A successful termite management plan is a combination of regular termite inspections and the installation of a suitable termite management system to protect your home. An annual termite inspection is the cornerstone of any termite management plan. A proper termite inspection is designed to find any signs of termite activity, including evidence of new or old termite damage or workings. Our trained and qualified termite experts also identify any conditions in your home and around the property that make your home susceptible to termite attack.
Our termite inspections are broken down into 5 key areas:
1. The Surrounding Property: We always start with the property itself as the
land around the home will give us a good indication as to the pressure from subterranean termites that your home may be under, (we even sneak a look over the fence at your neighbor's property) to get the full picture. We check all conducive conditions such as trees with termite workings including old trees, stumps, all timber retaining walls, timber fences and garden beds for possible termite workings or termite nests.
2. External Perimeter: We will check the perimeter and exterior of building or buildings on the property. Our termite inspector pays particular attention to the edge of the slab with slab homes and the weepholes of brick homes. Our termite inspectors are looking for potential termite entry points, whether that is cracks in slabs or walls, weepholes covered by pavers or soil. Our technicians are also on the look out for gardens that have built up over such entry points or other structures like water tanks that are concealing potential termite entry points.
During the inspection your termite inspector is looking for signs of leaking pipes, dripping air conditioners and water tanks, they're also checking for areas where there is elevated moisture levels or drainage issues that make your home more attractive to termites.
3. Interior of Structure: Each room will be fully inspected using a “tapper” to knock on timbers to check it is sound and use a knife or screwdriver to probe suspect areas. Moisture meters, thermal cameras are valuable tools in any inspectors arsenal but nothing really beats “good old” experience. We look for irregularities in timber work and walls. In wet areas such as kitchen, bathroom, toilets and laundry) need to be assessed with moisture meters to detect potential leaks.
4. The Sub-floor: If your home has a sub-floor area and access to the sub-floor area is available, our termite inspector will crawl to all accessible areas and inspect supporting structures, ant capping, flooring timbers on the lookout for any signs of termite activity or drainage issues . Often items such as old books, old furniture and fire wood are stored in the sub-floor which encourages termite to visit.
5. The Roof void: Our termite inspector will enter into the roof space where access is available and inspect the roof void timbers where space allows. The technician will inspect from one end of the roof void to the other while checking all exposed timbers. However, due to health and safety requirements if our termite inspector notes any safety concerns they will not enter the roof void.
How long does a termite inspection take?
A full and comprehensive termite inspection can take some time depending on the size of the home, construction type (for example: if the house has a subfloor), and the size of the property itself. These factors will determine the time needed to complete a thorough termite inspection. If your home is a standard 3 or 4 bedroom house, as a rule of thumb, a termite inspection will take at least 1.5 -2 hours. If there are a lot of issues to deal with, the inspection may take longer.
What’s in a termite inspection report?
We call it our homework for homeowners report because our termite inspectors look for faults in your home that may cause issues in the future. We're no only looking for termites either we like to give you some indication if we believe there might be other issues like leaking plumbing, wood rot, broken roofing, leaking roofs and garden issues. In our termite reports we list all these issues and also all our recommendation to fix the problems, for which most of these issues can be rectified by the homeowner.
A full termite report should state that the inspection has been carried out according to Australian Standard 3660.2. The termite report will describe the property and what areas have been inspected. It will also list all the areas that are unable to be inspected, this is normally due to access issues. Our termite reports will clearly list any termite activity and workings (new and old) and record any current visual termite damage. Also, our termite reports will note any current conditions that may encourage a termite attack. Things like high levels of moisture, leaks, construction faults, inappropriate landscaping, structural timbers in contact with soil, poor drainage or poor ventilation.
Our termite inspection report is a 21 paged document, while a few pages of these pages are legal stuff, the most important information is the technician's findings and recommendations. It is also important to talk to our termite inspector so that he can explain the results of the inspection and explain any further protection action that is required.
It is important to remember that the termite inspection carried out on your
home is to the Australian Standard 3660.2 and are visual inspections even if thermal imaging cameras have been used. This means that if we suspect termites have entered your home but cannot see any activity we may ask your permission to do an invasive inspection using a borer scope or to remove timbers. This action will only be carried out once permission is given. The termite report may include recommendations for further or more frequent inspections. Our report will clearly recommend the need for any requirements to installing a termite management system, such as a chemical soil treatment (Termite Barrier).
Our termite inspection is the cheapest health check your home can get and should have every year
An average home in Brisbane is now worth over $600,000 and you can have that all important termite inspection out for around $255 per year. For a full 5 year period, you can have it protected for around $2,500-$3,500 (average size home) and also insure it against termite damage for $350 for the full five years. Compare that to insuring your car which for an average priced family car valued at $30-$40,000 is about $700 per year or $3500 for a five year period. Now you won’t drive your car on the road uninsured, why would you leave your biggest asset unprotected and uninsured?
At Results Home Services we offer our commitment to providing you a service that goes beyond all the requirements set out in the Australian Standards. We are committed to excellence therefore, if your home is due for a termite inspection please call us on 3823 2500.