Termites/White Ants
Termites are a very serious pest in Australia. Houses have a 50% higher chance of a termite infestation than catching fire, yet you cannot insure against termite infestation or termite damage. The Australian Standards highly recommend a termite inspection at a minimum of every 12 months. A termite technician will perform this inspection for you. We use specialised equipment to perform your termite inspection, however an experienced technician is by far the best tool available for your inspection. Once we have completed your inspection, our technician will give you a verbal report on their findings, and we will then provide you a full written report (which should be 09-12 pages long) with our detailed findings, recommendations, solutions for any current or future timber pest activity.
If you find any evidence of termites, termite damage, mud workings/leads immediately contact us to come and provide a free assessment for you. It is very important that active termites are left undisturbed as much as possible. Termites are easier for us to treat when we know exactly where they are and can trace where they are coming from. Book your Termite and Timber Pest Technician today!
HINTS TO REDUCE THE RISK OF TERMITES:
- Fix water leaks, broken down pipes or drainage problems – termites look for constant moisture sources
- Monitor sub-floor ventilation, drainage/access, remove all timber and debris timber (otherwise removing all food sources possible)
- Remove formwork timber, especially under a suspended timber floor construction – this is a food source once again directly into your home
- Ensure concrete slab edges are fully exposed, not leaving them exposed can provide concealed access – Gardens should be no closer than 400mm out from the side of your house, avoid using wood chip in your gardens (this is again a food source, and they hold heat and moisture which termites thrive on)
- Avoid conducive elements in your yard, (timber stacks, old stumps, building refuse, firewood) in your yard or close to your home
- Use termite resistant timber (naturally resistant or treated – ask a timber supplier) – this may not stop them, but it can reduce the risk
- Have regular termite inspections as per the Australian Standards (every 12 months as a minimum)
- Ask your termite technician about Termite Management Systems, this is an effective insurance policy to protect your home
Services we provide
Visual Termite Inspections (standard inspection)
Pre Purchase Inspections (prior to purchasing a home
Remedial (active) Termite Treatments
Preventative Termite Management System Installations
Borers
‘Wood Borer’ covers many types of wood boring beetles, some with very unique names like Auger Beetle, Jewel Beetle, and Pinhole Borers. But whatever species they are, you need to have them treated.
Here are some helpful information about borers:
- Adult beetles can lay their eggs in cracks in wood. Outdoors in trees, this isn’t too much of a problem, but inside your home they might infest floorboards, furniture, wooden beams and any other wooden objects.
- If you don’t have specialist wood borer treatments on infested timbers, the larvae can weaken the timbers in a structure. If left untreated for a long period of time, this may lead to structural failure.
Fungal Decay to Timber In Your Home
The reproductive spores of a mould fungus and the vegetative threads (mycelium) of a wood decay fungus, if present in high quantities, can be seen with the naked eye. Vegetative growths of wood decay fungi may be cream, brown or black.
Wood Decay fungi prefer to grow where conditions of temperature and moisture content are moderate and do not change a lot. For timber out of ground contact, in this situation is more often deeper in the wood. When the fungus has used the available nutrients from the timber, new growth is supported by feeding on the older growth and so the fungus may grow on other surfaces away from the timber leaving very little visible evidence of fungal growth on the wood itself.
Types of Fungi
Not all fungi creates wood damage to the structure. In fact very few species of fungi are to be found on or in timber. Mould fungi are found only on the outside of timber but do no damage. Sapstain fungi consume only the sugars in sapwood and do not change how strong the timber is. A few species of wood decay fungi damage the cellulose component of timber only; other species damage both the lignin (plastic) and cellulose components.
Book your Timber Pest Technician to assess your property today!