Termites are a common pest in Oklahoma, causing damage to homes and buildings by eating through wood and other materials. There are several different types of termites found in Oklahoma, each with its own characteristics and behaviors. Knowing which types of termites are most common in the area can help homeowners identify and prevent infestations before they cause significant damage.
Eastern Subterranean Termites
One of the most common types of termites found in Oklahoma is the Eastern subterranean termite. These termites live underground and build tunnels to access their food source, which is often the wood in homes and buildings. Eastern subterranean termites are small and pale-colored, making them difficult to spot without professional pest control assistance.
Formosan Subterranean Termites
Another type of subterranean termite found in Oklahoma is the Formosan subterranean termite. These termites are larger than Eastern subterranean termites and have a more aggressive feeding and nesting behavior. Formosan termites can cause significant damage to structures in a short amount of time, making them a serious threat to homeowners in Oklahoma.
Drywood Termites
Drywood termites are another common type of termite found in Oklahoma. Unlike subterranean termites, drywood termites do not require contact with the ground to survive. Instead, they nest inside the wood they are eating, making them harder to detect until significant damage has already occurred. Drywood termites are typically larger in size and can cause extensive damage to wooden structures if left unchecked.
Dampwood Termites
Dampwood termites are less common in Oklahoma but can still be a threat to homeowners in certain areas. These termites require high levels of moisture to survive, making them more likely to be found in areas with water damage or leaks. Dampwood termites are larger than other types of termites and can cause significant damage to wood structures if left unchecked.
Preventing Termite Infestations in Oklahoma
Preventing termite infestations in Oklahoma starts with understanding the common types of termites in the area and taking steps to protect your home. Here are some tips for preventing termite infestations in Oklahoma:
1. Regularly inspect your home for signs of termites, such as mud tubes, swarming termites, or wood damage.
2. Keep woodpiles, mulch, and other potential termite food sources away from your home’s foundation.
3. Maintain proper drainage around your home to prevent moisture buildup, which can attract dampwood termites.
4. Seal any cracks or openings in your home’s foundation and exterior walls to prevent termites from entering.
5. Consider hiring a professional pest control company to conduct regular termite inspections and treatment.
By taking these steps and staying vigilant for signs of termite activity, you can protect your home from costly damage caused by these destructive pests. If you suspect you have a termite infestation in your Oklahoma home, it is important to contact a professional pest control company as soon as possible to address the issue before it gets out of hand.
Summary
Knowing the most common types of termites in Oklahoma and how to prevent infestations can help homeowners protect their homes from costly damage. By understanding the behaviors and characteristics of Eastern subterranean termites, Formosan subterranean termites, drywood termites, and dampwood termites, homeowners can take proactive steps to safeguard their properties. Remember to regularly inspect your home for signs of termite activity and contact a professional pest control company if you suspect an infestation. With proper prevention and treatment, you can keep your home termite-free and avoid costly repairs in the future.
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Family owned and operated since 2003, we have earned a reputation for providing quality, reliable, timely, and affordable pest control services to the residents and businesses of Oklahoma and Kansas. Our team of highly skilled, experienced, and certified staff uses only use the most technologically advanced treatment methods while respecting your home needs. We specialize in the removal of ants and carpenter ants, termites, cockroaches, fleas, spiders, bed bugs, stinging insects, mice, rats and more! We offer monthly, bi-monthly, quarterly, semi-annual and annual service for your convenience and peace of mind! Contact us today to learn more about what we can do for you!
Insects can be a real nuisance. They invade your home, destroy your belongings, eat your food, startle you when you’re really not expecting it and cause all kinds of different issues. Among all of the creepy crawly critters out there, spiders are one of the most dreaded. Seeing them in your home can be alarming, and they can even be dangerous to the health and safety of you and your family and pets.
During the winter, you might start to notice more and more spiders in and around your home. Because of how annoying and sometimes dangerous spiders can be, it’s important that you know what to do in order to make sure that those many-legged arachnids stay out of your home this winter. Before you make an emergency call to your local exterminator in Bartlesville, OK, here are some tips to keep in mind:
- De-clutter: Spiders thrive in spaces where there is a lot of clutter. Things like empty boxes and containers make the perfect hiding spots for arachnids in your home. Make sure that you keep your home as clutter-free as possible, and try to keep up on dusting when you can. You should also check for webs and remove them as soon as you see them.
- Use natural oils: Strong odors like peppermint and citrus are natural deterrents for spiders and all sorts of other pests. You can leave fresh citrus peels in cabinets or other areas in your home where spiders might be present in order to repel them. You can also fill a spray bottle with natural oils that are diluted in water and spray any areas where you usually see spiders.
- Clear away debris: The outside of your home can easily begin to accumulate debris that spiders love to be in. Piles of leaves, wood and other materials make an appealing spider habitat, and they can also make it easier for spiders to enter your home.
- Reinforce caulking: Spiders can get into your home through a variety of almost unnoticeable cracks. It’s important to quickly caulk any cracks that you find in your basement, around your foundation and in any windows or doorways.
Keep spiders out of your home this winter with these effective solutions, and with help from a professional exterminator in Bartlesville, OK. At Excellence Pest Control, we understand how harmful pests, critters and rodents can be, which is why we strive to offer the best pest control services available to each of the residential and commercial customers who we work with.
For over a decade, we have been tackling a wide variety of pest control jobs, including the removal of bedbugs, termites, ants, wasps, rodents and spiders. Our outstanding service and knowledgeable team have given us a track record and a reputation for excellence in and around the Bartlesville, OK community. Contact us today to hear more about the services that we are capable of providing and to schedule an appointment with a pest control specialist. We look forward to assisting you soon!
Summer is undoubtedly the best season of the year to invite friends and family over to your home for barbecues. Unfortunately, those fun cookouts in the backyard can turn into a disaster rather quickly if your yard is infested with mosquitoes. Their bites make everyone uncomfortable, and they can even be dangerous if they carry potentially deadly diseases like West Nile virus.
Bug spray can help keep them from feasting on your blood for a little while, but there’s no better way to keep yourself from becoming an all-you-can-eat buffet than preventing mosquitoes from coming into your yard in the first place. Here are a few things our exterminators in Bartlesville, OK recommend you try this summer if you’d like to live in a mosquito-free area:
- Get rid of water: Mosquitos lay their eggs in standing pools of water. The problem is that their eggs are so small that they hardly need any water to get the job done. In fact, a plastic bottle cap can hold enough water for them to deposit eggs. Take some time after a summer storm to walk around your yard and remove any standing water or puddles. This will help reduce breeding sites and prevent mosquitoes from hatching in your yard to begin with. If you have a birdbath in your yard, make sure you dump the water and wipe it out every couple of days. Eggs can stick to the basin and survive even in the absence of water.
- Biological control: Biocontrol is an eco-friendly way to manage a mosquito problem. These methods use mosquitoes’ natural enemies to eliminate them from your yard. If you have a pond in your yard, consider purchasing fish that feed on mosquito larvae. The most popular of these breeds is the aptly named mosquitofish. If you don’t have a pond, dragonflies can also be helpful in reducing the mosquito population. Immature dragonflies eat larvae in the waters, and adult dragonflies eat mosquitoes whole.
- Keep your grass short: If you haven’t done any of the things mentioned above, you’re probably going to have an adult mosquito issue. The best way to try to reduce the adults’ presence is by maintaining your lawn. The shorter you keep your grass, the fewer places adult mosquitoes will have to rest when they’re tired of flying around. If there aren’t any good places to take a breather from flying, the less attractive your yard will be to adult mosquitoes.
- Call exterminators: The above DIY tactics can do wonders to mitigate the presence of mosquitos in your yard. But sometimes, the only way to keep the population in check is by bringing in the professionals. Our team of exterminators in Bartlesville, OK uses a variety of human- and pet-friendly methods to get rid of mosquitoes and other pests quickly and efficiently.
Be sure to give Excellence Pest Control a call today to take care of your mosquito infestation once and for all. We look forward to helping you enjoy your summer and avoid a bunch of mosquito bites!
There are many pests that people want to keep out of their homes, and termites are at or near the top of the list. This year, termites have already found their way into many people’s homes and caused damage, made them uncomfortable and cost them thousands in removal and extermination charges. If you have been able to avoid an infestation, then you are lucky! But if you suspect that termites have invaded your home, you will want to call in a professional who can assist with their removal.
If you believe you have termites on your property, here reasons you need to call an exterminator in Bartlesville, OK:
- Proper identification of pests: Oftentimes, when people have an infestation, they may think it is one thing that has taken over their home, when it is actually something else. Before anything can be done, you need to be sure you know exactly what has infested your home. Not many people can properly identify which pest is in their home, which is why it would be best to let a professional figure it out.
- Safe pest removal: Once it has been determined which type of pest has entered your home, a professional can ensure safe removal. Although many people are under the impression that they can pick up pest removal items from the store, these don’t always get the job done and aren’t always the healthiest for people living in the home. Professionals use products that are safe and effective, so you can be sure that, once they leave, your infestation will be over.
- Discovery of potential dangers: When a professional comes to inspect and remove termites from your house, they will be able to inform you of potential dangers in the home. For example, the termites may have eaten a significant amount of wood in one area of your home, and it will require repair or else further damage will occur. This is not something you can necessarily say you would be able to discover on your own, which is another great reason to hire a professional when you want to rid your home of termites.
- Proper tools and equipment: What does it really take to remove pests from a home and ensure they don’t return? A pesticide can do the trick, but a professional can actually use various types of equipment and tools to help get the termites out of your home for good. Chances are you won’t have everything that is needed to get the job done, so if you do it yourself, you may still have these unwanted roommates destroying your beautiful property.
No one is excited when they discover that their home has been invaded and possibly destroyed as time goes on. Whether it is termites, ants or other annoying pests that have made themselves at home, you’ll want to get rid of them, and quickly. Should your home be filled with termites, you don’t want to wait too long to get help.
Do you need an exterminator in Bartlesville, OK to handle your termite infestation? Let the pros at Excellence Pest Control help you take back your home. Call us today to schedule a visit!
