How to Spot Termites in Drywall : 13 Signs

Termites in drywall

Termites in drywall can be a challenging problem to deal with, but there are treatment options available. These pesky insects need moist areas and a constant source of food to survive. The walls, floors, and wood beams in your home may also be affected by termite infestations. A professional pest control company can help you repair your walls and provide preventive services to prevent future termite infestations.

A termite colony can be dangerous to your home, as they can ruin the wooden foundation of your house. However, you can prevent termites from getting into your drywall by using some preventive measures. First, make sure to inspect the walls of your home regularly for damage. If you can hear hollow noises when you tap on the walls, that’s a sign that there are termites in your drywall.

Another option is to use a chemical called diatomaceous earth. This pesticide is effective in almost any environment, and is safe for humans. It works by puncturing the exoskeletons of these pests and killing them. Secondly, you should apply a tarp on the floor, as well as on nearby furniture.

Termites in wood

If you notice that there is a lot of dry powder dust on your floors near the walls of your home, you are likely experiencing termite infestation. This is the result of termites eating the cellulose present in wood. If you notice this kind of dust, you should call a professional termite exterminator to get rid of these creatures.

Termites excrete waste

If you see piles of feces next to small holes in your drywall, termites are likely infesting the area. Termites excrete frass, a material that resembles sawdust, in addition to waste. They usually feed on wood and build their nests inside the walls, but they will also make holes in drywall to deposit their waste. While termites will leave these piles in their drywall, they prefer to keep them far from where they work or sleep.

Termites build mud tubes

If you’re wondering how termites get into your home, the first step is to see if you can find any evidence of termites. The presence of mud tubes can indicate an active infestation. If you notice mud tubes, break off the top part of the tube and look inside. You might even see termites moving in the tube as you open it.

Termites eat wood

When termites eat wood in drywall, it’s easy to spot their presence because termites leave tiny holes. These holes look like pinpricks. Termites also leave small oval pellets that are called termite frass. This term is also used to describe their feces.

Termites damage drywall

Termites can damage drywall and wood framing in your home. If this happens, you will have to replace the drywall. If you suspect that termites have damaged your drywall, you should seek a termite inspection. Afterward, you can contact a remodeling contractor to repair the drywall.

Termites damage wood

It is important to know how to treat a termite infestation in drywall. The types of treatments will vary, depending on the species responsible. Drywood termites and subterranean termites both need different methods of control. Using a trained professional is an excellent first step, especially if you suspect that a termite infestation has taken place.

Termites eat wood from the inside out

Termites are a common pest that can cause a lot of damage to a home. They feed on wood and can easily enter a home through cracks and crevices. Using spray foam or caulk to seal them will help keep out the termites. Also, removing any sources of wood from your property will help prevent termite problems in your home. Get rid of dead trees in your yard, and remove any wooden structures from your foundation.

Termites damage wood from the inside out

Termites are pests that can cause extensive damage to drywall and wood structures in homes. In addition to destroying wood, they also damage drywall and support beams. The signs of a termite infestation are often subtle, but they can lead to extensive damage. Identifying the signs of an infestation is essential for preventing further damage to your home.

Subterranean Termites Or Walls Termites – The Termite Species That Attack Walls

Subterranean Termites are the most common cause of termite damage in the U.S. They live in loose, damp soil and create underground tunnels towards food sources. Subterranean termite colonies can become very large, so if you notice any potential activity there’s a good chance that many more are close by.

Here are some signs of termite infestation that homeowners and commercial building owners should be aware of:

Termite droppings and Termite swarmers

Termites dropping near walls are often ignored but it can signal an endemic infection. If you see termites swarming on the walls and find dropped or missing bird wing feathers, you have a high probability that the termites are residing at your residence. Schedule immediate termite testing so the termite inspector can evaluate the severity of the pest infestation before he begins treatment.

Thin lines on the Drywall

It shows an extremely noticeable termite problem in the walls. Termites living under the walls are usually moved around to the place and burrow into the walls. Generally, the particles are moved into walls, so paint will blister or swell. Occasionally these small tunnels could even be visible beneath drywall walls.

Mud Tubes at the base of the walls

Subterranean termites require moisture and therefore a mud tube to reach its nesting site and other parts of walls. This mud tube serves to protect against predators. Even though it is difficult to see a mud tube, contact your local termite exterminator instead.

Because subterranean termites need moisture to survive, they build tubes known as mud tubes, exit tubes or shelter tubes that basically act as protective termite tunnels when they’re not underground.

Pin-sized holes on walls

Whenever you notice pinholes in drywall or walls it’s time to contact a reliable termite repair service. Drywood termites typically reside in walls and require exits. These tiny holes indicate the presence of termite nests within your wall.

If you find a hole in your ceiling or wall, check for small piles of termite feces beneath or near the hole.

Clicking sounds in the wall

When the termites are severe, it can be heard clicking sounds inside the house when the property remains quiet. It is also possible to listen to these sounds through the use of a steroscope.

This “head banging” creates a strange clicking sound that’s a sure sign of termite activity.

Termite dust at the base of the walls

Those little piles of powdered dust are signs of possible termite infestation. These powder dust types of material are commonly called frass and contain the excretum of termites.

Carpenter Ants near the walls

Carpenter ants eat termites which attract them to areas with termites infestations. If you notice ants frequently appear on wall surfaces, they are probably indicating termites.

Exterior signs of home termite damage

Termites can be detected easily. While termites require regular inspections, they can cause significant damage. See if they’re there.

Often spotted in spring or early summer and after a rain, these may have been shed by swarming termites that exited the colony in order to reproduce and form new colonies. Swarmer termites flying or crawling near a window, exterior door or light fixture in or around your home.

Flying termites

Swarms are large groups in adult stages called a larva. They can fly from the ground in swarms from sand, or in spring cracks. Problems arise because these life stages are relatively short-lived and easily missed outside. You may notice the wings which were taken off immediately after the swarm. Unlike many other termite stages, swarms migrate towards sunlight.

Swarming activity

You will probably miss these adults on the flight home. Usually, swarms are found in the walls or inside walls and buried with long white wings that are not used. Occasionally you can find small exit holes on drywall.

Termite excrement

Also known as frass, the tiny pellets smashed with digested wood come to light as termite tubes are cleaned out. It might be noticed on the interior floors as a dark brown substance.

Dead termites

Older termites die when a new generation lives within your walls. Usually dead bugs look like black-colored white cream or translucent. Even a winged ant is usually black.

Tiny pinholes on the walls

The tiny pinhole holes in the walls surface are the escape points of swarms of the pest termite. Termites that have been buried within walls create these holes so as not to invade them. Another angle is that termites have resurfaced in this wall. Fly termites invade my home and attack and hit me. Drywood termites can easily enter homes. Depending upon where this happens, termites are spotted on your floors.

Wall Paints Are Failing Off

It’s possible the wall is filled with termites. The wall suddenly appears to be absorbing water. Paint bubbles are created on wall surfaces. And the walls start peeling away. What is wrong with this? When walls become hollow, they absorb moisture. The moisture evaporates as temperatures rise. This causes blisters of paint to form. Bubble forming around a wall and the peeling paint disappears. The walls appear to have been severely flooded. But there’ll be no water damage. Its an infestation of termites. It can even cause the walls to lose their shine or appear damp.

Doors or windows lose grip with the walls

Termites in walls can weaken the walls by hollowing the walls out. This can also cause doorways to a little wobbly. It happens that they are leaving their positions. It makes it difficult when you open and close the door. The window or the doors also show a slightly angled position. It wasn’t just this. Dents appear also at skirtboards that have been accidentally hit by an air cleaner while they are clean. Termites have internal damage caused if they eat boards constantly. These will even be seen through the windows of your door frames.

Termite dust at the walls’ base

Dust at wall surfaces indicates termite damage, and many people think of it as ordinary dust. Dust can include termites, feces or droppings, or dust from walls. This is removed through small voids that lie beneath the walls or underneath damaged wood. It appears like mud underneath tiny holes in wood. These dust are also called termite dust. The termites dust is different from wood dusts. The termites contain termites faeces. Those small black pepper pieces are spotted in dust. It will look like dirt containing tiny black pebbles.

Cracks On The Baseboards And Floors

Invasions of termites begin underground. If your termites have holes in the walls, you may want to look inside the floors. You may also observe thin or small streaks of dirt on the baseboard walls. Further investigation may also indicate traces of structural beam securing floor boards. To double check, tap the baseboard or the wood flooring. It’s just an empty sound. And even when tapping hard, the floor may buckle. When carpets on the ground are tilting up. Do not be surprised when termites appear on carpets.

Is there a termite cocoon?

Termites do nothing but create cocoons. Cocoones are small pods of silky thread which some insects make as protection during traumatic periods in their lifetime. Detecting a cocoon will indicate no termites. Cocoons can indicate the presence of a variety of parasites in a household. Subterranean termites make water tubes, which are seen or confused in people’s minds, with cocoons. Seeing something that appears to be hollow from dirt is an ominous indicator that termites may be present at your house or garage.

Mud tubes on walls

Termites can build mud tubes in wall cavities and build colonies on your walls. Termites make these tubes shaped by saliva or urine. It helps to prevent predatory ants from eating wood worms. mud pipes rise up from the foundation of a house. The termites attack habitations underground by digging underground. If mud is leaking through your walls and floors, then there are clear signs. These creatures build mazes of tunnels beneath the tubes of dirt. This is a tunnel that termites have nesting within walls.

On exterior walls, especially exterior stem walls. (Stem walls are the structures that join a building’s foundation to the vertical walls that are built on the foundation.)