The Silent Destroyers: A Comprehensive Guide to Termite Pest Control

Everyone has heard the saying that termites have been around since the time of the dinosaurs. It’s true. Termites date back more than 120 million years! To say they are hard to kill is an understatement. That’s why taking termite pest control seriously is critical for homeowners. Let’s dig into why termites are so destructive and what you can do to protect your property.

Termites: The Silent Destroyers

Termites are known as the “silent destroyers.” It’s easy for them to go undetected for years, doing incredible damage to wood, flooring, and walls. Consider these statistics:

• Termites cause more than $5 billion in property damage each year
• When you add in crops and agriculture, that goes up to $30 billion in damage each year
• Termites damage approximately 600,000 homes in the U.S. each year
• The average termite damage costs $3,000 to repair

Another reason termites are known as silent destroyers is that termite damage can be hard to identify, especially at first. Often initial damage can be overlooked, such as small pinholes, faint lines on drywall, or bubbling or peeling paint. By the time the more noticeable damage makes it into your main living spaces, you could be looking at thousands of dollars in damage.

3 Steps to Comprehensive Termite Control

Since any wooden structure is at risk for termites, taking termite control seriously is essential. A comprehensive plan can be summed up into these three key steps:

1. Prevention: Regular inspections, maintaining proper ventilation, and reducing moisture levels around the property are fundamental in termite prevention.

2. Detection: Many tools can help you detect the presence of termites without damaging your home. Some popular methods include thermal sensors, moisture meters or the termi-teller stakes that Ford’s Hometown Services installs around homes to monitor for their presence. It’s also important to keep an eye out for swarmers. Seeing swarmers, winged termites, is typically the first sign of termite trouble.

3. Treatment: Treatment options depend on the size of your home, your budget, and the level of infestation. Treatments can include, baiting, chemical barriers and/or spot treatments. At Ford’s Hometown Services, we guide homeowners on what treatment options will produce the best results depending on whether there are active termites present or not. If there are, liquid treatments are most effective, eliminating colonies within 90 days. We also offer subterranean baiting, another effective option that can attract and then eliminate termites.

The termite team at Ford’s Hometown Services offers comprehensive treatment programs, including our “Advanced” termite baiting and monitoring, as well as “quick kill” precise drill and inject liquid barrier applications. We can help you assess your situation and choose the right treatment for your home or property.

In addition, our team is certified in Integrated Pest Management (IPM). This means we take a comprehensive approach to termite control that combines various strategies, including cultural, biological, and chemical methods, to control termites sustainably and effectively.