Remember when we mentioned in our last article that termites will eat through your personal items if they can? Well as luck would have it, shortly after writing that article we ran into exactly that situation with a new customer. We wanted to show you these examples of exactly how extreme termite damage can get, even beyond the structural damage to your house, if they are left untreated.

What do termites eat?

Anything made up of cellulose. So, wood of course, but also paper, carpet, cardboard, insulation and more! They generally tunnel up through the dirt. If they find a crack in the concrete foundation of your home, they’ll tunnel up through them in search of cellulose material. Once they find it, they take off! Up through your walls all the way up to your ceiling, branching off on anything they find yummy along the way.

For instance, a recent customer of ours were so infested and the termite damage was so invasive that some of their door frames were completely destroyed from the inside.

Large portion of a door frame eaten from inside out by termites

The termites likely came up from the ground through a crack in the foundation below. Once they got to the surface of the foundation, they likely created “exploratory” tubes searching for cellulose material they could feed on. Eventually, they hit pay dirt when they ran into the bottom of the door frame and worked their way up. (Or, they may have ate through other areas of the walls and found their way to the door frame.)

Termite tubes coming up from a crack in the foundation underneath carpeting

But unfortunately for the customer, the termites didn’t stop with the door frame. They also devoured the pages of multiple books and framed paintings (as shown in the main photo for this blog post) and photographs.

How can I spot termite damage early?

That’s an excellent question! Obviously, it’s best to catch a termite infestation long before they decimate door frames, photos, books, or anything else. Fortunately, it’s usually pretty easy to spot them early on. First, it’s always best to get a termite inspection every year by a licensed professional. We have almost 40 years experience inspecting and treating termite infestations for both homes and businesses. But between those annual inspections, keep an eye on the exterior face of the concrete pad your home sits on for evidence of termite tubes. You should also check pillars, eaves, and walls for “exploratory” tubes. These exploratory tubes will look like quarter-inch tubes made of a mud-like substance snaking up walls and other structures. You may also see short tubes dangling from the ceiling. If you notice any of these signs, give us a call right away!

For more information, check out this excellent local news article as well as our other blog posts on termites.