In our four-county area, subterranean termites spend nearly all their time hidden in wood that touches soil. Spring swarmers are usually the first and only sign a homeowner sees.
What swarmers look like
Termite swarmers are small, dark insects with two pairs of wings of equal length. They commonly emerge in spring and often gather near windows, doors, and lights. Flying ants look similar at a glance, but ants have a pinched waist, bent antennae, and front wings longer than the back pair.
Swarmers on a window sill, or piles of shed wings, mean a mature colony is nearby. Termites do not swarm because they are thriving in your yard by coincidence. Treat it as a warning.
Other signs of subterranean termites
- Mud tubes the width of a pencil, running up foundation walls, piers, or crawl-space posts
- Wood that sounds hollow when tapped, or gives way when probed with a screwdriver
- Paint that bubbles or small pinholes in trim or drywall
- Doors and windows that begin to stick for no clear reason
Which homes are most at risk
Block or stone foundations, crawl spaces, and wood close to soil raise the odds. So do leaking gutters and poor drainage. A newer home is not immune.
What a termite inspection covers
A proper inspection looks at the foundation, crawl space or basement, interior wood, and the grounds around the house. Our approach is to base recommendations on what we find, not a packaged upsell.
If you are buying or selling a home, ask about a wood-destroying insect (WDI) report when you schedule. It documents what was or was not found, and many lenders and buyers request one.
What to do now
Trap a few insects in a jar or snap a close photo, and leave any mud tubes untouched until the inspector sees them. Then request a termite inspection. We serve homes across Jefferson and Belmont counties in Ohio and Brooke and Ohio counties in West Virginia, including Steubenville, Wheeling, and St. Clairsville.