Termite Control Through The Seasons

Termites are an elusive pest. You rarely, if ever, actually see the bug itself. More often you’ll see hints and reminders that they are lurking somewhere behind your walls. If you’ve ever experienced a termite infestation in your home you may have noticed that there are times of the year that they are more active than others, leaving trails of tiny wings behind on your windowsill.

It makes sense that, like other bugs, termites have a routine that revolves around the seasons. Spring, summer, fall, and winter each bring on different parts of the termite’s life cycle and therefore certain termite control methods work best in specific times of the year.

It’s important to note that in temperate climates as we experience in the southern United States, the seasons are more calendar events than they are weather events. So, for much of the year, termites maintain their very active lifestyles. This, combined with our warm, wet weather is why we experience so much termite damage throughout the year.

Spring, Summer, and Fall
For the sake of simplicity let’s just lump these first three seasons together. For residents of the state of Florida, the weather gets warm in the springtime, a little hotter and wetter in the summer, and generally remains warm throughout the fall. These seasons are the time of year that termites swarm, specifically in the months between March and November, which is admittedly most of the year. You will know when termites swarm your home because they leave the telltales signs including discarded wings, droppings (referred to as frass), and an increased amount of visible damage. If you have subterranean termites you may also see small tubes appear from the ground up the foundation of your home.

During this large portion of the year, termites are most active and may not stick around in one place long enough to be subjected to your termite control efforts.

Winter
During colder temperatures, Subterranean Termites move their nests deeper underground to stay warm. But, they still need to eat. Unlike some other insects, termites don’t hibernate, they simply seek more comfortable housing. So, while some termites dig deeper underground, others make themselves comfortable within the heated walls of your home. For this reason, colder weather is a great time to implement termite control techniques like fumigation. Once the bugs are nestled up comfortably within your walls they become sitting ducks for a professional termite control team.

Termite infestation is worth taking seriously, but it’s also an event that occurs to most Floridian homeowners at one time or another. If you think termites have moved into your home, no matter what time of year, give us a call and we’ll provide you with a free estimate for our termite control services.