Signs of Termites in Your House: Droppings, Wings, and Soft Wood
Seeing what looks like coffee grounds on a windowsill? Little wings by the back door? Paint that's bubbled up for no reason? Any one of those is worth a phone call. Here's how to tell what you're looking at.
Think you've found them? Austin, our termite tech, comes out, looks at what you found, and tells you what it is. No charge to come look. If it's not termites, we'll tell you that too, and you're out nothing.
Droppings or sawdust?
Rub a pinch of it between your fingers. Termite droppings feel like coarse sand. Hard, dry pellets, every one the same size. Sawdust feels soft and uneven. Or if you'd rather not touch termite poop, call us and we'll come look at it for you.
The one sign that nearly settles it
Look closely at where the pile is coming from. Drywood termites push their droppings out through tiny holes in the wood, called kick-out holes, about the size of a pinhead. Then they seal the hole back up. If you find a small pile sitting below what looks like a pinprick in the wood itself, that's about as close to a confirmed answer as you can get without us coming out.
Under a magnifying glass, the pellets are six-sided, not round. Carpenter ant debris never looks like that. Ants don't eat wood. They just chew through it and kick the shredded pieces out, along with dead ant parts.
Wings, blisters, and soft wood
Wings count too. When termites swarm, the flyers shed their wings after they land, and depending on the time of year you'll see wings before you ever see a pellet. Paint that's blistered or bubbled up, or wood soft enough that your finger goes through it, same thing.
Why you see signs but no termites
This part confuses almost everybody. You've got a pile of pellets, you've cleaned it up twice, and you still haven't seen a single bug. That's normal. They live inside the wood, not on it. It's also why the pile comes back after you clean it up. The colony's still in there, still eating, still pushing it out.
What happens when you call
You tell us what you're seeing. Austin comes out and looks at it, and at the wood around it, because the pile you found is usually not the only colony in the house. Then he tells you straight what it is and what it'll take. If it's drywood termites, most houses can be treated without a tent. If yours is one of the ones that really does need a tent, you'll hear that from us too.
Want to know what the treatment itself looks like? Here's how we treat without a tent. Not sure what kind of termite you've got? Here's how to tell drywood from the rest.
Our guarantee: if the bugs come back, so do we. That holds as long as you keep your annual renewal inspection current.
What customers say
"From the initial phone call for information, to the consult and actual treatment of the house, everyone at Coby's has been nothing short of amazing. Top notch customer service from the owner, not a contractor, is so hard to find. I did not have to move out, there was no nasty odors and an automatic guarantee for retreating if termites come back! I would (and have) recommended Coby without hesitation!"
— Jennifer Jordan"Great job at a great price! We noticed some termite signs in our home and called Coby. He showed up right on time and gave us an estimate of the cost of the work to be done. He gave the rest of the home a very thorough inspection and came back a few days later and took care of our termite problem. We couldn't be happier!"
— Al LefflerHere's why I'd call sooner than later. If you're seeing pellets but you haven't seen a swarm yet, there's a good chance you caught this early, and early is a much smaller job. A drywood colony takes about five years to get big enough to throw swarmers. Once that starts, one colony turns into several somewhere else in the same house. Finding it before that happens is the best position you can be in.
As long as GOD keeps making them, we'll keep killing them. You have a great day.
Coby