Do Termites Eat Spray Foam Insulation

When termites make a home in the wood of a building they create pathways inside the wood they are eating.

Do termites eat spray foam insulation.

However it can cover structural timbers and cover areas that are needed for an efficient termite inspection and treatment. Spray foam insulations are a popular construction material but as home renovation season ramps up some exterminators are warning that the puffy stuff lining your walls could be a speedway for. Furthermore termites can also tunnel through insulation and easily gain access to other structural wood of the home. Termites can eat through foam insulation and gain access to the main structure of the home when foam insulation was installed around the exterior of homes it went from the footing all the way up to the wood sill.

Wall insulation damage from termites. The subterranean termites native to our region find spray foam insulation particularly inviting. The concern with permanent insulation spray foam is that it will be more difficult for a pest control company to do visual inspections for termites regularly. It is offered to addresses common issues.

Some spray foam companies will leave a 2 or 3 inch barrier between the insulation and the wooden support structures of a home which aids in the visibility of the beams facilitating inspection. Foam board will also insulate so that there is a constant temperature in the foam board a condition most favored by termites. Spray foam is neither a food source nor attractant for termites. Spray foam insulation and subterranean termites in basements and crawlspaces this document is developed as a resource for professional contractors in the spray polyurethane foam insulation and professional pest management fields primarily and for other audiences secondarily.

Cellulose termite s main appeal is not an ingredient present in spray foam of any kind. Termites consume the wood components of homes so their damage lies below the surface of spray foam not within it. While termites are unlikely to move through the insulation preferring to bore through wood which is their lunch unlike ants who don t need to eat wood using primarily as a fortified nest it will mitigate direct against ants and wood boring bees wasps and indirectly against termites by lowering the moisture content of the wood. Researchers have concluded that termites do not eat the foam board insulation but they will tunnel through it.

Wooden beams covered in spray foam are inaccessible to inspection which can invalidate a termite warranty. What this allowed was steady access into the sill plate. Spray foam insulation can increase the energy efficiency of a home. Insulation also provides potential protection from predators and also retains moisture two requirements of termites.

The spray foam coalition writes that their foam does not attract or provide a food source for termites it recommends more intense inspection techniques like moisture meters infrared cameras.