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Subterranean Termites
Subterranean termites are the most commonly found species of termites in Virginia. They are social insects that live in colonies in the ground and feed on cellulose materials like wood and paper. The worker termites are rarely seen unless uncovered through dismantling or removing wood from a covered area. The workers are white, and wingless. They travel from the colony to their source of food through mud shelter tubes that they build, unless they find wood in direct contact with the ground. The swarmers (reproductives) are commonly seen in the spring and fall during mild and often rainy weather. The swarmers are black with large wings that they will drop just after they have swarmed. The swarmers are NOT wood-destroying. Their sole purpose is to swarm out, mate and begin a new colony. It is very natural to see them swarm from a tree stump or from anywhere on your property, but a swarm inside the home indicates that the colony has made contact with the structure and treatment is necessary. Termites are in every inch of soil in our area. What protects our homes is the soil treatment done at the time of construction. Termiticide has a residual action in the soil continuing for many years but many factors can come into play to cause your home to be attacked by termites at any time....even when it's brand new! The only "real" protection a homeowner has is regular inspection by a company offering trained, professional inspectors, treatment as needed should a problem arise, and most important, correcting conditions that caused the attack. Moisture and wood-to-ground contact, or worse yet the two together are termite problems just waiting to happen. Our technicians are trained to look for the conditions and situations that could potentially cause you a problem in order to advise you how to correct it, if possible. While treatment is available, although expensive, the best course of action is to prevent the need for it.
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