Eastern Subterranean Termites 

The Eastern Subterranean Termite is the variety which we must deal with in the New England Area. The colony lives underground with one Queen and one King, which can live up to 30 years. The colony consists mainly of workers, which are responsible for the damage done to wood structures, and can number around 300,000. Soldier termites with large heads and mandibles (jaws), protect the King, Queen and workers from predators such as carpenter ant workers during the springtime. Soldiers number only a few thousand, but workers can quickly evolve to become soldiers when needed for defense. Workers travel back and forth daily from the wood they are eating to the main colony underground via routes sometimes visible and known as Mud tubes. Most often, termite activity goes unnoticed until damaged wood is discovered during a home inspection by a contractor, home inspector or pest inspector. If termites go unnoticed in your home for a period of years, the cost of the wood repair is usually much greater than the cost to eliminate the colony from the structure. Another more dramatic way to discover a major termite infestation is when thousands of Termite Swarmers come pouring out of a wall in the spring time to mate. This happens during a 2 or 3 week period, usually on a warm humid day in April, and can continue for a few weeks until all the swarmers have left the ground. These males and females are produced by the Queen when the colony reaches maturity. They leave the nest, drop their wings, mate and try to get back into the ground to start new colonies and if successful, can live as new Kings and Queens for up to 30 years producing up to 300,000 more workers. To the untrained eye, they may appear to be small flying ants, but two things will distinguish them from ants. First, after close inspection, you will notice the termite body has a black head, straight antennae and a one piece elongated body. (All ants have a 3 piece body). Second, you will probably notice loose whitish or clear wings on the floor which have been dropped off before mating. (Carpenter ant swarmers retain their wings and have elbowed antennae). Very often when reproductive termites swarm out of a nest into your home, they will usually all die because they can't get back into the ground after mating.  Finding a pile of dead termites or loose wings is a sure sign they are active somewhere in the structure.  Since termites eat wood from the inside out, wood with visible external signs of termite activity is usually beyond salvage. Workers require a moist environment to survive and must return to the ground regularly to keep from drying out and dying. They maintain their moisture by traveling inside mud tunnels and by sealing the edges of wood they have eaten. Termites do not require moist wood and can eat wood that appears totally dry. Soft woods are preferred such as pine, fir and spruce, but oak flooring has also been eaten. Treating a structure for elimination of termites is an entirely different process than treating for other insects such as carpenter ants. Ants travel mostly above ground and effective treatments are usually applied to areas above ground, along with locating and exterminating the colony living in your house. Protective perimeter barriers and residuals are applied to kill off foragers. Treatment for termites differs in that we don't look for the colony because it can be up to 200 feet away from the affected structure and deep underground somewhere above the water table and below the frost line. With modern termite treatments it is now possible to protect your house as well as kill off the main colony with a single treatment. For more information on termite treatments call our toll free number in Massachusetts. 1-800-362-2687