Termite Exterminator in Scranton, PA

Why Termites Are a Scranton Problem

Scranton's century-old frame homes and eastern subterranean termites are a bad combination. The Hill Section and North Scranton are full of older houses resting on fieldstone foundations over damp basements — exactly the conditions subterranean termites need. Pencil-width mud tubes along foundation walls are the classic find, because they connect the colony in the soil to the wood above. And because termites eat wood from the inside out, damage in these homes is frequently discovered only during a renovation or a buyer's inspection, years after it began.

Spring is when the problem announces itself. On warm days after rain, reproductive swarmers emerge in clouds that Scranton homeowners routinely mistake for flying ants. A swarm indoors is a reliable sign of an established colony in or under the structure — not a passing visit. Balloon framing, common in the city's older housing, gives termites open wall cavities running from basement to attic, a vertical highway that newer platform-framed homes do not have.

Our termite work in Scranton starts with a licensed inspector examining the foundation, sill plates, crawl space, and moisture-prone areas, with any activity documented in writing. Treatment is matched to the construction — a liquid soil barrier or an in-ground baiting system — and backed by annual monitoring. We also complete NPMA-33 WDI reports for the city's busy older-home resale market. If we find nothing, you get that in writing too — a clean inspection record that protects resale value. Homeowners insurance almost never covers termite damage, which makes the annual inspection the cheapest protection an older Scranton home can buy.