Wood Destroying Insects

Carpenter Ants

Carpenter ants get their name because they excavate wood in order to build their nests. Their excavation results in smooth tunnels inside the wood. Size ranges from one-fourth inch for a worker ant to up to three-fourths inch for a queen in the most common species.

Carpenter ants range from red to black in color and build nests in deteriorating, moist wood; often the colony will extend its nest into adjacent, sound wood. They are commonly found in porch pillars and roofs, window sills, telephone poles, live and dead trees, rotting logs, and stumps and wood in contact with soil. Carpenter ants damage wood through their nest building. If they gain entry to a structure, they pose a property threat.

Termites

Subterranean termites are small, creamy white to dark brown insects about a 1/8 inch long. They do billions of dollars of damage to homes and commercial property in the USA every year! Subterranean termites live in underground colonies with as many as two million members. Their lifestyle is much like that of an ant except, they do it all underneath the soil's surface—termites tunnel along randomly looking for wood to consume. 

Our termite program involves the installation of a termite baiting system. Wood can also be treated directly if termites are inside. We focus on future termite activity with an ongoing monitoring program while maintaining your system.

Powder Post Beetles

Powderpost beetles lay their eggs in cracks of wood and the larvae tunnel into the surface, filling it with a very fine powder-like dust. Powderpost beetles have long, narrow, flat bodies that allow them to easily attack wood surfaces. These beetles are reddish-brown in color.