Joe went to an eight year old home in Gonzales this week where termites had swarmed. The home was immaculately kept and the foundation slab  around the home was visible. However, the homeowner had hundreds of dead termite swarmers on the floor in her dining room. She did not know where they were coming from until Joe showed her the 1/8 inch holes in her sheetrock where the termites, who had been eating in her wall for over a year, decided to swarm out!

She was mortified!

Then she and Joe went outside to look for the termite mud tunnels (of which Joe found six) coming from the soil, going up her slab and into the wall. Upon breaking open the tunnels, Joe found that her home was being attacked by eastern subterranean termites (reticulitermes). Her husband told Joe  that he often checks the home for termite tunnels, and he couldn’t believe they had termites and tunnels on the home!

This is why you should have a professional inspect your home!

The treatment cost for this particular home is less than $500, and the annual renewal fee is $150. Had these homeowners kept the original termite treatment contract that was in place when the home was built, it is unlikely that they would have termites now, or the expensive damage to their walls. Their home would have been inspected annually by a trained professional.

This is truly a case of an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.