmers emerge right next to your home, they may only crawl around where you can see them for a short period of time. So they are often missed.
Termites That Make Noise
While termite workers don’t make noises that you can hear, soldier termites can. They bang their heads on tunnel walls to alert other termites of danger. This is great news, right? All you have to do is put your ear against your wall and listen for termite soldier noises. We wish it were that simple. The problem is that it takes a lot of soldiers in one location for the noises to be heard without the assistance of a stethoscope. If you’re hearing noises from soldier termites, that is actually very bad news. It means you have a large infestation. There are many more workers in a colony than there are soldiers.
How Do You Detect Termites?
There are a few things you can do to protect your home but the truth is it is extremely difficult to detect termites, even for a professional. That is one of the reasons experienced professionals are turning to the Sentricon® System with Always Active™. When Sentricon® is installed, it acts as a sentry. If stealthy worker termites come to feed on a home, your Sentricon® technician will know. The bait the Sentricon® System inspires workers to recruit other termites. This has two effects. The first is that more termites feeding makes it more obvious that the bait has been taken. The second is that the more workers you have coming to feed on the bait, the faster they’ll spread the active ingredient to the rest of their colony, thus eliminating it.
The best part about the Sentricon® System with Always Active™ is that last part. It is always active. That means there is enough active ingredient to eliminate most termite threats without any interaction from a technician. It does this 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Easy detection and active colony elimination are what make Sentricon® with Always Active™ a must-have for every home. There is no chance for human error, which is a good thing when dealing with the number-one wood-destroying pest in the United States. All the hard work is done by this powerful, eco-friendly termite control solution.
If you live in Greenville, South Carolina, Sapphire, North Carolina, or the surrounding areas, let Spencer Pest Services assist you with termite control. Our Certified Sentricon® Installers will walk you through the process, step by step and answer all of your questions along the way. It all starts with scheduling a free inspection, which you can do right here!
