Termite Treatment and Inspection Services

Spring swarmers panic a lot of homeowners who are actually looking at flying ants. Three features tell them apart.

A mature subterranean colony is not a handful of bugs. It can hold hundreds of thousands of termites, organized into a queen, workers, and soldiers. The queen lays eggs year-round, the colony raises backup reproductives that lay eggs of their own, and the workers feed every single day.

Workers travel from the soil into your wood through mud tubes that keep them moist and hidden. They never stop, which is how slow, quiet damage compounds into real structural trouble.

Plenty of pages list four termite types as if all of them are a threat. For most homes the eastern subterranean termite is the real concern. Drywood termites occasionally arrive inside imported furniture, while Formosan and dampwood termites are far less common in much of the country. That accuracy matters, because treating a subterranean colony is very different from fumigating for drywood termites.

Swarm season is late March through May, sometimes into June. Swarms usually happen on warm, sunny days above 70 degrees, often a day or two after rain. A swarm means a colony nearby has matured enough to send out new reproductives.

Termites do not take winter off. Colonies stay active below the frost line all year, and the freeze-thaw cracks that open in foundations over winter become fresh entry points in spring.

We inject a non-repellent termiticide such as fipronil or imidacloprid into the soil around and beneath the foundation. Termites cannot detect it, so they tunnel through it, pick it up, and carry it back to the colony. The barrier protects immediately and is the strongest choice for an active infestation.

Sealed bait stations go into the ground around the building. Foraging termites feed on cellulose bait laced with a slow-acting growth regulator and spread it through the colony, eliminating it over weeks to a few months. Baiting uses very little chemical and is ideal for ongoing monitoring and tight urban lots.

For localized activity we use borate wood treatments and targeted spot work on accessible joists and sills. Many homes do best with a combined plan: a liquid barrier to knock down the active colony, plus bait stations to monitor and protect long term.

Yes, when a certified technician does it. The termiticide goes into the soil around and under the structure, not sprayed across your living space, and bait stations are sealed and tamper-resistant. We follow EPA-label re-entry times and can pick the lowest-impact option for homes with children, pets, or chemical sensitivities.

Retail sprays and foams kill the few workers you can see. The colony, hundreds of thousands strong and hidden in the soil, keeps eating. There is no continuous barrier and no colony transfer, so the problem comes right back. Most states require a license to apply professional termiticides, so the products that actually work are not sold for DIY use.

These are prime targets. Wood joists meet damp cellars and bare soil, and older buildings have settled and cracked. The bigger issue is that attached homes share foundations, party walls, and the same strip of soil. A colony in one home can move straight into the next, so adjoining homes often need to be inspected and treated together.

In a shared building, one swarm is a building problem. If termites turn up in a single unit, the whole structure should be inspected, and treatment usually needs board approval and coordination. Treating one apartment in isolation rarely solves it.

Homes with yards, gardens, and crawl spaces carry the highest risk, simply because more soil touches wood. Detached and semi-detached homes with planted beds against the foundation give a colony plenty of routes from the soil into the framing.

Risk is lower in a tower but not zero. Ground-floor units, cellars, and shared structural wood can still harbor subterranean termites, and drywood termites occasionally ride in on imported furniture. A swarm in one apartment still means the building gets inspected.

A standard termite inspection finds activity and scopes treatment for you, the owner. A WDI report is the standardized NPMA-33 form, signed by a certified inspector, that goes into a real-estate file. Lenders, FHA and VA loans, and many condo and HOA boards require the NPMA-33 specifically, so order the right one for your deal.

The NPMA-33 documents not only termites but carpenter ants, carpenter bees, and powderpost beetles, plus any visible prior damage and conducive conditions like moisture or wood-to-soil contact. The inspector checks accessible basements, crawl spaces, attics, and closets.

Buyers, sellers, mortgage lenders, and government-backed loans drive most requests, and many condo and HOA boards want one before sign-off. Order it early in the closing timeline so any findings can be treated before the deadline. The written report turns around quickly.