Look around sill plates, joists, any load bearing wooden beams, etc. If you can see where the termites have left their trail, dig into the wood with a screwdriver and see how much wood they’ve eaten out. The most obvious sign of structural damage would be sagging floors, where the underlying support has been eaten away. As far as determining the amount of damage and the cost to repair such damage, you should take a structural engineer/contractor with you. Good luck!
Termites, what to look for? - Posted by Tim Jensen
Posted by Tim Jensen on December 22, 1999 at 20:59:49:
Hi All,
I put a bid on a house and discovered that it has termites. I am going to take a closer look tommorrow, is there anything I should look for in the way of structural damage?
Moer to the point, where should I look for structural damage?
Aside from damage that is present in the structure right now, if this is going to be a long term hold for you, you may also want to consider whether the home has conditions which may be conducive to termite infestation generally. These include moisture conditions in the structure itself such as leaks in the roof which permit moisture into the attic or conditions on the property which, for example, might lead to an accumulation of standing water under a pier home. Find out if there is moisture damage in addition to the termite damage – if there is and the moisture problem has not been corrected, then you may have more problems in the future. Also look for areas where there is direct wood to ground contact - this provides termites a means to enter the structure undetected. If it is a slab home, hopefully the entire slab is visually accessible so that termite tunnels can be seen. If the conditions in the home do not permit you to observe the termites entering the structure, then the termites can feast on the wood in the home and you may not know they’re there until they have caused a significant amount of damage. Also, many pier homes have wood and other debris strewn about underneath the home that is conducive to termite infestation, and contractors tend to throw wood under porches, for example, rather than hauling it away.
Re: Termites = Tunnels in the ground and woodwork - Posted by Millie I.
Posted by Millie I. on December 22, 1999 at 22:54:09:
Tim,
We just sold a house that we renovated, there was a little evidence of termite under the front entrance. We called Orkin, they came out and treated the whole house. $900 for a large 3BR house. ( Orkin charges nothing for termite examination to produce a bid ). They made small holes one foot apart all around the outside of the house near the ground, and all around concrete basement floor on the inside, added treatment, then coverd the holes back up. Treatment is a one time thing.
Termite move from house to house in tunnels underground, then they go up to the woodwork and feast on it. Look for TUNNELS.