What to Look For

Termite infestation can compromise the integrity of your home without anyone even noticing. It is important to call a licensed pest professional to inspect your home should you inspect that termites are lurking in the walls. There are, however, some key signs to keep an eye out for around your home:

Mud tubes - Mud tubes are oftentimes found near the home’s foundation and are built to provide moisture while the termites travel between their colony and a food source.
Wood damage - Probably the most telltale sign that termites have infested your home is wood that is hollow when tapped, as termites tend to eat wood from the inside out. Even blistering pieces of wood will tell homeowners that may have pests on their hands.
Frass - Termites will leave behind wood-colored droppings as they eat their way through an infested home. If you find a small pile of pellets inside or outside your home, then call Noble Way Pest Control immediately.

HOW TERMITES GET INTO YOUR HOME

Understanding why you have unwanted pests coming into your home is important and crucial for coming up with a plan to stop them. Just like any other pest, termites need food, warmth, moisture, and shelter to survive. They flock towards wood because it provides the ideal food source — cellulose — for them to thrive. Subterranean termite colonies live underground and enter homes at ground level or below, but may build mud tubes to enter spots that are above ground. It is most common, however, for termites to enter homes through wood-to-wood contact like door frames and porch step supports. Their entrance isn’t exclusive to just wood-to-wood contact, because they can also enter homes through cracks in the foundation of the home and holes in concrete blocks, traveling through foundation walls.

Drywood termites, on the other hand, begin with swarmers — which are termites that leave the colony with the specific role to find new places to develop a colony — who locate a crevice in the wood of your home, dig out a nest, and seal themselves inside. They begin producing eggs to start their new colony, although it can take a couple of years for this new colony to start causing serious damage to your wood.

HOW LONG WILL THE INSPECTION TAKE?

Depending on the type of structure, whether constructed with slab, basement, or crawl space foundations, all homes can be a target for termite infestation. In addition to being gross and unwanted pests, termites threaten the structural integrity of your home, especially as they establish their breeding grounds within the walls and structure of the house. Call Noble Way Pest Control for a termite infestation inspection. The average termite inspection can take anywhere between 45 minutes to 1 ½ hours to complete, as it depends on the size and condition of the home. Don’t hesitate — call us today!

How to Get Rid of Termites

One of the best ways to ensure that there are no pests moving into your home is to have regular inspections. Noble Way Pest Control will not only happily provide you with a pest inspection, but will work with you to directly address, control, and eliminate the pest problems. Then, preventive treatments, such as wood treatments and monitoring will be put in place to ensure that these invaders are put to an end, and the potential for any future invaders to enter your house is also eliminated.

Any kind of infestation in your home can be a stressful situation, but termites can be especially frustrating because of the repairs and maintenance that follows the extermination process. Your Noble Way technician, who specializes in termite extermination, will treat your home effectively for lasting results. Submit a free quote request or speak with a specialist today to schedule a termite extermination service.

(Not So Fun) Facts About California Termites

Termites will infest more than 600,000 US homes this year.
US residents will spend more than $5 billion on termite control and damage repairs this year.
A termite queen can live for 15-20 years — in your home!
Termite colonies eat 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and can consume a pound of wood each day.
Termites love wood, but some can also chew through plaster, lead, mortar, and asphalt.
A queen termite can lay an egg every 15 seconds — that’s 2,000 eggs each day!
Only about 50% of homeowners have had a termite inspection.

Getting to Know California Termites

Millions of termites call California homes, businesses, and forests home. Termites are active throughout the entire state of California from Redding down to San Diego, and everywhere in between. Here in Sacramento, both subterranean and drywood termites are known to cause damage to homes, and dampwood termites are just as common, but pose less of a structural threat.

Drywood Termite

The drywood termite is highly destructive and swarms in colonies of nearly 2,000 termites! Warm temperatures, heavy rainfall, and humid conditions all contribute to promoting a drywood termite infestation and swarm. Mature colony members will swarm to reproduce and create new colonies, infesting nearby structures. The desert drywood termite swarms in California at night from June to September, and western drywood termites swarm during the day between September and November.

Subterranean Termite

The subterranean termite causes more than 95% of all termite damage in California, and a single colony can contain up to 1 million termite members. These termites live in the soil beneath and around homes and enter through wood that touches the ground or by constructing mud tubes from the ground to the wood they infest. Cracks in concrete make ideal entry points for these invaders. Colonies may go undetected for years while they mature. A mature colony may take 3 to 5 years before it swarms. Generally, subterranean termites swarm on warm days after a good rainfall. Swarms also may occur during the winter in well-heated homes.

Prevention is Key! Tips to Making Your Home Less Appealing For a Termite Colony

Although a termite infestation may not be completely preventable, there are measures you can take to help make your home less appetizing to termites.

Reduce earth-to-wood contact at your home.
Remove all lumber, mulch, paper, or cardboard from around the foundation of your home.
Ensure only the concrete foundation is in contact with soil/dirt.
Use termite-proof paint or stain on wooden fences.
Trim shrubs and vegetation to allow 12-inches between plants and your home.
Keep up on lawn maintenance including mowing and trimming.
Keep moisture away from your foundation and fix leaks immediately.
Remove dead trees and tree stumps from your property.
Avoid storing paper or cardboard boxes for long periods of time — for long term solutions, opt for plastic totes.
Seal window gaps and foundation cracks right away.
Turn off exterior lights at night.
Schedule regular roof inspections.
Partner with a local termite prevention and extermination company.

Contact our team for a free pest control consultation now!

Warning Signs of Termites

Sure, we’ve warned you against mud tubes, frass, and obvious wood damage —all tell-tale signs of an undeniable termite infestation. However, there are other signs that may occur with or without the others that can prompt you to contact the termite experts at Noble Way Pest Control. Get a free consultation to thwart damage and curb an early infestation before a colony can mature!

Discarded wings - this is a first sign that winged termites have decided to call your place home.
Swarms - a sure fire sign that termites have descended onto your property.
Clicking noises - buzzing, humming, knocking, or clicking in your walls are signs that termites are hard at work feasting on your structure.
Eaten wood outdoors - logs, lumber, or mulch damage outside can indicate that termites are on your property and searching for more food, likely inside.
Uneven or bubbling paint - can be caused by either moisture-build up, which is appetizing to termites and should be remedied before they discover it, or may indicate the handiwork of termites eating their way from the inside-out of your walls. Either way, it’s time for a termite inspection!
Tight-fitting doors or windows - may be the handiwork of subterranean termites sealing in heat and moisture, causing the timber to swell.
Raised floorboards or bumps on walls - again, either water damage that beckons termites, or the result of a maturing colony growing beneath.

If you notice any of these signs and symptoms of termite infestation, call us to get an inspection right away.

Sacramento Termite Control Frequently Asked Questions

Can termites penetrate concrete?

Termites cannot go through solid concrete, like your foundation. However, they can infiltrate a crack only 1/32nd of an inch wide!

How long do termites live for?

A worker termite (the ones doing the damage) live for about a year or two, but the queen may live for decades and can lay up to 40,000 eggs in a single day!

I found a pile of wings, that means the termites are dead, right?

Oh, no, just the opposite. Winged termites swarm just a short distance from where they hatched, with the sole purpose of setting up a new colony. If you’ve found a pile of wings, these sheds indicate you’ve got a brand new termite colony setting up residence in your wood.

How do termites get into my property?

Termites are very small and are attracted to warm, moist places. Generally, they burrow in the soil around a house or building and search for an entry point — cracked concrete, open window, poorly sealed pipes, etc. — and will take every opportunity afforded to them.

Can I prevent a termite infestation?

There are certainly steps you can take to make your home less appealing for termite colonies. See our section above on this topic for a more in-depth review. The best way to prevent an infestation is to have an inspection performed and get regular pest control treatments.

What You Get When You Work With the Noble Family

We didn’t become Sacramento’s Top Rated Local® pest control company overnight or by accident, and we know that you’ve got choices when it comes to effective termite prevention and control. A few perks you get when you choose to experience the Noble difference are:

Environmentally-Friendly Pest Control

Rather than fumigating your Sacramento home or office with toxic chemicals that recklessly kill everything it makes contact with, our termite exterminators use botanical-based pyrethrum and SmartCap technology to deliver effective and precise treatment to treat and prevent termite colonies without harming your house or family or making you worry about your plants and water supply. Ask your pest control expert for more information about our treatment options and which is best for your home or business.

Free Consultations & Follow Up

You don’t owe a thing until we have a consultation to understand the true extent of your problem. No problem? Then your peace of mind was on us! If you’ve got a pest problem, we will outline it in a complete inspection report and gauge exactly what needs to be done to offer you a comprehensive estimate. And, once the work is complete, we’ll do a follow-up visit to ensure our treatment was effective. On the off chance it wasn’t, we’ll fix it at no charge to you. That’s our 100% satisfaction guarantee.

Top Rated Local® Pest Control

Termite Control

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HOLLOW WOOD SHOULDN’T MEAN A HOLLOW WALLET

What to Look For

How Does Our Process Work?

HOW TERMITES GET INTO YOUR HOME

HOW LONG WILL THE INSPECTION TAKE?

How to Get Rid of Termites

(Not So Fun) Facts About California Termites

The Life Cycle of a Termite

Eggs

Larva

Flying

Swarm

Drywood Termite

Subterranean Termite

Dampwood Termite

Prevention is Key! Tips to Making Your Home Less Appealing For a Termite Colony

Warning Signs of Termites

Sacramento Termite Control Frequently Asked Questions

Can termites penetrate concrete?

How long do termites live for?

I found a pile of wings, that means the termites are dead, right?

How do termites get into my property?

Can I prevent a termite infestation?

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Environmentally-Friendly Pest Control

Free Consultations & Follow Up

Value-Added Services

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