Found Termites? Do This First

The quick answer

Don’t spray them. Don’t break the mud tubes. Don’t pull the skirting off to see how bad it is. If you’ve already disturbed them, cover the area back up as best you can. Take a photo from where you stand, leave everything exactly as it is, and call (03) 9436 0883 — we treat termites as urgent and can often get there same-day, depending on where you are. Here’s why those rules matter.

Why you must not spray or disturb them

It’s the most natural reaction in the world — grab the fly spray and go to war. It’s also the single most expensive mistake in the termite world. The termites you can see are a handful of workers from a colony that lives somewhere else entirely. Spray them, break their mud tubes, or open up the timber, and the colony does exactly what it’s built to do: it retreats, seals off, and resurfaces somewhere else in your home — somewhere you can’t see, where finding it again is much harder. If the colony packs up and moves, the whole job gets tougher.

Proper treatment doesn’t target the few dozen termites at the surface — it targets the colony. To do that, we need the activity live and undisturbed, exactly where you found it.

Already disturbed them? Do this

No shame — most people have had a poke before they knew better. Put whatever you moved back as close as you can to how it was: lean the skirting back, sit the cardboard box back over it, tape a cover over an opened section. You’re not fixing anything — you’re keeping the termites calm and in place until a technician arrives. Then stop touching it and call.

Take a breath — your house is not falling down

The panic is real and we hear it on the phone every week, so let’s deal with it: termite damage happens over months and years, not days. Nothing structural changes between now and a technician arriving. What matters is what happens next — a proper inspection to map how far the activity extends, and treatment that ends the colony rather than scattering it.

What happens when we arrive

A full termite inspection — roof void, subfloor, timbers and the surrounding property — using gear that finds activity without breaking anything: the Termatrac live-detection unit, thermal imagers and moisture meters. You get a detailed photo report of what’s actually happening, and a treatment plan quoted for your specific home. Every house is different — slab, subfloor, brick veneer, access — and the structure genuinely changes what the right treatment is and what it costs, which is why we quote per property, not off a rate card. Where a consistent barrier is achievable, our treatment work carries a minimum 8-year warranty (terms and conditions apply). The full picture of how treatment works is on our termite control page.

One thing worth knowing while you wait

Home insurance in Australia almost never covers termite damage — it’s classed as preventable, so standard policies exclude it. That’s not a scare line; it’s the reason acting now matters. Caught early and treated properly, most termite jobs end well. The heartbreaking ones are always the same story: the signs were there for a year and nobody looked.

Found-termites questions

I sprayed them before I read this — have I ruined it?

No — but stop now. Cover the area back up, don’t do any further poking or spraying, and tell us what you used when you call. The colony may have pulled back from that spot, but an experienced technician with detection equipment can usually re-locate the activity. The sooner we’re there, the better.

How fast can you get here?

Often same-day, depending on your location — termites get treated as urgent. Phones are answered 7am–9pm, seven days, on (03) 9436 0883. Tell us you’ve found live termites and we’ll move accordingly.

Will they do serious damage before you arrive?

No. Termite damage accumulates over months and years — a few days changes nothing structurally. Rushing to disturb them causes far more trouble than waiting calmly for proper treatment.

How much will treatment cost?

It honestly depends on your home — slab or subfloor, size, access, and how established the activity is all change the answer, which is why no honest company quotes termite treatment sight-unseen. The inspection comes first and tells us both exactly what we’re dealing with; then you get a fixed quote for your specific structure.

What do termites actually look like?

Pale, soft-bodied insects — often called white ants, though they’re not ants. What you’ll more likely see is their evidence: mud tubes on walls, stumps or foundations, timber that sounds hollow when tapped, blistered paint, or fine mud packing in cracks and joins. Any of those is worth a call, even without seeing a single insect.

Right now, one call does it

Call (03) 9436 0883 (7am–9pm, seven days), send an enquiry, or book online. Family-owned, 25+ years, 400+ five-star Google reviews — and when it’s termites, we treat it as urgent because it is.