It’s coming from the walls!
It might start as the faintest tapping sound, so subtle you’re convinced that you’re hearing things. Over time, you begin to feel like you’re living in an Edgar Allen Poe poem. What is that tiny sound that is haunting you day and night?
Odds are good that you aren’t insane – but that doesn’t mean that you don’t have a tiny but fierce problem on your hands. Noises coming from the walls are just one sign that you might be hosting a colony of tiny pests. Do you know the signs of a termite infestation?
The little guys can’t help it! You live in a home that is made out of their favorite thing in the world – delicious, delicious wood! That doesn’t need that they’re invited to stay long enough to do serious damage to your home.
Keep reading to learn seven subtle signs that you might have a termite problem. Once you’re sure, you’ll be on your way to pursuing termite removal and getting your home back!
1. Sounds Coming From the Walls
Termites might be tiny, but they have a nuanced system of communication. When a termite colony feels threatened, the soldier termites bang their heads into the wood to get the word out. The termites can detect these vibrations and, often, so are homeowners.
Another sound that you might pick up on when the house is quiet is the sound of little termite lips smacking together! The worker termites are not the most polite dinner guests. You can often hear them munching away on the wooden structures in your home.
Needless to say, noises coming from your walls are not normal! If you are hearing banging or munching consistently, reach out for a termite inspection from a company like Pest Extinct.
2. You Can’t Open the Door
As termites eat through the wood in your home, they tend to produce moisture. This sign can be harder to pick out if you live somewhere humid. Essentially, your doors and window frames may stick and become harder to open.
Occasionally, the effects of this are even visible. If your wood begins to look warped and you don’t live in a humid environment, termites may be drooling on your woodwork.
3. You See Mud Tubes
When they aren’t boring through your walls, termites are probably off pursuing a source of moisture. They often live in the soil outside of your home and only travel inside when they’re ready to eat. They create structures called mud tubes to clear a path from the outside to the inside.
They make these tubes out of soil and termite waste, and they are often visible near the foundations of your home. Woodchips and firewood are great sources of moisture, so you’re likely to see mud tubes near your wood storage. Your best bet is to store these things far away from your home!
4. An Unexplained Abundance of Sawdust
Have you noticed tiny piles of sawdust throughout your home? You might notice them near your baseboards or on windowsills.
Unfortunately, what you’re seeing isn’t sawdust. It’s termite droppings, which exterminators call “frass.” It’s the same color and consistency as sawdust – after all, you know what they eat!
This is one of the first signs that qualified exterminators will look for when they come to inspect your home. If you spot it before they do, the odds are good that you’re dealing with an infestation in progress. Call your exterminator immediately!
5. Hollow Wood in the Walls
If you have painted walls, you might notice a dipping on the surface. If you put your hand against the paint, can you feel the wall behind it? If your hand goes right through the wall, then termites might have eaten your wood and left the paint behind!
If your walls aren’t painted, you might still notice hollow walls. Termites often leave a thin layer of timber behind after they feast. Knock on the wood and see if it sounds hollow.
If so, termites may have already done significant damage, and you need help before they can do worse!
Remember that termites don’t exclusively eat walls. If you notice damage there, look up and look down. There may also be some telltale damage to the ceiling or baseboards.
6. You Found Some Wings
Along with the sawdust, have you found discarded wings in your home? Wait, wings? What are termites, exactly?
At certain points in their lifecycle, termites do fly. They shed their wings once they have found a source of food. If this source of food is your home, then you will probably find those wings all over the place!
It’s common to find discarded wings both inside and outside of your home. If you happen to see a termite with the wings still attached, act fast! You might be able to keep an infestation at bay!
7. You’ve Noticed White Ants
The truth is, the average person has never seen a termite, and might not recognize one. If you spot one or more “white ants” in your home, you’ve seen termites. At that point, you shouldn’t need any further confirmation – call the exterminator immediately before they get too comfy!
Stop That Termite Infestation in Its Tracks!
Nobody can live in your home without your permission, and that includes tiny pests like destructive termites! If you’re dealing with a termite infestation, contact a pest control specialist right away. If you act quickly, you will be able to avoid severe permanent damage to the structure of your home.
If you need a distraction from the tapping in the walls, stick around and read a few more articles! The blog is full of informative posts that will help take your mind off of your new little houseguests.
