| A lot of people ask me, "How did I get these termites | | | | looking for, but moisture. Subterranean Termites need |
| in my home?" Well, there is an answer, but it is a long | | | | lots of moisture, so wet conditions around your home |
| one. Without explaining the habits of Subterranean | | | | will contribute to foraging near your foundation. Damp |
| Termites, it is difficult for a homeowner to understand | | | | crawl spaces could also be a problem that can |
| how and why they are inside the house. | | | | encourage foraging termites to check out your house. |
| If I could give a one-word answer though, one that | | | | If you do not have a concrete floor in a crawl space, |
| would define the nature of a termite colony that | | | | you might have termites tunnel under the crawl space |
| permitted it to get where it got, is the word "Foraging". | | | | foundation and come right in. I have seen termites built |
| "What is that?", you ask. Foraging is the natural habit of | | | | "shelter tubes" (dirt tubes that they use to keep |
| Subterranean Termites that drives them into anything | | | | moisture when traveling out the ground itself) right out |
| that has wood fibers. It could be your tree stump in the | | | | of the dirt in a crawl space and go straight up into a |
| back yard, a wood pile up against the house, or simply | | | | joist. What is amazing, is that the moisture brought |
| wood siding that is too close to the soil. All these | | | | them in; the joist was the pot of gold. |
| conditions will encourage a termite colony already | | | | Do not ever let a foraging colony of termites fool you, |
| present in the ground to be tempted to check out your | | | | just because they are outside, does not mean they |
| house. By "check out", I mean look for any accessible | | | | cannot get in. Given enough time, along with natural |
| wood. I do not mean exposed wood necessarily. Even | | | | settling that a home has, can allow for termites to wait |
| though your basement sill is not exposed to the | | | | until the opportune time, and bam-there in! When it |
| outside, it is accessible to a termite who needs only 1 | | | | comes to Subterranean Termites, foraging can be a |
| 32 of an inch to get in! | | | | problem for your home unless you are aware that |
| Termite foraging is the process that termites use to | | | | they are already there. |
| find their food. It may not just be wood that they are | | | | |