Silver Spring Termite Control
Family-owned & local since 1968
Termite protection for Silver Spring's brick ramblers, split-levels, and townhouses, from Woodside Park to Colesville. Free homeowner inspections.
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Trusted Termite Control in Silver Spring, MD — in Our Customers' Words
Hear what Northern Virginia and Maryland homeowners have to say about our service — in their own words. Real customers from real homes, sharing why they trust Better Termite with what matters most.
- Homes protected
- 100k+
- Google reviews
- 4.9★
- Years local
- 58+
Why Better Termite
Termite Control in Silver Spring you can trust — from $35/mo with no binding contracts.
Lower-Impact Products
Hand-picked, EPA-approved treatments selected by our research team — without 9 of the harshest products still used by most companies.
Local Termite Control Experts
Family-owned since 1968, with 300+ years of combined experience protecting Silver Spring homes. A licensed local tech answers the phone.
The Better Promise
Unlimited free re-services and no binding contracts — we keep coming back until your problem is gone. Cancel anytime with 30 days notice.
About Better Termite
Termite Control for Silver Spring, Maryland
In the Town Where Silent Spring Was Written
In 1962, Rachel Carson finished Silent Spring at her home on Berwick Road in Silver Spring, a ranch house built in 1956. The book changed how this country uses pesticides, and her house is now a National Historic Landmark. If you run a pest control company, that is a lot to live up to in this town. We take it seriously. Termites still have to be stopped, because they will eat the framing of a house whether we like it or not. The question is how you stop them.
Better Termite & Pest Control has been family-owned since 1968. Our research team went through the products used in our industry and cut 9 of the harshest from our programs. For termites, we rely mainly on Sentricon, a bait system that won the EPA's Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award in 2000. It goes into small stations in the soil instead of being spread around the yard.
Termite inspections are free for homeowners, and Sentricon plans start at $35/month. Call 703-683-2000 and a licensed technician answers. We have served more than 100,000 homes around Washington and have 1800+ reviews.
Local Termite Risk
What Puts Silver Spring Homes at Risk for Termites
Four Stream Valleys Behind Thousands of Backyards
Silver Spring is not a city with its own government. It is a large, unincorporated part of Montgomery County that runs from the downtown core near the DC line out to Colesville and White Oak. Four stream valleys cut through it: Rock Creek on the west, Sligo Creek through the middle, and Northwest Branch and Paint Branch to the east. Park and Planning keeps most of these valleys as wooded parkland, so thousands of Silver Spring yards back right up to the woods.
For Eastern subterranean termites, that parkland is a food supply. Trees that fall in a stream valley park are usually left where they land, and the soil along the creeks stays damp most of the year. Colonies grow in the woods and forage outward, and a house at the park edge is the next wood they find. The heavy clay soil common in this part of Maryland holds water after a storm, which keeps the ground near foundations moist long after the rain stops. Our page on termites in Maryland covers the species and season in more detail.
Rain Gardens, Dry Wells, and Downspouts
Montgomery County's RainScapes program pays residential owners rebates of up to $7,500 to build rain gardens, conservation landscaping, dry wells, and rain barrels. That is good for Sligo Creek and the Northwest Branch. It also means more Silver Spring yards are designed to soak water into the soil. When a rain garden or dry well sits too close to the house, it puts wet ground right where termites look for a way in.
You do not have to choose between your rain garden and your house. Keep these features well away from the foundation (most guidance says at least 10 feet), send downspouts away from the walls, and keep wood mulch from piling up against the siding. Our termite prevention tips list the other easy fixes.
Know Your House
Ramblers, Split-Levels, and Finished Lower Levels
Most of Silver Spring was built between the 1930s and the 1960s, and each wave left a different kind of house. That matters for termites, because the places they get in, and the places they hide once inside, depend on how the house was put together.
Brick Colonials and Cape Cods: Woodside Park, Woodmoor, Indian Spring
The close-in neighborhoods are full of 1930s and 1940s brick colonials and Cape Cods with full basements. The brick is only a veneer. Behind it is a wood frame sitting on a sill plate on top of the foundation wall. Termites climb the inside of the basement wall, usually behind a furnace, a workbench, or shelving, and reach that sill without ever showing on the outside of the house.
Ramblers and Split-Levels: Four Corners, Hillandale, Colesville, White Oak
Four Corners has a large share of brick ramblers and split-level houses, and the same styles fill much of Hillandale, Colesville, and White Oak. A split-level is the harder house to inspect. Its lower level often sits on a concrete slab at or near grade, with a garage under or beside it. The joints where that slab meets the block walls are open doors for termites. Many of these lower levels were finished decades ago with wood paneling, carpet, and built-in shelves, which covers exactly the wood we need to see.
In a finished lower level, watch for:
- Baseboard or paneling that feels soft or sounds hollow when tapped
- Carpet that looks lumpy at the wall, where the wood tack strip has been eaten
- Thin mud tubes on the block wall in the laundry or utility room
- Swollen or rippled trim around a sliding patio door
- Crumbling wood at the bottom of the garage door frame
If you find any of these, do not tear into the wall. Leave the damage as it is and call us so we can see how far it runs.
Treatment Options
Sentricon, Liquid, or Borate: Which Termite Treatment Fits Your Home
There are three ways we stop termites in Silver Spring. Which one you need depends on whether termites are already in the house and how the house is built.
Sentricon for Most Homes
We set Sentricon stations in the soil around the house. Worker termites find the bait, eat it, and share it with the rest of the colony. The bait stops them from molting, so the colony dies off over time, queen included. Less than a gram of active ingredient can take out a whole colony. Plans start at $35/month plus a $200 setup fee at the first visit, with a yearly inspection included. Our guide to how long termite treatment lasts compares the options over time.
Liquid Treatment When Termites Are Already Inside
If termites are feeding in the framing now, a liquid soil treatment along the foundation gets the fastest knockdown. On a split-level, that can mean treating under the slab at the lower level, the garage, and the front stoop, which takes drilling through the concrete. We price these jobs after the inspection, because every split-level and slab addition is laid out a little differently.
Borate During a Remodel
Plenty of Silver Spring owners eventually gut that 1970s rec room or add a kitchen bump-out. While the studs are bare, we can apply borate straight to the wood. Call before the drywall goes up. Once it is closed in, that chance is gone.
Spring Swarms
When Termites Swarm Inside a Silver Spring Home
Most homeowners find out they have termites in the spring. From about March through May, on a warm day after rain, a mature colony sends out hundreds of winged swarmers to start new colonies. Outdoors, you might see them rise from a stump in the yard or the woods behind the house. Indoors, it is a sign the colony is under the house or already in it.
In a Silver Spring split-level, swarms tend to show up in the lower family room, the laundry, or by the patio door, because that level sits closest to the soil. In a colonial with a basement, look near the basement windows and the bottom of the stairs. The swarmers lose their wings within hours, so many people only find piles of small, see-through wings on a sill. Our page on termite swarmers shows how to tell them from flying ants.
Swarmers do not chew wood, and they die quickly indoors. Vacuum them up, save a few in a zip bag, and call us. The colony that sent them is the real problem, and it is still there.
Townhouses and Home Sales
Termites in Silver Spring Townhouses, and Inspections for a Sale
Shared Walls, Shared Soil
Silver Spring has a large number of townhouses, from the rows near downtown to the communities off Colesville Road and New Hampshire Avenue. Termites do not respect property lines. A colony under one unit can feed along the shared foundation into the next. Before you call, look at your HOA documents to see whether termite work is the association's job or yours. If it is yours, protecting your own unit is still worth it, and Sentricon stations fit even a small front strip and back patio.
Form MD-1 for Maryland Home Sales
Buying or selling? In Maryland, a termite inspection for a sale or loan goes on Form MD-1, the Maryland Wood Destroying Insect Inspection Report. Buyers coming from Virginia or DC often expect the NPMA-33, but that is not the form used here. VA loans require an MD-1, and many lenders and contracts ask for one. The report lists what the inspector saw and any areas they could not reach, such as a finished lower level or a packed storage room. Clear a path along the walls before the visit. See our Maryland termite inspection guide for what the form covers.
Homeowner termite inspections are free. Real estate inspections have their own fee. Call 703-683-2000 for the price and next opening.
A swarmer has four wings of equal length. Indoors, it means a colony is close
Sentricon stations sit level with the lawn, so yard life goes on as usual
Soldiers have large, dark heads. They guard the workers doing the damage
Fallen wood near the creeks feeds colonies that later forage toward houses
Eastern subterranean termites are the species behind nearly all local termite damage
Family-owned and treating termites around Washington since 1968
Everything We Do
Every service we offer in Silver Spring — one local team, one phone call.
Core Programs
- Home Pest Control in Silver Spring
- Termite Control in Silver Spring
- Rodent Control in Silver Spring
- Mosquito & Tick Control in Silver Spring
- Extermination Services in Silver Spring
- Eco-Friendly Pest Control in Silver Spring
- Sentricon® Termite Baiting in Silver Spring
- IN2CARE® Mosquito System in Silver Spring
- Commercial Pest Control in Silver Spring
- Pre-Construction Termite Control in Silver Spring
Insects & Spiders
- Ant Control in Silver Spring
- Carpenter Ant Control in Silver Spring
- Sugar Ant Control in Silver Spring
- Spider Control in Silver Spring
- Roach Control in Silver Spring
- German Cockroach Control in Silver Spring
- Oriental Cockroach Control in Silver Spring
- American Cockroach Control in Silver Spring
- Flea Control in Silver Spring
- Silverfish Control in Silver Spring
- Carpet Beetle Control in Silver Spring
- Pantry Pest Control in Silver Spring
- Stink Bug Control in Silver Spring
- Lady Bug Control in Silver Spring
- Boxelder Bug Control in Silver Spring
- Cricket Control in Silver Spring
- Tick Control in Silver Spring
- Earwig Control in Silver Spring
- Millipede Control in Silver Spring
- Centipede Control in Silver Spring
- Pill Bug Control in Silver Spring
- Springtail Control in Silver Spring
- Clover Mite Control in Silver Spring
Stinging & Flying
Rodents & Wildlife
Reviews From Our Maryland Customers
1800+ Reviews on Google "We had a bad cockroach problem - we knew it was bad because of all the baby cockroaches we spotted. It took a while but Better Termite ultimately solved it and our house is cockroach free. Cindy in particular, was quick to help out and made it pain free."
"I highly recommend this company for your home pest control. Their technicians are thorough and have prevented any unwanted problems from happening on our property. During our last treatment, Jasmine took care of our outdoor spider webs without us even asking. Last summer they removed a mud dauber's nest under our deck and above our patio door. That attention to detail speaks volumes. Thank you for taking care of us!"
"The team at Better Termite & Pest control are phenomenal! I feel like my family and my home are in good hands. Everyone I have come into contact with has been responsive, pleasant and professional. The price is right and the service is superb!"
"Joann is amazing! She always takes time to talk with me and check inside boxes. I so appreciate her!! I have been using Better Termite and Pest Management for over 20 years."
"I love Darren over at Better Termite. He is always so attentive and kind, and really goes, IMO, out of his way to do a fantastic job. And I am so happy that I had NO MOSQUITOES this summer in my backyard in spite of the fact that there is a drainage area right behind my house, and that is 100% because of Better Termites services."
"We had a bad cockroach problem - we knew it was bad because of all the baby cockroaches we spotted. It took a while but Better Termite ultimately solved it and our house is cockroach free. Cindy in particular, was quick to help out and made it pain free."
"I highly recommend this company for your home pest control. Their technicians are thorough and have prevented any unwanted problems from happening on our property. During our last treatment, Jasmine took care of our outdoor spider webs without us even asking. Last summer they removed a mud dauber's nest under our deck and above our patio door. That attention to detail speaks volumes. Thank you for taking care of us!"
"The team at Better Termite & Pest control are phenomenal! I feel like my family and my home are in good hands. Everyone I have come into contact with has been responsive, pleasant and professional. The price is right and the service is superb!"
"Joann is amazing! She always takes time to talk with me and check inside boxes. I so appreciate her!! I have been using Better Termite and Pest Management for over 20 years."
"I love Darren over at Better Termite. He is always so attentive and kind, and really goes, IMO, out of his way to do a fantastic job. And I am so happy that I had NO MOSQUITOES this summer in my backyard in spite of the fact that there is a drainage area right behind my house, and that is 100% because of Better Termites services."
How It Works
How We Handle Termites in Silver Spring
Call and Describe Your Layout
A licensed technician picks up. Tell us the style of house (rambler, split-level, colonial, or townhouse), whether the lower level is finished, and what you found. A split-level in Four Corners with paneled walls downstairs takes a different plan than a brick colonial in Woodside Park with an open basement.
78-Point Inspection of the House and Lot
Outside, we check the foundation line, the patio and stoop edges, garage door jambs, and any mulch, rain garden, or woodpile near the walls. Inside, we work along the block walls, the sill plate, and the lower-level rooms where paneling and carpet cover the wood. We also note how close the yard sits to parkland or a creek.
A Plan for Your Soil, Not Your Whole Yard
Most Silver Spring homes get Sentricon bait stations set in the soil around the house. Active termites in the framing call for a liquid treatment along the foundation. Bare wood in a renovation gets borate. Every product we use has been reviewed by our research team.
Annual Station Service and Re-Inspection
Once a year a technician services every Sentricon station and walks the house again, looking for new tubes or damage before they turn into a repair bill.
Free Callbacks and No Contract
See a swarm or a fresh mud tube between visits? Call and we come back at no charge. You can cancel with 30 days notice.
Your Local Office
Termite Control Across Silver Spring
From downtown and Woodside Park to Four Corners, Kemp Mill, Hillandale, White Oak, and Colesville, we protect homes in ZIP codes 20901, 20902, 20903, 20904, 20905, 20906, and 20910.
Get in Touch
Call Us
703-683-2000Email Us
info@bettertermite.comVisit Our Alexandria (Headquarters) Office
2647 Duke StreetAlexandria, VA 22314
Office Hours
- Mon, Tue, Thu7:30 AM – 7 PM
- Wed, Fri7:30 AM – 8 PM
- Sat, Sun9 AM – 6 PM
Good to Know
Frequently Asked Questions
Still have questions? A licensed local tech picks up at (703) 683-2000.
Our Free Callback Promise
See pests between scheduled visits? We come back and retreat at no extra cost — as many times as it takes. No binding contracts, cancel anytime with 30 days notice.
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Your Local Office
Silver Spring is served by our Alexandria, VA team.
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