Termite and Wood Boring Insects - Termite question

I have a few questions, but I wanted to give some background information first.

When we bought our house about 3 years ago, it had termites. There was interior damage to the sheet rock in our dining room and a little damage to one of the studs on that same wall.

Holes were drilled outside of the house, including through the concrete driveway and in two interior walls and a chemical to kill the termite was pumped in.

We have a yearly termite inspection and more chemical is sprayed.

Today, my husband found termite infested landscape timbers outside of our house. A couple were right up against the house and others were about 2 feet away.

Could this be a problem? Could we get termites IN the house because of this? Can we tell they are in the house before they do an extreme amount of damage?

The company our termite bond is with swears this isn't a problem because if the termites got close to the house, they would have to go through the chemical that they sprayed, and it would kill them.

If you know the answers to these questions, please tell me how you know because my husband will ask me! :)

Termites will not pass through a properly applied termiticide barrier. It is never a good idea to have wood stacked against the house because of potential for wood boring insects.

Subterranean termites must return to the ground periodically, to do so they would have to pass through the chemical barrier and die

Your stucco or siding should be above grade.
If so you would see mud tunnels leading up from the ground on the exposed slab, the same thing can be seen on the risers of crawl houses, if termites are attacking your home

Liquid treatments are not meant to kill termites colonies, they merely establish a barrier between the termites and the structure.
By placing wood close to the home you could possibly give them a passageway that bypasses the barrier

Ocoee,

How can we know, before they eat our entire house (it's brick, by the way) if they are in our house?

Should we have the pest control comany that our termite bond is with come out and spray where the landscape timbers were, or is it too late for that?

Thanks!

If it is a brick house I wouldn't worry about it.

The termites have to stay in the ground.
That's why they build the mud tunnels. they can't go anywhere without them

For them to get to the rafters or the studs inside they would have to tunnel up through the chemical barrier.

Most companies here will not do "peace of mind" treatments anymore

If your guarrantee is a repair instead of a retreat guarrantee I would trust the compan's opinion

If it is a brick house I wouldn't worry about it.

The termites have to stay in the ground.
That's why they build the mud tunnels. they can't go anywhere without them

For them to get to the rafters or the studs inside they would have to tunnel up through the chemical barrier.

Most companies here will not do "peace of mind" treatments anymore

If your guarrantee is a repair instead of a retreat guarrantee I would trust the compan's opinion

My guarantee is treatment, but NOT repair because there was damage to a stud when the treatment was done. I guess they were thinking that there might have been more damage that couldn't be seen and that they weren't paying for that! That is pretty standard procedure where we live. You only get repair coverage if you are treated before there is a problem.

They told me though that they don't cover and won't spray any further than 6 inches all the way around the house, so no peace of mind treatment for me!

The previous owners of this house chose this company because it was their responsibility to take care of the termite problem. If I had my choice, I would NOT use them!

Thanks for your help.

If you are not happy with the company go shopping

Most companies, especially this time of year, will give free termite inspections to drum up business.

Call three companies, let them know that you are shopping.

They will give you the best inspection you have ever had because they must find termites in order to sell the job.
It is illegal, at least in Florida, to "misrepresent to the customer the need for pest control" so there is little chance of dishonesty, especially if you let each know that others are also going to be checking.

The 6 inch treatment is pretty much standard because they are actually treating the slab of the structure, which is all that they are required to guarantee
Peace of mind treatments are when they do a treatment to make the home owner feel better even though there is no evidence of termite activity.

What area do you live in and what is the company.

Around here sellers usually use Joes fat chance pest and termite or whoever does it the cheapest.

Even though a guarantee is for retreat only it is still possible to sue for damages if the treatment was done improperly

But to get a termite bond with a new company, don't I have to pay THEM to treat termites even if they aren't there? I mean, their not just going to let me get a bond with them if THEY haven't treated for them, are they?

Yes to get a bond you have to be treated

I was talking about peace of mind inspections

Just let them inspect your home to see if you have termites
If they find them call the company that you are bonded with and insist on treatment or at the very least another inspection

The only reason I suggest this is because they want to find termites your present company may not

I don't know about your area but here there are huge liability issues for faulty inspections and or treatments
I don't know of any one personally that would intentionally mislead a customer but it does happen