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termites
Will try to keep it short.
purchased a house in Mar 1999. House built in 1988. Discovered termites in July 2003 in our attached garage. Upon inspection, realized house had been previously treated for termites in the garage. Called previous owners, they said it was treated in March of 1997. I called the company that treated it in 1997 and asked them to come out to give me a price on treating. They said they show no record of treating this house, but since it had been treated (you can see the drill holes in the concrete floor and in the bricks around the house), they would give me a reduced rate of $1542 to treat. Standard rate was about $2100. The inspector told me about the holes in the bricks, I had never noticed them. He commented that they were drilled too high up the wall. Tonight, I removed the paneling from the garage walls and discovered extensive termite damage. Most of the studs have some damage, several with termite damage all the way up to the ceiling. I have a bonus room over the garage so I am concerened about the structural integrity of the house. The pest control company says they did not treat the house, the previous owners have a copy of the renewal bill in 1998, the year after treating. I realize it has been 6 years since treatment, but this infestation has been going on for years. Also, one important point, I used this company in 1999 to do the termite inspection when I bought the house. They checked the box "No visible evidence of infestation from wood-destroying insects was observed." The instruction on the sheet (Official North Carolina Wood-Destroying Insect Information Report) states "If there is a evidence of a previous or an active infestation of subterranean termites and/or other wood-destroying insects in the wooden members, it must be assumed that there is some damage to the wooden members caused by this infestation, no matter how slight. If this is the case, the structural integrity of this property should be evaluated by a qualified building expert. (For the purpose of completing the report, "infestation" means evidence of past or present activity by a wood-destroying insect visible in, on, or under a structure, or in or on debris under the structure.)" Shouldn't the presence of drill holes in the concrete and the bricks have been evidence of previous treatment? If not, since they are the company that treated 2 years before this inspection, shouldn't that be evidence of infestation. They obviously knew about the infestation when they treated the house. I think since they treated the house for termites 2 years before this inspection, they should have checked the box stating "Visible evidence of a previously treated infestation, which now appears to be inactive"? This is assuming it was under control which clearly it was not. Also, isn't the previous owners bound by law to disclose the previous problem with termites? Any suggestions or advice will be greatly appreciated. |
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