How to Identify and Get Rid Of Drywood Termite Droppings in Your Home

While drywood termites can be difficult to spot, there are still ways for you to find where they are. And one of the best signs that point to a drywood termite colony is their frass or droppings.

Drywood termite frass is something you need to deal with right away. Not only could they really cause a mess in your house (especially if it gets windy), but the termites producing them could also wind up destroying the integrity of your beloved house. So as soon as you spot these nasty fecal pellets, proceed with cleaning them up and calling your trusted pest control professional.

But how can you identify and get rid of drywood termite droppings in your home? As you’ll see below, it’s easy to spot drywood termite frass, and you can do away with them quite quickly. 

Ways to Identify Drywood Termite Droppings

To properly identify drywood termite droppings, you need to know how drywood termites deal with their frass, what their fecal pellets look like, and other things. Let’s dive in!

How Drywood Termites Deal With Their Droppings

Drywood termites behave differently from their cousins when it comes to their fecal pellets. Certain species like the subterranean termite, dampwood termite, and Formosan termite repurpose frass to build walls, tunnels, and whatnot in their colonies. On the other hand, drywood termites prefer not having them in their homes. That’s because they live inside wood, and space there can be very limited. So they eject their frass out of exit holes regularly. But while this allows them to live comfortably enough, it inadvertently gives away their location to homeowners.

What Do Termite Pellets Look Like?

Drywood termite pellets usually look like tiny, oval-shaped capsules with rounded ends and six concave sides. Each grain of frass is around 1 millimeter long, and it can come in different colors (depending on the wood eaten by the drywood termites). Pounds of drywood termite droppings look like small piles of salt, pepper, and sawdust.

Can Drywood Termite Frass Make You Sick?

While drywood termite droppings are non-toxic, touching them could still irritate your skin. This is especially true if you have sensitive skin or if you’re asthmatic. Besides this, frass contains enzymes and microbes that can make you sick. These organisms come from the termites’ guts, and these allow them to digest the wood more effectively. So if you want to avoid dealing with rashes, allergic reactions, or other health issues, best not clean up termite frass with your bare hands.

Read more: Carpenter Ant Frass Vs. Termite Frass: What’s the Difference?

Where Are Drywood Termite Droppings Located?

Thankfully, spotting drywood termite frass is relatively easy. Since most of them live inside wooden structures and furniture, you just need to look for their fecal pellets there. If you’re not sure if the mounds of dust you find are droppings or not, bring a sample to a pest control expert to identify. From there, you’ll either take measures to get rid of the drywood termites’ fecal pellets or have your trusted pest control professional do the dirty work for you.

Tips to Getting Rid of Drywood Termite Droppings

Once you’ve found the drywood termite frass, you can proceed with the clean-up. To save time and energy, you can follow the tips below:

• Open your doors and windows

Before you start, you need to make sure that the area is well-ventilated. That way, any bacteria left by the termite frass in the air can safely be ejected from your home.

Open the doors and windows in the room for at least 30 minutes to let fresh air in. You can leave the area during this time to do other things.

• Put some equipment on

As you’re cleaning up termite poop, you need to get your gloves on. Rubber or plastic gloves will do. Don them right before you start the clean-up. 

You should also consider wearing a mask when cleaning drywood termite droppings. Sure, it’ll not protect you against germs or viruses, but it’ll still help you avoid breathing in the dust-like frass left by the termites.

And while you’re at it, wear some goggles. That way, you won’t get any of the frass in your eyes during the clean-up.

Once your home is scoured free of termite droppings, make sure to disinfect your equipment. Afterward, you should go wash yourself, too!

• Sweep the droppings first

Next, get a broom and dustpan to sweep the droppings away. This is highly recommended especially if you’re dealing with large mounds of drywood termite droppings. By sweeping the frass first, you’ll save time when mopping up and disinfecting the area.

• Spray and mop the spot

As soon as you finish dealing with the majority of the termite frass, proceed with spraying and mopping the area. Get a good disinfectant to make sure none of the bacteria and viruses in the fecal pellets survive.

Spray the target area as thoroughly and as intensively as you can. Once you’re satisfied, you can proceed with mopping the area until no trace of the drywood termite droppings remains.

• Treat the infested area

Finally, employ anti-termite treatment methods to eradicate the source of the termite frass. Treat any infested area or furniture you find with insecticides. If the drywood termites reside in firewood, you should treat the firewood and burn it right away. You can also rely on insect baits if you don’t like the smell of insecticides.

• Get professional help

While the pointers above can help you clean up most of the drywood termite droppings you encounter, you can’t deal with an extensive termite infestation alone. So the moment you spot them in your house, call your trusted pest control immediately. That way, the pest control expert can help you come up with the best solution to get rid of these pesky insects from your property. And as a bonus, they can help you eliminate the fecal pellets left by the termites.

Get Help From Pinnacle Pest Control

While not as annoying to deal with as the termites themselves, drywood termite droppings shouldn’t be ignored in case you encounter them. As soon as you spot mounds of them in your home, you should get rid of them right away.

Got a drywood termite infestation at home? Let Pinnacle Pest Control deal with it! We have a team of highly skilled professionals that won’t only eliminate your termite problem but also help you clean up the droppings they leave behind.

Interested in our termite control and other services? Call us and enjoy free consultation!