Mould. A sure sign of high moisture.

High moisture is a major conducive condition to termite attack, and nothing says "hey there's lots of moisture here" better than fungus.  Mould is often seen growing in areas of persistent moisture. So it's not surprising that where here is mould, there are termites nearby. This is because the prevailing conditions required for both mould and termites are very similar. So if you see mould in your place, it might be time to get a termite inspection. It's also a good idea to do all you can to reduce the moisture (and mould!) in your home for health reasons. 

Mould on the side of this book highlights the persistent high humidity in this room. Not only bad for your health but is also a sign of high moisture. Forget book worms, it's book mould! 

A leaking bathroom provided all the moisture needed for this mould to grow nicely on a ceiling! 

High moisture , a warm environment and a cold aluminium window frame allows mould to grow as moisture condenses on the aluminium.

How to identify termite mudding.

We often get calls when people find some dust, debris or any fine material that appears out of places it probably shouldn't. Good news is, it's not always termites, but it's bad news when it is. How can you identify what it is?

Termites build mud shelter tubes to keep them nice and cozy and moist, they can't be exposed as they will dehydrate and die. So, keeping this in mind, you need to remember that you're looking for nice moist, tightly packed mud. If the termite activity isn't new, the mud may be quite dry and cracked, but it's normally quite dense and difficult to break off. Termites are great engineers, and they will build solid mud tubes that protect them from the outside world.

If you see any debris or something that isn't where it should be, give it a rub with your finger, if it's hard and doesn't break away easily then it could likely be termite mud!

Here are some pictorial examples of what to look for: 

The Termite mudding is clearly visible on this property on the Central Coast, that is, after you remove the paint!

Termite mud packed in between an engaged pier in a subfloor and a dwarf wall. The mud is packed in tightly and does not fall out easily!

This termite activity is quite obvious! However, subtle signs are also present. Notice the bubbling of the paint on the right hand side just below the mudding. This is a sign of significant activity jay below the surface, this is something we look for during inspections as well. This was on a property in Mangrove Mountain.

Termite mud packed in behind this architrave is a dead giveaway. Although it may seem really obvious, sometimes the orientation of the door makes it hard to look at the doorway side on.

Here is a deceptive example:

This appeared like evidence of termites at a distance initially, (it was  up on the top of a garage). Closer inspection revealed that it was just debris made up of dust, fluff and spiders webs. 

Ants found during a termite inspection.

Although we are looking for termites during our inspections, we inform our clients on anything which could be a problem in their home. Here we have an infestation of ants found during an inspection - they were in a cupboard in the subfloor. They were promptly dealt with! 

Termatrac - Detecting termites in difficult places.

Termites often like to hide out in concealed places, it's the very nature of their existence, so it's important to have the right tools to find them.

We use a Termatrac extensively during our inspections, it helps us to identify termite activity or often just for peace of mind that there really is no activity. The unit uses a radar to bounce signals into wood and other materials to determine if there's movement, it's so sensitive that it's best to set up on a tripod as you can see in the pictures. The benefit is that we can get an extremely accurate understanding of what's happening inside walls and means we don't have to do any destructive inspecting.

Checking a door jamb where evidence of termite mudding existed.

The unit sends signals deep into the timber to accurately measure movement.

Termites were discovered in this wall because of the Termatrac. 

It's abandoned - termite bait stations!

Termite bait stations can be a very effective method of controlling termites, but only if the system is maintained. More often than not, a building with bait stations has an infestation due to a lack of proper maintenance of the perimeter baiting system. It's not uncommon for us to be called to a house with an infestation that already had a perimeter bait station monitoring system in place. When we check the bait stations, the attractant wood has been eaten out long ago......

So what can be done?

Well, the safest thing is to make sure that you have a reputable pest controller monitoring the bait stations, this may seem costly but it is so much cheaper than dealing with an infestation and subsequent damage.

Failing that, it may be prudent to check the bait stations yourself. At least something is being done to monitor termite activity, if you find termites, then you can call a pest controller (The Termite Trackers!) to eradicate the colony.

This bait station is far from effective as it is protruding significantly, the top should be flush with ground level.

This bait station was very close by to an termite entry point on a house, as you can see the termites have already eaten most of the wood out before abandoning it.

A Sentricon bait station graveyard, these bait stations were monitored for a while but have now been abandoned....

this bait station hadn't been checked for years....

Subfloor covering

Access to the subfloor area of a house is vital for a proper termite inspection. More often than not, if there is a termite infestation then there will be evidence in the subfloor. Not only that, but anything that might be inviting termites into the building will probably be evident in the subfloor (Think leaking pipes and random bits of timber stored in the subfloor)

This garden area not only restricts access to the subfloor, but the plants and decaying organic matter is like a billboard inviting the termites in!

There's little hope of doing a good termite inspection with this much foliage! (And a greater chance of finding termites!)

Not only do the plants against the building compromise the building, but having the timber in the garden makes a great appetizer for the termites before they make it inside.

This subfloor opening was ONLY JUST big enough!

Wood rot - timber in garden areas.

A rotting landscaping timber - due to constant moisture being present.

Quite often, wood rot is overlooked as a timber pest. But fungal decay can be a great cause of timber damage, as well as a sign that timbers are susceptible to termite attack.

It's important that any timber that is in ground contact is treated, and if it's not in ground contact that it's sealed. Otherwise it will easily rot especially if the climate or environment around the timber allows a constant supply of high ambient moisture to feed the fungus.

His timber post wasn't even in contact with the soil, but it's exposure to the elements have allowed it to rot significantly.