Takoma Park Termite Control

Takoma Park was built a few streets at a time over about 80 years, so the houses on one block can be very different from the houses a few blocks away. Each era of construction has its own weak spots, and that affects where we look first.

1883 to 1900: Queen Anne, Stick, and Shingle Style

The town's first houses are tall, many-gabled wood homes, some with towers and wraparound porches. Many sit on stone or brick foundations that have settled for more than a century. The sill beam on top of the masonry is often original. Porch floors, steps, and lattice sit close to the soil. Inside, years of repairs and additions can hide the places termites enter. Gaps in old mortar give termites hidden paths, so they do not always leave mud tubes where we can see them.

1900s to 1930s: Bungalows and Foursquares

Much of the Historic District and Pinecrest was built in these years. The houses are smaller and lower, and many have a crawl space under a back addition or a sleeping porch that was closed in later. Those crawl spaces are often damp and hard to get into, which makes them easy for termites to reach and easy for owners to miss. Where the addition meets the original foundation is a common entry point.

After World War II: Brick, Block, and Garden Apartments

Parts of North Takoma, Carole Highlands, and the streets near New Hampshire Avenue have more post-war brick colonials and ramblers on concrete block foundations. Carole Highlands was in Prince George's County until the county line moved in 1997. Block walls have hollow cores that termites can travel through unseen. Brick front steps and patios added against the house can cover gaps in the foundation. Basements finished decades ago can hide the walls we need to check.

In an older house, termite damage can be mistaken for normal wear. A sagging porch board, a soft spot on a basement stair, or a sill that crumbles when you press on it can look like rot. Sometimes it is rot. Sometimes it is both. Our guide to termite damage vs. wood rot shows how to tell the difference. Rot usually cracks across the grain. Termites tunnel along it and often leave soil packed inside.

The clearest sign comes in spring. On a warm afternoon after rain, from about March through May, a mature colony sends out swarmers. In older homes, they often appear near basement windows, radiators, or porch doors. Their wings drop off quickly, so many homeowners only find a small pile of wings.

Here are other signs to look for:

• Pencil-width mud tubes on a stone or block foundation, or up a porch pier
• Tunnels in a stump, buried root, or fallen limb near the house
• Window or door trim that feels hollow when you tap it
• Paint that bubbles or wood that ripples along a baseboard
• Drill holes in a stoop or basement slab from an old treatment
• Firewood or leaf compost stacked against the siding

If you find any of these, leave the wood alone and call us. We need to see the activity before it is disturbed to tell how far it goes.