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  • Termite Prevention Tips for Upland, CA Homeowners

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Termite Control

Termite Prevention Tips for Upland, CA Homeowners

Termite Prevention Tips for Upland, CA Homeowners

The thought of a termite infestation can cause serious stress for Upland homeowners. The damage an undiscovered termite colony can do to your home is devastating. Termite colonies average in size from about 5,000 to 2 million termites depending on the species. Every last one of those termites is hungry, and if they are in your home, your house is on the menu. Though termites stay out of sight and quietly eat the cellulose out of the wood in your house, there are ways for you to prevent this hidden threat from literally eating you out of house and home.

Protect your home from the outside

Unless you have an easy entry point for termites to fly in, termites can not simply waltz into your home. They have to find a way in and many times they try to come in through the foundation. Keeping a close eye on your foundation whether slab or on piers, is an excellent way to keep your Upland home safe.

Termites will create mud tunnels to conceal themselves as they get close to your foundation and look for small cracks or holes to enter your home.

Be sure that mulch in your flower beds or even the soil do not come up above your foundation line. In general, it is a good idea to not let anything directly touch your foundation. Termites can infest mulch and if the mulch is up against your foundation, termites have food and time to find the best place for entry into your house.

Prevent water from attracting termites inside your home

 If termites have chosen your home to be their home, they have found an efficient amount of food in the wood in your walls and a water source to sustain their colony if they are Subterranean termites.

 If you have small water leaks in your home, fixing these issues immediately will keep your home from looking like the perfect place for termites to live.

Roof damage during winter months can cause just enough water to come in to quench the thirst of a colony of termites. Be sure to check for any outside damage that may let water into the home.

Termite inspections

To make sure termites are not eating your home from the inside out, set up a regular termite inspection. You can do your best to keep your foundation clear of debris and your home water tight, but having trained eyes to look for evidence of termites and knowing what to do when they find them is the best way to protect your home.

A termite inspector is the best line of defense against termites. Having a trained, experienced Upland technician inspecting your property at least once a year will keep termites out of your home or will stop their infestation early, to prevent your home from being destroyed by termites.

In Upland, CA, give Bug Baron Exterminator a call today.

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Termite Control

Top 3 Signs You Have a Termite Problem

Top 3 Signs You Have a Termite Problem

Termites can really cause some serious damage to a structure. While they are constantly eating the wooden beams and frame of a home, the queen termite cranks out thousands of eggs a day. Termites are relatively quiet and stay hidden deep within your walls, floor, or ceiling so you may not know they are there for months or even years. To minimize the damage, you want to catch any termite problem early. To be able to identify an infestation, you have to know what the top 3 signs are that tell you that you have a termite problem.

1. Look for piles of wood pellets on the floor

As termites munch away at your home, they produce large piles of excrement that resemble sawdust. These piles are called frass and you may look for them underneath windows, below wall hangings, or directly beneath light fixtures. As the termite tunnels become full of chewed up and biologically processed cellulose, the termites make little holes in your walls and ceiling to push the frass out of their home and into your’s.

2. Evidence outside

Termites have to get inside your home first before they can start wreaking havoc. They will often leave evidence of their entry outside your home. Look for mud tunnels on the foundation. Termites do not come out into the open air so they create mud tunnels that allow them to get close to your home so they can find a way inside.

You may also find shed wings from swarmer termites outside of your windows. When a swarmer termite lands, they will shed the wings as they start hunting for a way to get inside your home to begin a new colony.

3. Swarmers pouring out of the walls

In the spring, a termite colony will produce swarmer termites who will fly off in search of more homes to destroy with new termite infestations. The swarmers will spill out of a hole in the wall into the interior of your house. If you are home during the swarm, you will definitely be aware of the termites covering your floor and walls. Be sure to locate exactly where the termites are coming from so you can tell your trusted exterminator when they arrive. Likely, the swarm will be over by the time the exterminator is able to come to your home.

Call a professional termite exterminator

If you see any of these three signs of a termite infestation, call your termite exterminator as soon as possible. You do not want a termite colony living in your home a minute longer than they have to. If you are in Upland, CA, give our trusted team at Bug Baron Exterminator a call today.

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Termite Control

Do Termites Cause Expensive Damage?

Do Termites Cause Expensive Damage?

The scariest part about termites is that they can eat away at your home for a long time without you even knowing they are there. This allows the damage they create to get much worse before you start treating your home for termites. Because termites affect the wooden frame of your home, the hidden damage can really be a blow to your wallet when you finally start to repair the destruction caused by termites.

Every year in the US, termites cause billions of dollars worth of damage. The average homeowner who discovers termite damage will spend about $3,000 on repairs. That can be devastating, especially in this economy with inflation already making everyday expenses difficult.

Prevention

Keeping termites away from your home is key to not having to pay a dime in termite damage repairs. A few ways you can prevent termites from choosing your house as their new home and meal are:

  • Keep wood piles away from the home
  • Remove dead, fallen trees or old stumps from your yard
  • Make sure soil around the exterior of your home is not above your foundation
  • Keep shrubs and trees near your home from touching your siding or roof
  • Quickly repair any leaks or drips inside
  • Make sure your roof is in good condition
  • Have a yearly termite inspection

Termite inspection

Termites are experts at getting inside your home. Some try to get in by flying inside while others build elaborate mud tunnels so the colony can enter your home without being exposed to sunshine. While you can definitely keep an eye out for signs of termites as well as use prevention measures to keep the termites out, the single best way to safeguard your home against termites is to have a termite exterminator to routinely check your home for termites.

Depending on how at risk your home is for developing a termite problem, you may have a termite inspection every six months to a year. Once your home gets the all clear from a termite inspector, any new termite invasion will first have to find your home, find a way inside, start the colony, and begin eating. A routine  inspection greatly reduces how much damage the colony can make before the next inspection.

What kind of treatment does my home need?

Depending on where you live and the humidity around your home, a termite exterminator will decide on the best way to protect your home from termites. A few ways to treat for termites and prevent them from coming back are:

  • Preventative barrier around your home in the the soil that kills any termite that gets into the treatment
  • Bait stations outside that entice worker termites to bring poisoned food back to the colony.
  • Preventative exposed wood treatment in the attic or any accessible crawl spaces
  • Localized treatment when the technician discovers the location of the termites
  • Fumigation when the infestation is wide spread or in difficult to reach areas of the home

For the best termite extermination services in Upland, CA, give Bug Baron Exterminator a call today.

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Termite Control

How Often Should I Have a Termite Inspection?

How Often Should I Have a Termite Inspection?

Termites can cause extensive damage to your home. The most difficult part about a termite infestation is that this pest is not out in the open where you can easily see it. Termites can be eating away at your home for months before you even realize they are there. By the time you discover you have termites, you may have costly damage in need of repair. In addition, the size of the termite colony may be enormous, making it difficult to eradicate.

To keep from paying outrageous repair bills, the best line of defense against termites is prevention. You can learn the signs of termites and keep out a sharp eye to protect your home. But the single best way to prevent termites from literally eating you out of house and home is to at least have a yearly termite inspection.

If you have had termite damage before, you know you definitely do not want to go down that road again. You may want to set up a regular termite inspection every six months to ensure that any termite damage is kept to a minimum.

Thorough inspection

An initial termite inspection is when a termite control technician comes to your home and looks in key areas for possible termite activity. For a termite colony to thrive, the termites need food and water in order to support their growing colony. Your house is already full of their food in the form of wood.

As soon as the termites find a water source in the form of a leaky pipe or even a humid basement, they will be good to go.  A termite exterminator will definitely want to inspect places where water is allowed to accumulate or drip to make sure termites aren’t using it as a water source.

An experienced termite control technician will not need to tear apart your home in order to find the termites. They will look around pipes and in cool places like in basements or up in the attic for any damaged wood or wood that appears warped and blistered.

If there is any paneling that can be easily removed near pipes in the walls, the technician will want to take a look.

But termite activity can be found outdoors as well. The inspector will look around the foundation for signs of Subterranean Termites who make mud tunnels attached to the foundation.

Peace of mind

While setting up a regular termite inspection when you have not seen signs of termites may seem extreme, the comfort of knowing that your home is termite free is well worth making a simple recurring appointment with a termite inspector. The average amount of termite damage can cost as much as $3000. While in severe infestations, the cost is much higher. Don’t take that risk.

Give Bug Baron Exterminator in Upland, CA a call today for your initial termite inspection.

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Termite Control

Termite Control Experts in Rancho Cucamonga

Termite Control Experts in Rancho Cucamonga

The good news about termites is that you can prevent them from coming into your home by setting up a routine termite inspection and treatment. While there are several treatments that can eradicate a termite infestation, getting a termite control expert’s eyes on your property at least once a year can save you from even a year’s worth of termite damage. Knowing what to look for and what happens during a termite inspection will help you know what to expect and how to get rid of termites from your Rancho Cucamonga home.

Know the difference between ants and termites

If you see an insect in your home, you may first assume that it is an ant.  Ants and termites look very similar if you don’t know some of their subtle differences. While most termites stay hidden in your walls and cannot endure sunlight, swarmer termites leave the colony to start a new one. If you see a termite crawling around on your floor, it may be a swarmer termite. Termites look similarly to ants but have some key distinctions.

  • Their antennae: Termites have straight antennae while ants are bent.
  • Their wings. Both insects have two sets of wings. Both sets of termite wings are the same length while ants have a longer set on top.
  • Their waists. A termite abdomen and thorax are about as wide as their heads, with little variation in width. An ant has a wasp-like waist that comes in sharply in a pinched look.

Signs of termites

Even though termites are mostly silent creatures that steadily eat away at your home, there are some things to look for to know if you have a termite infestation.  A few signs to look for are:

  • Small piles of frass, excrement that resembles saw dust
  • Warped wood
  • The appearance of water damage
  • Tiny holes around your windows
  • Baseboards and trim that appear paper thin
  • Mud tunnels on the exterior of your home
  • Shed wings on your exterior window sills

If you see any of these signs in your Rancho Cucamonga home, do not hesitate to call your trusted termite exterminator immediately.

Cost of damage

American homeowners spend thousands of dollars on home repairs each year due to termite damage.  Termites never completely stop eating so eliminating them at the first sign is crucial to saving your house from even more repairs.

Subterranean termites, the type responsible for the majority of damage in the U.S., only eat the cellulose in the wood instead of eating it straight through like a Drywood Termite. The walls, floor, and ceiling can stay intact when only the soft part of the wood is eaten away, even though the structural integrity of the structure is compromised. This can actually be quite dangerous because you may unknowingly put your weight on the floor or even the roof, only for it to give way.

Termite treatment

Whether you need barrier protections around your home, localized treatment when a colony is discovered, or several bait stations around your yard, an experienced termite control expert will find the perfect termite treatment for your situation.

For the best termite control in Rancho Cucamonga, give Bug Baron Exterminator a call today. 

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Termite Control

What Should I Do if I Have a Termite Problem in My Home?

What Should I Do if I Have a Termite Problem in My Home?

If you have a termite infestation in your home, you likely will not see actual termites crawling around your floors. Termites stay out of view, hidden deep in your walls, floor, and ceiling. They do not come out into the light unless they are ready to branch out and create new colonies. In this case, they send out winged termites to find a new place to build a colony. Knowing how to identify a termite infestation and what to do if you discover termite signs will help protect your home from extensive damage.

What to look for

Termites are wood eating insects that create massive nests inside people’s homes. A few signs that you may have a termite infestation are:

  • Thin or papery looking baseboards and other trim throughout your home: Because termites eat away at the wood from inside the walls or floor, the exterior layer of the surface will be left intact. But as it becomes hollow, it begins to appear thin and weak.
  • Wavy or water damaged looking floors: Similarly to looking thin, flooring, especially wood floors, begin to appear like they have endured water damage. The look appears because of the weakening boards, but it is also true that termites often infest areas of the home that have lots of moisture.
  • Small piles of frass: After consuming wood, it should be no surprise that termite excrement resembles saw dust. If you find little piles of sawdust near light fixtures, under wall hangings, or around the windows, look closely. If the saw dust is a little thicker and has geometric sides, it is most likely that you have discovered frass, or termite droppings.
  • Faint clicking sound at night: If you have a severe termite infestation or a really quiet house, you can hear a clicking sound. Termites thump their heads against their wooden tunnels to communicate. The head knocking often sounds like a clicking noise to the human ear. While they make this sound in the daytime as well, you can usually only hear it in the stillness of the night.
  • Shed wings around the perimeter of your home: When a colony reaches a certain capacity in a space, the termites will send out winged termites to go out in search of a new place to make a new colony. These winged termites are called swarmers. When a swarmer finds your home to be just perfect for a new colony, they will land, usually on an exterior window sill, and immediately shed their wings before finding a way inside.
  • Mud tunnels on the foundation of your house: If you inspect the exterior perimeter of your home, you may notice mud tunnels about the width of a pencil stuck to the foundation. These tunnels allow subterranean termites to enter and exit your home without being exposed to the sunlight.

Call in an expert

If you should discover any of the above signs of termites, calling an expert termite control professional is the next step. Termites are serious business and could end up costing you thousands of dollars in repairs. The faster you can get rid of them, the less damage they can do.

For Upland, CA homeowners, give Bug Baron Exterminator a call today.

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Termite Control

Are Termites Common in Upland?

Are Termites Common in Upland?

The last thing you want crawling around your home is an infestation of termites. Not only will they continually eat away at the structure of your home, but the damage they cause will end up costing you potentially thousands of dollars if not eradicated quickly. In Upland, California, as well as throughout the rest of the state, termites are quite common and homeowners need to be on guard.

Common termites

While all termites in the U.S. are bad news, there are a couple different common termites in the Upland area that have a few distinguishing characteristics. The more you know about the behaviors of the different kinds of termites, the better prepared you can be to prevent them from getting inside your walls and ceiling.

Subterranean

Termites that live in the ground and create the classic mud tunnels around the foundation of your home are called Subterranean Termites. They will nest in places like the mulch in your flower beds to get close to your foundation so they can find a tiny way inside your home. Subterranean Termites are responsible for 95% of termite damage in the U.S.

Once they find a way inside, they will eat the soft parts of the wooden beams while continuing to nest in their underground homes. Subterranean Termites require humidity and moisture to live.

Drywood

A different type of termite that is also quite common in Upland, CA is the Drywood Termite. Like their name implies, these termites actually nest in wooden structures. They do not just eat the soft part of the wood, but actually eat right across the grain creating large galleries of empty space in your home’s structure.. They do not require moisture and are often found infesting attics.

Termite destruction costs

If you do not catch an infestation early on, the damage can be incredibly extensive. Termites are constantly eating away at your home. The queen termite can lay up to 30,000 eggs in a single day, depending on the species. A few termites can get out of hand quickly.

Thorough inspection

If you suspect that you have a termite infestation, do not hesitate to call a professional termite exterminator. When help arrives, you can expect a termite control technician to thoroughly inspect your home for termites. They will often look around your pipes and other damp places around your home because Subterranean Termites are drawn to water.

Treating the termite infestation

After the inspection is complete, you will be informed if any termite evidence was found and when treatment will begin.

For Upland homeowners, give Bug Baron Exterminator a call at the first sign of termites. We will send in our highly experienced and trained technicians to thoroughly inspect and safely treat your home for termites.