Flying Termites (Why Winged Termites Can Be Serious Trouble for Homes)

Wing Of Flying Termite
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Unlike flying ants, flying termites typically spell serious trouble for homeowners because their presence suggests an established termite infestation or an impending termite infestation.

Essentially, visually confirming numerous flying termites inside your home suggests termite activity, meaning termite treatment is vital. The good news is that most termites damage your home slowly (unless you have a huge infestation or Formosan subterranean termites which eat wood faster than other species).

Whether your home is experiencing a current termite infestation or an infestation that is about to happen, swift corrective action must be undertaken in a comprehensive fashion to ensure that your home is secure and safe.

It important to note that winged flying termites are not dangerous and do not pose a threat to us or our health. Rather, it is the offspring of flying termites that accumulate into a mass force of eating and destroying power against your property which thus creates a threat to your home. This is why regular termite control is essential for protecting the structural integrity of your home… which is very likely your most expensive investment.

When do flying termites swarm and come out?

While flying termites are essentially harmless, they are at the same time of critical importance due to their status of new and burgeoning termite colonies springing up. Most often seen in the spring season when temperatures steadily start rising, flying termites will take flight and seek out new locales for their spawn to feed.

Video explaining why flying termites come out and swarm (mainly they’re attempting to mate and establish a new colony).

In determining the existence of flying termite infestations (also known as swarmers), after getting a visual sighting of a winged termite like the subterranean termite (not to be confused with a species of wood-eating ants that can also sprout wings—carpenter ants), there are some critically important steps that you should be taking as these populations can increase in numbers immensely in very short times.

Gaining control over an impending or current termite infestation can be ensured by making visual examinations of common areas that are prone to termite activity:

  • Rotten, dead wood anywhere: Termites are almost entirely found on or near rotted wood elements as they eat away at the wood (including wood flooring). Any sign of rotten wood with darkened or blistered areas is an indication of a hidden termite population existing within your home.
  • Termite mud tubes: Running along cracks, sidings, and behind baseboards and under floors, mud tubes are a favored locale for hidden termite populations.

After Visually Checking These Areas For Termite Activity, It’s Prudent To Determine The Type Of Termite Species That You Might Be Dealing With:

When carrying out a termite inspection, identifying which termite species could be about to turn into a termite problem is difficult. However, drywood termite swarms are much smaller in size than subterranean termite swarms, with swarmers including roughly a little over one hundred swarming termites. Due to the swarm’s minimal size, the common warning signs of a termite infestation might not be readily seen as soon as other swarms like Dampwood termite swarms.

Flying Termites

Dampwood termite swarms tend to swarm in the summer season and are less destructive to homes and property than their drywood counterparts.

Rarely nesting within homes due to the low-moisture content rendering a termite incapable of surviving, dampwood termites can often be found in wooded areas outside of homes and ubiquitous places like utility poles, which should always be checked when carrying out a termite inspection.

While flying termites, their massive army of offspring, and different types of swarms are forces to be reckoned with, there is a multitude of measures you can undertake to ensure that you reduce and eliminate populations of these destructive insects from your home.

Our easy-to-read graph shown below illustrates some of the most popular and effective ways to thwart termite populations in preemptive ways.

Preventative Termite Measures

Here are some things you can do to prevent termite from finding your property attractive and to prevent termites from infesting a building:

  1. Take care to ensure that gardens and trees are not located too close to the walls of a home, in addition to ensuring that greenery does not grow against wooden surfaces
  2. Ensure that windows are screened, particularly if they are framed in wooden material
  3. Pest control includes routine checks on the exterior of your home for signs of rotting wood and mud tunnels
  4. Do not encourage termite activity by piling wood directly outside of your home—these insects love it.
  5. Repair roofing, roof tiles, soffits, and fascias to discourage termite activity and good maintenance habits.
  6. Ensure crawl spaces, attics, and basements are well-ventilated, dry, and free of all moisture
  7. Keep your home’s foundation free of mulch

  8. Don’t let water accumulate in clogged pipes; ensure that gutters and pipes are clear, functioning, and draining properly
  9. Install termite barrier systems such as chemical barriers and/or physical barriers
  10. Check your property for damaged trees that are susceptible to moisture and attracting termites
  11. Fix all leaks swiftly
  12. Do routine inspections and maintenance checks for leaks, cracks, and malfunctions located in and out of your home
  13. Ensure vents are not blocked in any way
  14. Block and fill common termite entry points (example: cracks in cement)

What do flying termites mean for homeowners or business owners?

Flying termites typically indicate the presence of a termite infestation and impending destruction of homes and their infrastructures.

Those individuals who are experienced with termite issues are well aware of the significance of a flying termite sighting and would immediately take preventative action with the knowledge that flying termites are a harbinger of bigger things to come, such as termite swarms and infestations.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O2Dp5uBX-Z8
Video explaining some easy steps to prevent termite swarmers from getting into your home.

Termites’ mass cumulative power causes significant damage to walls, flooring, and more within homes as they feed upon any and all materials within your domain that they find palatable.

The destructive tendencies of interior termites are vast and cannot be emphasized enough; not only should humans take immediate corrective and preventative actions with effective pest control, but they should aspire to not only reduce the number of termites dramatically from within their home but to flush out the entire colony’s existence.

Flying Termite And Flying Ant

Comprehensive termite eradication is a measure that can be undertaken with the multitude of do-it-yourself extermination products that are widely available in the consumer market. Plenty of budget-friendly options are available that encompass individual needs,

whether termite baits are preferred or liquid formulations featuring high-performance and powerful chemicals, or even at-home termite killing recipes that make use of such things as bleach, vinegar, lemons, and cinnamon. With a degree of effort and patience, individuals can use many of these tactics to remove the presence of termites successfully.

Professional termite companies tend to be the first choice among individuals looking for at termite eradication measures and they also tend to yield the best results for comprehensive termite extermination.

Many professional extermination companies are available to service your home and property and feature an array of options and materials to fit your highly individual needs. Often, these companies will offer first-time customer coupons or will accept competitor coupons, in addition to price-matching their services to competitor pricing.

Whether you choose the DIY route or elect to hire professional extermination services, sighting a flying termite does not have to be a source of extreme stress and anxiety.

Conversely, with the high-performing, extremely efficacious products on the market, exterminating termites can be a relatively painless process that becomes even easier when you hire an extermination professional.

Flying Termite

By David Jackson

I enjoy learning about new pest control strategies and sharing what I learn at NeverPest.com. I aim to create a reliable resource for people dealing with all sorts of pest issues.

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