If you have wooden board and batten siding, you may be worried about the pest that could eat it. You can solve the issue by choosing board and batten vinyl siding in Columbus, OH instead.
Termites
Underground termites feed on wood surfaces buried underground. Often, when they exhaust these food sources, they put down “feeder tubes” in your sidings, which destroy the structural integrity of the wood. These tubes are often difficult to detect before it’s too late because they’re hidden beneath the siding. Tap the siding with a screwdriver if you suspect an infestation-a hollow sound indicates an infestation. In order to get rid of termites, you’ll need to engage a professional pest management service. An exterminator will use insecticides such as organophosphates and pyrethroids to bait the soil around your home.
Carpenter ants
Carpenter ants favor insulation and inner walls, but will eventually move to siding as the colony spreads outward. They typically feed on moist, decaying wood, so their presence may indicate a problem with decaying walls as well. Infested wood is usually covered in small piles of wood shavings as worker ants tunnel through. The ants themselves are small and black in color, and they produce winged swarms during summer. At home goods stores, you can buy insecticide baits for the nests to diagnose carpenter ant problems. Moreover, you may want to inspect the attic vents and foundation, as well as the openings in your roof, walls, and overhangs for pipes, chimneys, and vents since these are common places for nests. However, if the problem is extensive, it doesn’t hurt to hire an expert who can locate nests on your behalf.
Powder post beetles
When they reach maturity, powder post beetles feed on the starches in the fibers of the wood. Afterward, they tunnel outside the wood, leaving behind fine sawdust and tiny holes. In a beetle infestation, you’ll notice small exit holes, as they perforate wood surfaces with tiny openings. There might be a beetle problem if there is a fine powder that resembles flour on your walls. Using the tips listed in the following sections will help you tackle beetle infestations by cutting off their moisture. It will also help if you spray a wood preservative on the surface, but that will not help if the wood on your home is stained. If you have a wood injector, a pest exterminator may fumigate your siding or apply a pesticide to it.
Carpenter bees
There is a similarity between these small nuisance pests and bumblebees, but they cause greater damage to your home. The nests they create in wood are reused season after season. The good news is that carpenter bees are relatively easy to bring down. Use insecticide to fill the holes, and then plug them with exterior caulking to destroy the nests.
Woodpeckers
When woodpeckers arrive, they announce their presence with their distinctive tapping, and catching them is pretty easy. It’s common for woodpeckers to drill into the corners of siding at the joints-you’ll see the damage as smallish holes along the edges. They prefer homes with cedar shakes. You can deter them the humane way by attaching shiny materials or electronic deterrents to your house’s siding, which will make it less appealing to woodpeckers. As an alternative, you could install a woodpecker feeder or birdhouse.
If you are planning to get board and batten siding, avoid the wooden option and choose board and batten vinyl siding in Columbus, OH instead so pest won’t be a problem. Call us now.