Termites are extremely important in nature because they recycle fallen trees back into soil. Unfortunately, a termite cannot tell the difference between a pine log and a pine board. Termites cause more destruction to wood products and structures in homes than any other insect. Therefore, homeowners must understand termites and how they can be controlled.
Termites are social insects that live in highly organized colonies. Like many insects, termites have an egg, an immature, and an adult stage. There are three main types of adults: reproductives, soldiers, and workers. The reproductives include the king and queen and supplementary reproductives that produce eggs. The soldiers protect the colony from attackers such as ants. Workers are the heart of the colony. They clean and care for all the other termites and forage for food (wood and paper products).
When a colony is several years old and relatively large, it may produce another form of adult termite called a "swarmer."
Swarmers have four wings, are often brown or black, and range in size from approximately 1/4 to 3/8 inch. Swarmers are the colony's way of sending out new kings and queens to start colonies of their own. In the spring, great numbers of swarmers can fly from a single colony.
Swarmers are the most visible form of termite. Usually a homeowner realizes termites are present in or around the home when a swarm is seen. Swarming termites can be confused with many ants that swarm in the spring. If you look closely, you can see that swarming ants have elbowed antennae, a narrow waist, and front wings that are longer than the back wings. Swarming termites have straight antennae, a thick waist, and all the wings are the same length.
As their name indicates, subterranean termites usually live underground, excavating passageways to reach wood. Their passageways can be quite complex, extending 10 feet underground and over an acre in area. The soil provides a source of moisture that protects the termites from drying and shields them from predators. The soil also provides building materials for the protective shelter tubes the termites use to forage for wood above the ground.
Termite Control
The best way to protect your home against termite attack is with a combination of prevention and inspection.
Prevention The best control method is protecting your house from attack. For example, if you are building a new house, make sure there will be several inches (at least) between the soil and any lumber. This distance will force the subterranean termites to build shelter tubes, which are about the width of a pencil, from the ground to reach the wood in your house. The tubes make it easier to find and control areas where termites attack.
When building, your contractor should remove all roots, stumps, grade stakes, scrap lumber, and other wood debris before your house is completed. After completion, continue to keep wood debris from collecting under or near your house, including piles of firewood.
Homes built over a crawl-space should have good ventilation and possibly a vapor barrier to keep moisture levels low. The finished grade on all buildings should slope away from the foundation to keep water from collecting near the house. Proper construction and repair of gutters, roofs, pipes, and other potential sources of water for above-ground termite infestation are very important.
You should also ask your contractor about additional building practices he or she plans to use to reduce the chance of termite infestation, such as capping foundation walls and using treated lumber.
Chemical control insecticide treatments (termiticides) or termite baits must be used to control established termite colonies.
Termiticides should be applied only by a certified pest control applicator. Successful termite treatments require many gallons of diluted soil termiticides applied with specialized equipment. Termiticide application at this level is beyond the ability of most homeowners. Baits that are placed in the soil around the home have shown a lot of promise in recent years. To protect your home, the environment, and yourself, employ a professional pest control company.
Remember, your home is probably the most expensive purchase you will make in your lifetime. With a little time and a little knowledge, termite damage can be avoided.
WOOD BORING BEETLES
After termites, wood-boring beetles are the most important wood-destroying insects in homes.
The amount of damage that wood-boring beetles cause depends on many factors. The type of wood (hardwood or softwood), the moisture of the wood, and the environmental conditions at the infestation site all affect the severity of beetle damage.
Only the larvae damage wood. The female lays an average of twenty to fifty eggs in crevices or on the ends of boards. When they hatch, the tiny larvae bore down into the wood (Photo 4). As the larvae grow, they bore to a point just underneath the surface of the wood, there they change into adults.
After they change, the adults cut a 1/32- to 1/16-inch circular exit hole in the surface of the wood. Often, powdery wood dust created by the beetle's feeding is pushed out as the adult beetle emerges. This is why they are called "powderpost" beetles.
Males and females exit at the same time and mate, and the new generation of females lay eggs again.
Wood Boring Beetles Control
Fumigation is usually the recommended treatment for wood boring beetles. The penetration of fumigants can kill wood-boring beetles in all areas of the home. However, fumigants cannot prevent future wood-boring beetle infestations. Borates sprayed onto wood surfaces is also an effective means for controlling beetles
ANTS
CARPENTER ANTS
What is a Carpenter Ant?
(1/4" - 1/2" long) Nesting in damp locations, carpenter ants prefer to excavate wood that has been damaged by water. From their nests in the beams, floors or walls, they scavenge the house for food crumbs and insects. Carpenter ants may occur in several colors, although the most important species are black.
One of the largest members of the ant family, carpenter ants take their name from their habit of chewing passageways (called "galleries") inside wood. They live in these galleries and make excursions, most often at night, to hunt for food and water. These ants often set up satellite colonies inside homes from parent colonies located outside in a tree or landscape timber.
Where You'll Find Carpenter Ants
Carpenter ants love damp climates and moist areas – damp wood, any dark void, a few morsels of food. Places that get a lot of rain are especially susceptible. So are homes built in heavily wooded areas or in low, shady places where the ground stays damp. In your home, you're likely to find carpenter ants nesting around a sink in the kitchen or bathroom. Maybe even around plumbing leaks, clogged gutters and downspouts.
A clean house is no guarantee. When carpenter ants move in, the first thing they do is look for food. Unlike termites, carpenter ants do not eat wood. They search for syrup, honey, jelly, meat, fruit, grease, fat, and other domestic foods. If these favorites are not available in your home, the ants will feed on dead or living insects or any other type of organic matter.
To construct their galleries, carpenter ants tear bits of wood and place them outside the nest. These sawdust-looking piles, called frass, may be the first visible sign that carpenter ants are present. Left unchecked for a period of time, these galleries can become quite large. While the primary nest is found in damp wood, carpenter ants establish many satellite colonies. This makes them difficult to control, especially since colonies may be found in any dark void- hollow curtain rods, hollow-core doors, ceilings, dead wall space, etc.
Carpenter ants mature in about two months and immediately start enlarging the nest. First year broods are small, with only 10 to 20 workers. But in a few years, when the colony has thousands of workers, small tunnels become major expressways connecting many hidden galleries. You may not be aware that a strong colony is firmly entrenched in your home until it is too late.
Telltale Signs of Carpenter Ants
Trails of workers around the kitchen, pantry, and other areas where food is stored
Sawdust-like material that workers kick out of their nests during excavation
Listen for ant sounds in the quiet of the night. When the ants are chewing, or simply moving around in the nest, they make a sound like rustling cellophane.
If you see or hear any of these signs, you may have carpenter ants.
You need to have a well-constructed plan for dealing with carpenter ants. If you suspect carpenter ants have invaded your home, it's best to seek immediate treatment. Professionals make a thorough inspection of your home, inside and out. Depending on your home's construction and the location of the main nest and satellite colonies, these professionals will use a variety of methods to treat the problem. These might include crack and crevice treatment, inner wall treatments, or even fumigation.
Reinfestation by Carpenter Ants
Reinfestation by carpenter ants is a constant threat. Only regular inspections and preventive service can keep them out.
Nesting Sites of Carpenter Ants
Dead limbs of living trees
Under attic insulation.
Hollow trees
Roofs
Interior wall voids
Hollow core doors
Under exterior siding
Ceilings
Supports in crawl space
Exterior wall voids
Stumps
Wood pile
Sill plates
Between insulation and subfloors
Roots of dead trees
Points of Entry for Carpenter Ants
Clogged drains and gutters
Fencing next to home
Wiring entrances
Edges of fireplace brick
Window casings
Door frames
Vines and plants touching home
Edges of siding
Mulch around home
Crawl space vent
Plumbing
Wood in contact with soil
Carpenter Ant Facts
Are typically large ants up to 5/8-inch long; color varies from black, brown & black, red and black, to light brown depending on the species. The two most common pest species are black in color.
Most common pest ant seen in homes throughout the northern United States from the east to west coast.
The main colony must have a constant source of moisture to survive so it is usually located in dead wood outside, e.g., dead limbs, tree holes, stumps, landscape timbers, etc. Indoors, a main colony will have to be associated with a water leak or an overly wet, poorly ventilated crawlspace or attic.
The main colony may establish satellite colonies that are the primary source of ant activity inside homes. These satellite colonies may be located in any suitable void, under attic insulation, etc. Colonies have even been found by Terminix professionals inside hollow doors, curtain rods, shower rods, and once inside an alarm clock!
These ants set up trunk trails between the main colony to satellite colonies and between satellite colonies. Foraging ants can most easily be seen along these trunk trails at night when the ants are most active. Sometimes, the trunk trails occur beneath the ground following tree roots.
Since carpenter ants may forage as far as 200 yards or further, the main colony may be located on a neighboring property.
Carpenter ants feed on a wide variety of foods, especially other insects. The favored food of adults is the sweet honeydew produced by plant-feeding insects, such as aphids, scales, and mealybugs.
In the spring, mature colonies produce winged reproductives, called swarmers, that fly out to start new colonies. These swarms often occur from satellite colonies within homes so a homeowner may see large flying ants in their home at night.
Carpenter ant queens are about 3/4-inch in length while the males are smaller at 1/2-inch. The color varies depending on the species.
Carpenter ants can be very difficult to control so most homeowners employ the services of a qualified professional.
PAVEMENT ANTS
Pavement ants are small ants about 1/8th inch long and dark brown to black in color. They are found throughout the eastern half of the US and are a major pest in the upper Midwest. The name for this ant comes from its habit of nesting under sidewalks and driveways and piling dirt removed from the nest in a mound on top of the pavement.
In addition to nesting under sidewalks, pavement ants colonies can be found under other items lying on top of the ground, including stones, logs, boards, bricks and patio blocks. They may nest in open soil close to building foundations or under mulch in landscaped beds. Only rarely do the ants nest indoors in walls, under floors or in insulation.
Control of pavement ants should begin with an attempt to locate the nest site. Ants entering buildings from outdoors can be discouraged by sealing as many cracks and gaps in exterior walls as possible. Also, correct poor foundation drainage and repair water leaks.
ODOROUS HOUSE ANTS
Odorous house ants are small ants about 1/8th inch long and dark brown in color. They are found throughout the US and in spite of their name, are only an occasional pest in the house. Their name comes from the disagreeable odor similar to the smell of rotten coconuts that is given off when the worker ants are crushed.
Odorous house ants commonly nest outdoors in the soil under stones, logs, mulch, debris and other items. They will also nest indoors in wall and floor voids, particularly in moist or warm areas. If only a few workers (wingless ants) are observed in the house it is an indication that they are nesting outdoors and entering the house in search of food. If winged swarmers are found indoors, or if workers are consistently seen in great abundance, it likely indicates they are nesting within the house.
Control of odorous house ants should begin with an attempt to locate the origin of the ants. Careful and frequent observation may be necessary to develop an opinion about the source. Ants entering from outdoors can be discouraged by sealing as many cracks and gaps in exterior walls as possible.
PHARAOH ANTS
Pharaoh ants are very small in size, and light yellow to red in color with black markings on abdomen. Due to their extremely small size, they can be found in a diversity of places, appearing suddenly. They have a wide range of foraging and their nest are usually well hidden. They are very persistent, with large colonies.
Inside they are usually found in the kitchen and bathrooms, but workers are seen trailing along window sills, and baseboards. They can also be spotted near sources of water in the kitchen and bathrooms, counter tops, toilets,drains and sinks. They prefer to nest in recessed areas like wall voids,under some appliance, wall outlets, under carpet for protection, but they can also nest outdoors in lawns and gardens.
ROACHES
German
Adult German cockroaches are light brown except for the shield behind the head marked with two dark stripes, which run lengthwise on the body, and about 5/8 inch long. Young roaches are wingless and nearly black with a single light stripe running down the middle of the back. Egg capsules are light tan.
German cockroaches, are the most common roaches found in houses and restaurants. Most cockroaches have a flattened, oval shape, spiny legs, and long, filamentous antennae. Immature stages are smaller, have undeveloped wings and resemble the adults. They eat food of all kinds and may hitchhike into the house on egg cartons, soft drink cartons, sacks of potatoes or onions, used furniture, beer cases, etc.
They can develop into large populations and live throughout the house, especially in the kitchen and bathroom. During the day, these roaches may be found hiding clustered behind baseboard molding, in cracks around cabinets, closets or pantries, and in and under stoves, refrigerators and dishwashers. When seen during the day in clusters, the population is large.
Roaches can foul food, damage wallpaper and books, eat glue from furniture, and produce an unpleasant odor. Some homeowners are allergic to roaches. The pests can contaminate food with certain bacterial diseases that result in food poisoning, dysentery, or diarrhea.
American
American cockroaches are reddish brown and have a yellowish margin on the body region behind the head. They are usually around 1 and 1/2 inches long. When disturbed, may run rapidly and adults may fly. Immature cockroaches resemble adults except that they are wingless.
American cockroaches generally live in moist areas, but can survive in dry areas if they have access to water. They prefer warm temperatures around 84 degrees Fahrenheit and do not tolerate cold temperatures. In residential areas, these cockroaches live in basements and sewers, and may move outdoors into yards during warm weather. These cockroaches are common in basements, crawl spaces, cracks and crevices of porches, foundations, and walkways adjacent to buildings. They feed on a wide variety of plant and animal material.
Oriental
The Oriental cockroach known as the "water bug," is more closely associated with damp areas than the other common roaches. These insects feed on garbage and decaying organic matter and are often considered the filthiest of the house-infesting roaches. They are found in damp basements, cellars, crawl spaces, near drains, leaky water pipes and beneath refrigerators, sinks and washing machines, under floors, and inside walls. They forage mostly on first floors of buildings.
Outdoors, they are found beneath decomposing leaves or stones in mulching materials, in trash and at municipal sewer plants. During the autumn, there can be a mass movement into buildings, but because of their preference for cooler temperatures, can be found outdoors and in unheated buildings during the winter.
Adult Oriental cockroaches are shiny, dark brown or black, about 1 to 1-1/4-inch long and have nonfunctional wings incapable of flight. Females are about 1-1/4-inch long, broad and have only little pads for wings. Males are about one inch long, more slender and have wings not reaching the tip of the abdomen. Immature roaches (nymphs) are darker in color than adults, similarly shaped and wingless. Egg cases are dark reddish-brown, one inch long (largest of the common roaches), and appear slightly inflated.
Brown Banded
The adults are rather small cockroaches about 5/8 inch long. The adult male is slender in appearance with its wings extending beyond the tip of the abdomen. Adult females have shorter wings that expose a considerable portion of their broad abdomens. They have two light yellow or cream-colored bands across their backs. These bands tend to be hidden by the wings in the adults. The markings of the brown-banded cockroach are roughly crosswise while those of the German cockroach are lengthwise.
Brown-banded cockroaches are generally found on ceilings, high on walls, behind picture frames, and near motors of refrigerators and other appliances. They are also found in light switches, closets and furniture. They do not require as much moisture as the German cockroach which explains why they normally are found in rooms other than the kitchen or bathroom. These cockroaches dislike light and are not normally seen during the day.
Wood Roach (Pennsylvania)
Wood cockroaches, also known as wood roaches, are common outdoor dwelling insects native to North America and found throughout Iowa. Their normal habitat is moist woodland areas but they frequently become a household nuisance because they wander into or are carried into houses as "accidental invaders."
Wood roaches are very similar in appearance to the common household cockroach called the American roach; flat, oval body, long antennae, spiny legs, chestnut brown color. However, wood roaches are slightly smaller, about 3/4 to 1 1/4 inch long, and the adults, especially the males, appear tan because of the color of their wings. Adults and large nymphs of the wood roach can be recognized by a pale, creamy white or transparent stripe on the outer edge on the thorax. The pale edge extends onto the first 1/3 of the front wings of the adults. Positive identification of small nymphs is more difficult and usually requires microscopic examination.
Wood roaches that have wandered into the house usually behave differently than the household roaches. Wood roaches are not secretive; they are active both during the day and at night and they are less likely to scamper out of sight when approached. Also, they will wander about the house without congregating in any particular location.
CLUSTER FLIES
Have you ever noticed what looked like Houseflies inside your windows during the Fall and Winter months? A strange time
of year to find flies inside, right? Not so for the Cluster Fly. It is not uncommon to find hundreds, even thousands of
these creatures infesting homes in Western New York this time of year. Upstate New York is well known for it's problems
with these pests.
A little biology helps us to understand better. Cluster Flies spend all their time feeding and reproducing outdoors. The larval stage is parasitic to earthworms, their only food source. The adult fly feeds on flowers. Eggs are laid in cracks of the earth where the larval stage emerges and attaches to earthworms. Several generations will occur from May through August.
When evenings begin to cool in late August, Cluster Flies are attracted to the warm surfaces of buildings and take up shelter for the winter in wall voids and attics. There they sleep until unusual warmth in Fall and Winter wakes them. They then become a pest by "clustering" around windows and lights.
Problems with Cluster Flies are most acute in rural areas where large open spaces exist. Old farmhouses are particularly prone to Cluster Flies, though it is due more to the abundance of earthworms and a "drafty" house than animal waste and farm odors.
The biggest misconceptions about Cluster Flies can be corrected with understanding their life cycle. Their presence in a home is not due to unsanitary conditions. It is simply a place of hibernation - much like the cave to the bear. Keeping them out is better done by sealing openings than by cleaning up.
RODENTS
House mouse
The house mouse is, unfortunately, the species of mouse everyone thinks of when they hear the word mouse. It is because they live in close association with humans that they are one of the most familiar small mammals to humans. House mice are similar in size to our native deer mouse but they are a solid grayish-brown color above and below. Their tail is also scaly like a Norway rat and not covered with fur like the deer mouse.
House mice are occasionally found in fields, but usually in buildings. They will eat most anything and breed year round having as many as a dozen litters a year of 5-8 young each. Young are able to breed at six weeks. Because this mouse chooses to live near humans, it is considered a pest. This species is the one sought after in trapping and poisoning efforts by humans.
Norway Rat
This rat lives both with man, and in the open where vegetation is tall. It makes its home principally in a basement or a burrow under a sidewalk or outbuilding. It appears to be most common around feed stores, chicken houses and garbage dumps.
The Norway Rat is more at home on the ground, but has been seen crossing from one building to another along a telephone wire, so it is an excellent climber. Around poultry houses, the rat feeds extensively on eggs and young chickens. It has even been known to kill lambs and young pigs!
The Norway Rat is a source of food for the spotted skunk, barn owl and house cat, but because the rat is such a prolific breeder, these predators are often unable to keep the rat population in check.
This rat is known to be a reservoir of bubonic plague, endemic typhus fever, rat bite fever, and a few other dreaded diseases. Therefore, buildings and garbage cans should be rat-proofed.
FUNGUS (DRY ROT)
Wood Decay Fungi
Brown rot, white rot and soft rot are three classes of fungi that are listed according to the type of decay they cause. Wood decayed by brown rot fungi looks like dry leather and breaks easily into small cubical pieces. The strength of the wood decreases as the growth spreads. Most of the damage to structures is caused by brown rot. Wood decayed by white rot often assumes a bleached appearance, frequently has black lines through it and feels spongy. The strength of wood attacked by white rot decreases gradually with little loss in strength during early stages of decay. If caught soon enough White rot may be treated by spray of a bleach and scraped away. It is important to correct the moisture problem that caused the wet wood in the first place.
Soft rot fungi looks like brown rot but the affected wood softens gradually from the surface inward developing cavities (invisible to the naked eye) within the wood cell walls. Soft rot occurs in situations where wood is wet over a long period of time, such as an earth-to-wood contact.
Some types of decay fungi colonize only when some event such as a roof or plumbing leak brings wood that is below the fiber saturation point into contact with water for an extended period of time. Unfortunately, we cannot always see an event. Other types create root like strands, called rhizomorphs, which can wick water from wet portions of the wood to dry portions. Decay begins when dry wood reaches the fiber saturation point. Under certain conditions, rhizomorphs have been known to travel 25 ft. and break out again. They needed a long term source of moisture; an earth filled porch will do it. If you cut off the moisture, you stop the invasion and keep it from spreading throughout the house.
Four principles of decay prevention
Build with properly seasoned wood if possible.
Keep wood dry.
Break contact of untreated wood and soil.
Where soil must contact wood, use properly pressure treated lumber.
Condensation
One of the most frequent assaults on my sensitive nose and allergies is the odor of mold and mildew. Frequently when called by a client to inspect for pests, the most important tool turns out to be my nose. The odor of mold inside a home is a sure sign that a moisture problem exists.
We have encased ourselves against the elements in structures that attempt to create a comfort envelope against the elements. Condensation on the skins of this envelope is caused by temperature differentials and can lead to dry rot in flooring to paint discoloration from mold growth.
Prevention of Condensation
One way to eliminate condensation is to increase the thickness of dead air space between heated/cooled spaces and the varying temperature outdoors. Many styles of insulation come with a built in vapor barrier that helps keep humidity (the ability of air to hold water) down indoors. As humidity decreases (dry air) we feel more comfortable at lower temperatures.
Cold weather condensation can be prevented by placing moisture barriers on the warm side(inside) of insulated walls and ceilings. Warm weather condensation can be treated by increasing the air flow by use of fans and by decreasing the humidity of crawl spaces, by use of adequate ventilation, soil drainage, soil covers and mechanical dehumidification. In theory warm weather condensation should also be treated by placing a vapor barrier on the outside (warm) of insulated walls. However, research has shown that an impermeable moisture barrier installed over studs will cause problems with sidings in areas of very hot moist conditions. Walls wrapped with permeable membrane(ie; Tyvek house wrap) out performed less permeable materials such as 30# felt, because they allow the moisture laden air to escape.
When mold and decay occur over broad areas not associated with a specific source of water (like a plumbing leak), the problem is either water conducting decay fungi or conventional decay fungi growing on wood that has been wetted by condensation. In the latter case the fungal growth will feel powdery or stringy. Water conducting fungi feels leathery and can often be peeled off in sheets. Unfortunately the only way to get rid of molds and decay fungi embedded in wood is to remove the piece. Frequently extracting a rotted structural piece can be an expensive proposition. Prevention is far cheaper.
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94 Jefferson Ave
Fairport, NY 14450
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