[justincaseme]

A little less than 1 year ago I had my home inspected and treated for termites. I'm renovating the house, so there was no drywall and it was very easy to treat the home. Recently, in the garage, I discovered some infected shiplap where the roof meets the top-plate.

The termite company sent someone out. He said this infestation wasn't covered by the warranty because they only treated for termites. Here's the thing... this infested wood is completely visible. It's located directly adjacent to wood that was cut out and removed by the termite company. The worker must have spent an hour standing right in front of this spot. According to this new inspector, this infestation would have taken years to develop. Why did they miss this the first time? It's not hidden or blocked in any way. Should the termite company cover the treatment and repair?

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On a different note, can anyone bring me up to speed on False Powder Post beetles?
- Termites swarm in the summer, but how do beatlest spread?
- I know painting is a good defense against termites, what's a good defense against beetles?
- Is simply replacing the invested area of shiplap enough? How do we know if they've invested adjacent areas, but the damage just isn't visible?
- What's the best course of treatment?

Thanks in advance

[Catsmine]

You've asked several questions. Let's see if I can get to all of them without looking back.

Your termite company's warranty should not cover powder post beetles. The treatments are very different.

Your termite company should have found them and informed you during their periodic re-inspections. This is where you can get them.

You need to call the regulators in. If you're in the USA that would be your state's Dept. of Agriculture. They will examine your building and the damage as well as the treatment records at the company. Find all of the inspection report copies that you can.

Oops, got to look.

Here's a link to a good page about the beetles:

Cornell Entomology at Ithaca - Powder Post Beetles

[justincaseme]

Thanks for the info Catsmine. I don't have a periodic reinspection plan. I purchased the home a year and half ago. I brought this company in last year, one time, to inspect and take care of the termites. I asked them back again this week when I discovered the deteriorated wood.

I paid the company $1700 for the treatments and repairs last year. Included was a preventative Boracare treatment of much of the wood in the house - keep mind there was almost no drywall up. The gentleman who came by today said the Boracare concentration was not high enough to effect beetles. :\

I'm located in California. I don't want to take advantage of the pest company, but I want to make sure they're doing right by me. They want $500 to replace the infected shiplap board. I tried to call the state Structural Pest Control Board this afternoon for clarification on the warranty. Have you heard about our budget problems in California? The office was closed, but should be open again next week.

By the way, here's a copy of the Inspection Report (PDF).

[Catsmine]

Drywood termite treatments are different from subterranean. Strike my previous comment about termite treatments.

Get the State out there before anything further is done.
1. If the concentration is too low to kill beetles, termites can survive it, too.
2. All states require termite control companies to provide a multi year warranty with periodic reinspections. The company can charge you for the warranty renewal, but that should be spelled out in the treatment agreement.
3. It is possible there wasn't any evidence of the beetles at the time of the first inspection, but BoraCare treatments are the method of choice for controlling beetles.

From what I see here, you should have the State inspector verify the amount of borate in the wood. Find a piece that you know was treated that he/she can take a sample from.