There are abundant in number and voracious in nibbling on anything made of wood in our house. Termites are among insect colonies that could really crumble our house from the inside. In a single year, one termite colony could consume about 2.5 feet of a 2×4 lumber. This may not sound like much, but we should be aware that it also means that the supporting beams of our house could be continuously weakened. We should consider the seriousness of the situation, because it is possible that new colonies would emerge, significantly increasing damages of our house. Termites are among the biggest contributors to house destruction. Formosan termites that spread through East Asia are known to be quite voracious.
A termite colony could be consisted of up to one million swarmers, soldiers and workers. One queen could live up to 50 years while laying thousands of eggs each day. This is more than enough to recoup daily losses and slowly enlarging the whole colony. The best thing to do is to avoid termites from invading our house in the first place. First, we should check whether our house is an ideal habitat for a termite colony. Because termites are subterranean insects, they prefer certain types of soil. The soil needs to be soft enough to allow the create tunnel systems and intricate networks of galleries. They use mud tubes that could appear on several spaces, including our basement. Rocky and hard soil is a non-ideal place for a termite colony.
Termites consume wood or anything that contain cellulose. Once a single piece of wood touches the ground, termites will follow it up. Other than wood, termites also consume twigs, dry leaves and humus. So, a dirty landscape could be a perfect habitat for termites to get plenty of food sources. Termites also rely on water and they can’t survive in a dry landscape. Other than from rain, leaky faucet or pipes could give a termite colony enough supply of water. Termites always seek a source of moisture so it would be able to thrive. Often, by repairing our faucet and leaky plumbing system, it could help a lot in eradicating threats of termites.
If the problem is serious enough, we may need to use termiticides and baits throughout the house. Even so, termites can still be difficult to eradicate, due to their tenacious nature. If we have a troublesome termite colony, it is a good idea to call a qualified exterminator, especially the one that specializes on termite eradication. House can be the biggest financial commitment in our lives and we need to protect it whenever we can. Even so, an ounce of prevention could take us far and avoid any kind of interaction with these small insects.