1. Would I know if I have termites? — You might, but chances are you could be clueless until a termite inspection or a renovation project uncovers the termites and damage. Termites are usually munching away on wood in a void, crawlspace, or a hidden area of your home. From the outside, the infested wood may look basically normal but if you probe into it, it may be soft and crumbly or feel like it has been hollowed out to some degree. Subterranean termites usually attack wood that has been softened by water damage or high moisture levels. If you have an area where wood has been exposed to a roof or plumbing leak or where you know the wood is damp, keep an eye on it. Two signs of a possible termite infestation are winged termites inside your home or mud tubes that termites use as travel routes built on foundation walls or in other sites. If you have any reason to suspect termites, call a pest control professional. See 4 Signs of Termites.
2. If I do see winged termites, does that mean they are infesting my house? — It depends on where you see the swarmers, also called alates. They are commonly seen outside since termite colonies are common in buried wood, stumps, trees, woodpiles, etc. If the winged termites were inside your house or almost inside your house, emerging around a door frame or coming from a foundation crack, for example, you need to contact a pest control professional. Swarmers are not produced by a termite colony until the colony is several years old, so damage has probably occurred. Two things to consider: (1) the winged swarmers could be ants rather than termites. Save some for identification. (2) if you only see one or two swarmers inside, it’s possible that they came in from outside. An inspection can answer that question.
3. If termites are found, are there any environmentally-safe, less toxic ways to control termites that also work? — Sure are! At Colonial, we rely on the Sentricon termite baiting system that uses in-ground bait stations containing wood product impregnated with a termite insecticide. Termites find the bait and carry it back to the colony where it kills others, including the queen. Customers love that we don’t have to trench around their house or drill their floors to inject liquid insecticide. For more on termite baiting, see our Service Page, Termite Treatment Using the Sentricon Termite Colony Elimination System, or give us a call.

Photo Credit : By Pollinator – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Termite_alates_9759.JPG, CC BY-SA 3.0, Link