How to Get Rid of Flying Termites

If you are a homeowner, you might likely have to deal with a pest problem at some point. By 'pest,' we mean bugs, not your annoying neighbors.

Termites with wings are a unique type of pest. Between alates (or females) and swarmers, these insects have many different shapes to cause you many different problems.

If a termite flies or a colony of termites swarm, it is time to start treating it either with a professional service or DIY home remedies.

If you have a termite problem, this can cause damage to your home and property. If you see a termite flying, it is likely the problem is going to require professional services to fix.

How Do I Have a Problem With Termites?

Bed bugs, ants, and termites are the most common insects that can enter your house through open windows or doors, but this article deals with termites.

While some pests can be dealt with easily, if you have a flying termite problem, the solution may not be as simple as other pests. Having the right information can help you deal with termites.

How to Take Care of Your Termite Issue

To properly treat your pest problem, it may be helpful first to know what caused it. The more you know about causes, the easier it is to prevent them from coming back once you get rid of them.

In order to properly perform pest control, you should know what flying termites look like, what causes them to swarm over a period of time, what they eat, and what kind of havoc they can wreak on your home and property.

What Do Flying Termites Look Like?

You may see flying termites and not know what you're looking at. A termite infestation can get out of hand if you don't realize what those swarmers actually are.

All termites have six legs, an abdomen that isn't segmented, a big head, and a pair of antennae that are straight and beaded.

The flying termites have two pairs of wings that can be any shade between gray and white, and their bodies are black.

They very much resemble oversized ants with wings, which is often why they are mistaken for flying ants. However, flying ants can't cause the same kind of intense damage to your home and property.

Winged ants are annoying, but they are also their own set of problems. Flying ants don't eat the wood that holds up your roof or cause irreparable harm to your home and property.

The differences are important to notice so you can diagnose your problem and begin proper pest control.

If you see termites flying around your home, it is time to secure proper services to ensure that these termites are no longer going to be flying around your home and property, causing trouble.

What Causes Flying Termites?

In seasons like spring and summer, when there is the most humidity, termites fly. The change in temperature and moisture alerts them that it is time to fly.

Over the time that it takes for the air to become moist, the flying termites begin to wake up and become the problem insects that create an infestation that causes so much havoc on your home and property.

How to Tell You Have a Problem

The initial swarm of termites isn't going to be where your biggest issue is. The offspring of the swarm is where you are going to run into trouble. When those offspring land and begin to look for a place to start a new colony.

Swarms around your home might mean that you already have a termite problem, or it can be a sign that you are about to have a major infestation. If you see termite swarms, it might be time to act.

Swarming means that flying termites are ready to mate. Both male and female (or alates) winged termites fly to procreate mid-flight before then falling to the ground. The newly impregnated female now has the responsibility as Queen to find a place to start a new termite colony.

What Do Flying Termites Eat?

This depends on the type of winged termite. There are more types of termites than you may think.

Depending on the species, some male termites only live to swarm and reproduce; drywood termites have views that wood is food, just like carpenter ants. They eat the wood that your house may be made of, especially your roof. Damage to the roof of homes can go unnoticed until it's too late to fix it easily.

The damage termites cause can be devastating. If you suspect that you have a colony of flying termites, it is time to take action.

What to Do If You Find Discarded Wings by Your Window

If you see wings by your window, it might mean that one of the alates has found a place to nest. Once the Queen has found a safe place for the winged termites that are not her subjects, it should shed their wings and look for wood to eat and a place to build her nest.

This means the damage is already starting, and it is past due to find out how to get rid of flying termites in your home.

Alates

Alates are what flying termites are known as when they have wings and are in their reproductive cycle.

Alates are usually the first sign of trouble, although, since they are not always easily recognizable, they are not recognized as such.

Many times, alates are mistaken for harmless yet annoying flying insects that pop up during rainy seasons, but alates are a warning sign of impending trouble with termites.

How to Prevent a Flying Termite Infestation

Some steps can be taken to help avoid these problems in the first place.

• Firstly, try to keep mulch or anything flying termites might mistake away from the foundation of your home. If there is less there to attract them or feed them, the less likely it is that they might choose your home to begin with.
• Make sure you regularly check on the subfloor of your home as well as the wood comprising the roof for signs of flying termites to try to head the problem off early if they do appear.
• Keep less used areas like crawl spaces, attics and basements nicely ventilated and as dry as possible.
• Do everything you can to prevent water from accumulating. Since flying termites sense moisture as part of their wake-up call, it is best not to give these winged termites any reason to wake up and start causing problems.

Ways to Treat an Infestation Once It Has Already Happened

There are a few ways to get rid of winged termites. It should be noted that while these might help with the issues flying termites cause, it is always best to seek out professional services to get rid of them for good.

You can try a DIY trap for your flying termites using a cardboard box and water. Cut the box into large pieces, soak them completely with the water and then leave it outside. Once the flying termites have taken the bait, you can spray them with some kind of bug killer. It is also possible to burn the cardboard for the same results, but only if you can safely control the fire.

Surprisingly, orange oil has been shown to be lethal to flying termites. Spray it around your home and property anywhere you see termites flying.

Let Us Help

Here at 24H Pest Pros, once you contact us regarding your termite issue, we offer our pest control service for helping you get rid of your pest problem. We can help you get rid of termites.

If a colony has taken up residence in your home, we can get rid of them in short order. We are the right people for the job to be in, provide our pest control services, and be on our way.

Contact us today for more information!

We hope this article has been helpful in sharing our views on dealing with a termite issue in your home. Our views are that termites are damaging pests, and no one should have to deal with them alone.

This article is intended to help, but we are always happy to offer professional help to show those termites who's the boss.