Termites, the Surprise New-Home Pest

It’s not uncommon to find considerable damage from termites ordry-rot--wood decay caused by fungus--in an older home, particularly ifmaintenance has been put off.

For instance, a shower that isn’t properly caulked can leak, which cancause dry-rot in the wood framing. Or a deck that’s not kept sealed canbecome weathered and develop dry-rot over time.

But you usually don’t expect to find dry-rot or termite problems in anew or nearly new home. And buyers often forgo a termite inspection on anewly built home. This can be a big mistake.

One seller of a 4-year-old home discovered to her dismay that morethan $15,000 of dry-rot repair work was required before the structuralpest control company would certify that the property was free and clearof wood-destroying pest infestation.

In a relatively new home like that there shouldn’t have been extensivedry-rot. However the home hadn’t been constructed properly. Thewaterproofing membranes on the deck and front porch were faulty. The deckand porch leaked.

To further complicate the situation, there was no ventilationunderneath the front porch, so when the framing under the porch becamesaturated with water there was no way for it to dry out.

To correct the problem, the entire front porch had to be ripped outand reconstructed with a new waterproof membrane and adequateventilation.

Don’t assume that because a home is new or nearly new, you don’t needa termite inspection. Any home you buy, regardless of its age, should beinspected by a structural pest control company for wood-destroying pests.

Your purchase contract should include a provision that allows you tohave the property inspected for wood-destroying pests like termites,wood-boring beetles, carpenter ants, dry-rot and fungus.

The contract also should indicate who (buyer or seller) will pay tocorrect any damage that’s found.

“Termite inspection” is a generic term used for an inspection by alicensed structural pest control contractor that covers wood-destroyingpests and organisms.

The inspection should also indicate conditions that might lead toinfestation and damage in the future even if there isn’t any currentinfestation or damage.

For example, inspectors frequently find cellulose debris under newhomes. Cellulose debris is the byproduct of construction and includessuch things as scraps of wood that can become breeding places forsubterranean termites. Ask the builder to remove cellulose debris beforethe deal is closed.

Make sure that the pest control inspector water-tests decks and stairsthat have waterproofing membrane underneath them.

If a membrane leaks, have the builder repair or replace it. Sometimescontractors inadvertently nail through a waterproofing membrane and, inso doing, sacrifice its integrity. A leaky membrane can lead to dry-rotproblems.

Also, once in a while, the wood used to construct a home is infestedwith wood pests.

Be sure to use a local structural pest control contractor who has agood reputation for doing thorough inspections and who is familiar withlocal conditions.

Many wood pest problems are area-specific. For example, subterraneantermites are prevalent in the San Francisco Bay area and dry-woodtermites are more common in Southern California.

Dian Hymer is a syndicated columnist and author of “Starting Out: TheComplete Home Buyer’s Guide,” (Chronicle Books, Revised 1998).

Distributed by Inman News Features.