WDO Repairs: Straight Answers on Wood Damage Before You Book

WDO Repairs: What the Service Actually Includes

The service starts with an inspection of the property for damage from wood-destroying organisms, including hard-to-reach areas, and the technician looks for damaged wood, the pests that caused it and the cracks or gaps they used to get in. The inspection answers three questions: where the damage sits, which pests caused it and how they got in.

Next comes a customized repair plan for the structure that covers damage restoration from termites, carpenter ants and other wood-destroying organisms, so the team restores the wood that the pests weakened.

Prevention comes last because it protects the finished work, and the team seals cracks and installs barriers that close the openings that let pests reach the wood. Because the company also offers termite control and carpenter ant control, the pest problem and the structural problem can go to one team.

People often ask how wood damage repair differs from a pest treatment, and the answer is that a treatment deals with the living pests, while repair work deals with the wood they left damaged, so a complete plan looks at both.

The plan names each area of the property that needs work, such as a section of floor framing, a wall stud, a beam or trim near a door or window, and the technician walks through the plan with you so you know which wood sections are restored and which prevention steps follow.

That walkthrough also gives you a chance to ask about the order of the work and the visits it needs, and any special access the work requires is worth raising then.

What Wood-Destroying Organism Damage Looks Like

Wood-destroying organisms are pests that feed on or nest in the wood of a building. Termites and carpenter ants are the two the company names, and each leaves different signs.

Termite Damage

Termites feed on cellulose, the main material in wood, and they often work inside a board where nobody can see them, so signs include hollow-sounding wood, thin mud tubes along a foundation wall and wood that crumbles when pressed.

Carpenter Ant Damage and Repairs

Carpenter ants do not eat wood, but they dig smooth tunnels to nest in it and push small piles of wood shavings out below the spot where they work, and damp or damaged wood is often the first place they choose. Early damage is usually small, and it is not always visible from the outside.

Both kinds of damage can reach beams, framing, floors and trim, and a structure can hide damage behind walls and under floors. An inspection finds what the eye misses, and the repair plan follows what the inspection finds.

Moisture is a large part of both wood problems, because leaks, damp crawl spaces and poor drainage leave wood soft, and soft wood is what carpenter ants and termites seek. Wood that stays damp from one year to the next gives these pests an easy start. A technician looks for those conditions during the inspection, and the prevention step deals with the cracks the pests used to get in.

Old damage can remain after the pests are gone, and an active infestation can continue while repair work is planned, so the technician checks the building for both. Termite treatment can range from local treatment to fumigation of a whole building, and the inspection helps identify what the pests need before the repair plan is set.

A written report of the findings is a good first step, and it should note the location of each damaged area, which portions of the structure the crew must replace and which areas may only need sealing. The inspection also helps verify which pests are still active, and reporting new signs of damage early gives the team more to work with.

How Wood Damage Repair Fits With Termite and Ant Control

The company also offers termite control, carpenter ant control and property inspections, and it lists interior remodels among its services. Termite control follows a thorough inspection, a customized treatment plan and exclusion methods that prevent the pests from returning.

Stopping the pests protects the repair work, so the technician explains which step comes first for your property. Property inspections cover all areas of the property, including hard-to-reach areas, and serve residential and commercial customers.

One team can handle the pests and the damage, which means one set of questions and one visit schedule to follow. Service plans cover 20+ pests, so the same company can also deal with other pests the inspection turns up. The company lists service in Atwater, Bakersfield, Fresno, Madera, Merced, Modesto, Oakdale, San Luis Obispo, Santa Clara, Stockton and Turlock, so its service areas cover the Central Valley, the Central Coast and the South Bay.

If damaged walls, floors or trim need more than a patch, ask the team how the repair plan fits with any new remodel work you already have in mind, because the company lists interior remodels among its services.