Termites in Michigan?
Hi all,
I was curious if anyone has experienced termite trouble in Michigan. There is a pest control company that is recommending protection against them, but I wanted to know how much of a problem they truly are. Generally speaking, it seems to be more problematic for warmer/more southern states from what I have heard. Any input is welcomed!
Yes there are termites in Michigan but not as prevalent / destructive as you get in the South.
In our apartments we had a pest control company come regularly looking for bugs and once in a long while they would spot termite activity so we would go through a treatment. We only treated after evidence of termites.
I'm not sure what is meant by "protection against them", if they are selling you some proactive program, it may be overkill.
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@Erin Anderegg as @Greg Scott stated, not a big problem in Michigan due to winter frost killing most. FHA used to require a pest inspection on their loans in Michigan, but stopped decades ago.
With warming climate, they may become a bigger problem in the future.
Would ask the pest company for proof of an infestation before going with their "sales pitch".
As mentioned before, yes we do have termites here in Michigan, it is not something we typically have to worry about with most houses though.
I wouldn't think a "pretreatment" for them would be necessary, though having a property you're not occupying inspected for and treated for pests semi-regularly isn't a bad idea, I would be more concerned with carpenter ants, bees/wasps, roaches, and bedbugs in a property in Michigan than termites.
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Although termites can do serious damage, just also know that the typical fix of throwing a tent over the house and gassing them is just a short term fix. They will come right back and re-infest quickly. Keep your eyes open, but don't freak out too much either....
Actual security cam footage of termites (it appears to be somewhere in Northern Michigan): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RAcNZo7-f0g
Thank you all for the insight, very helpful! I won't worry about preemptive protection and just inspect for damage on a regular basis.
I can get see about getting the source if needed, but I was informed by a pest control company themselves that termites do not live in Michigan and that you are most likely encountering carpenter ants or flying ants.