Sounds That Termites Make That Gives a Clue of Their Presence

How Sounds Help Detect the Presence of Termites

Termites may not be seen but they can be heard. They produce sounds as they move around to work and feed. The sounds that you might hear are:

1. A dry rattle. When termites sense a threat, they sound a warning by banging their heads against the walls of their mud tubes. This generates a dry, rattling sound. Termites don’t hear the sounds, but feels the vibration coming from the sound.
2. A paper rustling. This sound can be heard by drywood termites when they tunnel close to the surface of the wood.
3. A hollow sound when wood is tapped. This sound indicates that the wood has been away by termites and there is nothing inside. This hollow sound is the most reliable sign of termite damage.

Termite Inspection Methods That Can Confirm the Presence of Termites

Before calling for professional services, you can check for tell-tale signs indicating the presence of termites in your home. These are simple methods of termite detection that utilise both sight and sound.

Periodic Inspection

Periodically inspect the area directly beneath the exterior of your home. If you find a fine powder similar to sawdust at different spots along the exterior walls, it is probably termites. There may be other pests who could be causing this incident, so it is a good idea to call a pest removal expert for confirmation.

Listen to the Sounds

As termite start to chew away at wooden structures, the weakened structure will cause floors to creak more often. Termite-infested walls will have a hollow sound when tapped. Don’t instantly associate these changes in sound to the settling of your house over the years. Waiting to call a termite exterminator will only worsen the damage and make a bigger dent in your pocketbook when have it repaired.

More Inspections

It is also a smart move to inspect the floorboards and woodwork of your home on a regular basis. In addition to tapping wood to check for hollow sounds, look for pinholes in the surface of wooden architectural features in your home, including chair rails or moulding along the ceilings.

Ideally, conduct these inspections in the spring and fall of every year, especially in Queensland where the sub-tropical whether is conducive for termites.

Queensland is also high-risk area for termite activity so property owners should be proactive when it comes to termite infestation.

If you are not confident in conducting these inspections by yourself, a termite inspector can do the job for you. They use modern equipment to conduct termite detection, determine the extent of damage, and outline an effective and cost-efficient plan for exterminating termites.