Pest Inspection Rio Vista

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Pre Purchase Pest Inspection Rio Vista – Includes Termites, Wood Borers and Wood Decay Fungus

Buying a property in Rio Vista and need a pest inspection?

Know the health of the property you are buying with a solid inspection by our Pest Inspection Rio Vista Team. What is included in a Pest Inspection? Is it a Termite Inspection? Is it a house hold Pest Inspection? Its formal name is a Timber Pest Inspection which looks for Termites, Wood Borers, and Wood Decay Fungi and is an integral part of any Pre Purchase Inspection.

Think of a Timber Pest Inspection as a "Super Charged" Termite Inspection.

We can add another detrimental element to a home that our Rio Vista Timber Pest Inspector looks for and that is moisture. There is a low level of moisture in every house which is acceptable. Above this level is when you start running into issues, termites and wood decay will thrive in such environments.

Called a "Conducive Environment", this is a neon flashing sign showing termites that there is a favourable area where they can source food. It can be as simple as;

  • Garden up against the house providing a source of food, warm and moisture
  • Air Conditioning drain leaking directly onto the ground next to the house
  • Hot water over flow on older systems can constantly drip providing a water source
  • Trees stumps or tree crowns left in the ground to slowly rot away
  • Poor drainage under the house keeping the subfloor damp

These are just a simple few and I bet you would have at least 3 out of the 5 around your house now. More information about "Conducive Environments" can be found here on our Termite Barrier Page.

Our Rio Vista Pest Inspector uses a Thermal Camera on every Pest Inspection

A thermal camera gives our Pest Inspection Rio Vista Teams a deeper insight helping to locate moisture and termite activity.

Termites

With Subterranean Termites being able to tunnel some 50metres underground it's important for the Timber Pest Inspector to look at environmental conditions around your house, including your fence line Over time the weather will break down any soft timber previously coated in a "termite resistant" chemical and it's not uncommon to find a termite sub nest in a timber sleeper retaining wall. This is where experience matters. Our Pest Inspection Rio Vista Teams understand the characteristics of the different termite species and this gives us a better approach to finding them.

Wood Borers

Wood Borers are also a common find. Normally brought into the home by timber furniture, these beetles don't need high moisture to survive and can eat hard and soft wood! Laying their eggs in the timber cracks, most of the time we are finding them attacking timber floor boards. They can be treated with a water based chemical but we recommend just replacing the damaged timbers.

The most common wood borers are;

  • Common Furniture Beetle
  • House Longhorn Beetle
  • Powder Post Beetle
  • Some Do-It-Yourselfers recommend wiping the affected areas with diesel. This is something we DEFINITELY do not recommend.

Wood Decay Fungus

One of the most comon timber destroyers around everyhouse is Wood Decay. Several types of fungus eat the damp wood making it rot away like dead skin. Not as damaging as Termites but given the right environment it can posed a threat to timbers in your home. In some areas of the home (low traffic areas like up in your ceiling space) wood decay can do considerable amount of damage over the course of a year. Lignicolous Fungi is responsible for the wood decay. They can be classed as;

  • Brown rot
  • Soft rot and,
  • White rot

The fix is to remove the damaged timber and remove the moisture source. A Pre Purchase Timber Pest Inspection should be part of any due diligence when purchasing a home. Most Timber Pest activity goes undiscovered to the naked eye so it's important to have our Pest Inspection Rio Vista Experts look over the property. Give us a call and compare our quote. We will save you!