Termite Inspections Sydney

When to get a termite inspection

Get one at least once a year. Termites work out of sight, and a year is plenty of time for a colony to do real damage to the timber in a house. If your place is higher risk, an older home, a damp subfloor, timber or garden beds against the walls, or bushland nearby, it's worth doing more often.

It's also worth booking if you've noticed any of these.

Mud tubes. Pencil-width lines of brown mud running up brick piers, walls, or the slab edge.
Hollow or soft timber. Skirting, door frames, or architraves that sound hollow or give when you press them.
Dust on the floor. Ant frass is fine, black, and dusty. Termite workings are brown mud, solid. If it's brown mud, get it checked.
Discarded wings near windows or lights on a warm spring evening, from swarmers leaving a nearby nest.

If you spot any of it, don't disturb it. Knocking into a live nest can split the colony and send it elsewhere in the house. Leave it alone and call me.

What I check

I go through every part of the property I can get to: the outside perimeter, the subfloor where there's access, every internal room, the roof void, and the timber. That means skirting boards, door and window frames, and any timber structures, fences, and outbuildings inside the boundary.

I bring a thermal imaging camera and a moisture meter on every inspection, not as a paid extra. The thermal camera reads temperature differences across walls and floors, which shows up moisture and termite activity hidden inside the structure where you can't see it. The moisture meter gives a direct reading inside the timber. Moisture is what draws termites in, so a damp spot in the wrong place is often the first sign of a problem before there's any visible damage. This lines up with the Australian Standard for inspecting existing buildings, AS 3660.2, which lists thermal imaging and moisture metering as additional tests. I use both as standard.

Most inspections take one to two hours, depending on the size of the house and how easy it is to get around. I don't rush them. A proper inspection takes the time it takes.

The report, before I leave

I write the report on-site and hand it to you before I leave the property. You're not waiting on an email. It covers what I found, what I didn't find, the conditions that put the place at risk, and what I'd recommend doing about it.

What happens if I find termites

If I find activity, I'll explain the options on the day. Depending on what's there, that might be a chemical barrier, a baiting and monitoring system, or treating an active colony directly. I'll tell you what I'd do and why, and I won't push a treatment you don't need. If it turns out to be nothing, and sometimes it is, I'll tell you that too. See termite treatment for how the treatment side works.

How I work

Every inspection is done by me. You call the number and I'm the one who turns up, crawls the subfloor, and writes the report. I've been doing this since 2015, across all sorts of houses. I'll give you a straight picture of what's there, with no scare tactics and no upsell.

Common questions

How often should I get a termite inspection?
At least once a year. More often if your place is higher risk, like an older home, a damp subfloor, or timber and garden beds against the walls. Some conditions you can't fully fix, and regular inspections are how you stay ahead of them.

Do I need an inspection if I can't see any termites?
Yes. Termites work from the inside out, so the timber can look fine on the surface while it's hollow behind. That's the whole point of the thermal camera and moisture meter. They pick up what a visual check on its own would miss.

How long does an inspection take?
Usually one to two hours for a house, depending on size and access. I don't rush it.

What's the difference between a termite inspection and a timber pest inspection?
A termite inspection focuses on termites. A timber pest inspection also covers wood borers and decay fungi. If you're buying a property, you want the timber pest version. See my pre-purchase timber pest inspection page.

Are white ants the same as termites?
Yes. White ants are termites, just the common name. The inspection is the same either way.