The importance of home maintenance ...
Today my experience as a Realtor came in handy in my own home in a way I never thought it would. I have had a few boxes sitting on my window seat that I have been meaning to go through. Today, I decided to get those out of the way and as I remove the last box from the window seat I notice something that looks all too familiar! EVIDENCE OF DRY WOOD TERMITES!! I started to panic!! I bought a block home at the beginning of my career to insure I would never have to worry about termites. Where had I gone wrong!? I immediately called my local Massey technician.
Turns out, even in a block home, there is still plenty of wood for termites to feast on! After a thorough inspection of my home, we determine the problem is contained to the one area above my window seat (thank you Lord) and it gets even better... I have carpenter ants as well that eat the termites so there is NO ACTIVE TERMITE INFESTATION!! (Thank you carpenter ants!) The technician says carpenter ants and termites do not get along. My hunny said "There is a battle going on in our home that we know nothing about!!" LOL
I am sharing my story because I work with so many customers who I hear say they will not purchase a wood home and only want a block home to avoid termite problems. Apparently I was not the only one who had the same idea! But in this business, I am always learning and today was a learning experience! It reminds me the importance of regular maintenance on your home. And whether you have a block home or not it is important to have occasional check ups from the experts to insure you do not run into a disaster much like the one I avoided. Termite spot treatment is not too bad but if they are not contained to one area, you may have to tent your home and that can run in the thousands! Most pest control companies also offer a termite bond which I am looking into and HIGHLY recommend.
On a side note, during todays inspection we also discovered some black mold around the window seals and corners of the walls around that same window seat. We will be remedying that situation by clearing out the damage and caulking the cracks around those areas on the outside. It is also important to look for any cracks in the stucco, window frames, etc and caulk those up to avoid moisture intrusion. In the words of my favorite inspector..."A little bit of water can cause a lot of damage!"
Well friends, that is all I have for today. I hope that my 'almost' fiasco helps you avoid your own fiasco in the future! Until next time...
The importance of home maintenance ...
Comments (12)Subscribe to CommentsComment