Every morning you find a small pile of tiny, sand-colored pellets under a door frame or behind a cabinet. You sweep it up and it comes back. This is not dust. It is the droppings of drywood termites (Cryptotermes and their relatives), which live inside the wood itself, not in the soil.
This type behaves differently from the subterranean termite and needs a different treatment, and it is part of the termite guide.
The difference: Drywood termites live inside the wood itself and need no contact with the soil.
The sign: Small, dry, grain-like droppings falling from tiny holes in furniture, doors or wooden ceilings.
Spread: They usually travel with furniture and infested wood, and the infestation widens slowly over years.
Treatment: Spot treatment by injection into the infested wood, or a whole-building treatment depending on how widespread the infestation is.
The rule: Spraying the wood surface is not enough, because the termites are inside it. Injection or whole-structure treatment is what reaches them.
How Do They Live?
Their colonies are smaller than the subterranean ones, but they are hidden inside the wood and quietly eat away at it for its whole life.
- Inside the wood: Furniture, doors, frames, carvings and wooden ceilings, with no need for soil.
- Water: They get it from the wood itself and from the air, so they tolerate dry places.
- Spread: Through winged reproductives that fly to new wood and enter through small cracks.
- Travel with furniture: A colony may move with an infested piece of furniture to another home.
Signs of Infestation
You almost never see the termites themselves, but the signs are clear:
- Dropping pellets: About the size of a sesame seed and tiny hexagonal shapes, collecting in piles under small holes.
- Kick-out holes: Pinhead-sized openings from which the pellets are pushed out.
- Hollow wood: It gives a hollow sound when tapped.
- Fallen wings: On window edges after rain or warm weather.
To tell it apart from beetle holes, see the wood weevil article: the wood powder there is as fine as flour, while termite pellets are firm and granular.
Treatment Options
A soil barrier does not help, because they have no link to the soil at all. Treatment needs to reach the wood itself:
- Spot treatment: Injecting the holes with insecticide or foam in infested wood and sealing them.
- Surface treatment of wood: Spraying or brushing a protective product on exposed wood.
- Full fumigation: For widespread infestations, applied by licensed professionals to the whole building.
- Heat or freezing: For small pieces of furniture.
For the general plan see getting rid of termites.
How Do You Reduce the Risk?
- Inspect used furniture: Before bringing it into the house.
- Seal wood cracks: And coat them with paint or varnish that covers the openings.
- Reduce night lighting: Near windows, because winged termites are attracted to light.
Drywood vs. Subterranean at a Glance
- Mud tubes: Subterranean termites build them, drywood termites do not.
- Droppings: Drywood termites leave visible pellets, while subterranean termites hide them inside the tubes.
- Numbers: A drywood colony is small and hidden.
- Treatment: Subterranean termites need a soil barrier, drywood termites need access to the wood.
Where Should You Look for Them?
- Window and door frames: The upper wood that winged termites enter.
- Wooden furniture: Old cabinets, desks and beds.
- Wooden roofs and ceilings: And exposed ceiling beams.
- Frames and carvings: And wooden decor pieces.
When Do You Turn to Fumigation?
Fumigation is a whole-building treatment applied by licensed companies, who cover the building and inject a gas that penetrates the wood. It is used when the infestation is in multiple places that cannot be reached with spot treatment. This treatment requires vacating the building for several days.
How Do They Reproduce and Nest?
Drywood termite colonies are smaller than subterranean ones and live inside the wood itself with no contact with the soil, so you do not see mud tubes. The winged individuals come out in certain seasons, often in the evening in search of light, then land on wood and start a new colony after losing their wings.
Droppings: Your First Clue
This type pushes its droppings out of small openings in the wood as small, dry pellets with ridged surfaces. You find them gathered in piles under a door, frame or piece of furniture, in a color similar to the infested wood. If you see these piles come back after sweeping them, the colony is active.
Other Ways to Detect Them
- Light tapping on the wood: A hollow sound indicates internal cavities.
- Small round openings that are sometimes sealed with a material similar in color to the wood.
- Fallen wings near windows after flight seasons.
Spot Treatment
If the infestation is limited to a single piece, injecting a dedicated product into the wood openings and treating the surfaces may be enough. When the infestation has spread through the structure of the building, specialists resort to gas fumigation or heat treatment. In all cases, following the label instructions, ventilation and keeping children and animals away are the basis of safety.
Products from the Orkida Store
We choose the treatment according to the type of termite and where the infestation is, and we recommend reading the dose and safety interval on the label before starting. For large infestations, it is better to use a specialist to apply the full barrier.
- Professional Termite Control Package for Homes: A professional termite package combining the specialized insecticide and application equipment, and it is the most suitable starting point for most homes.
- Agenda 25 EC Public Health Insecticide for Termite Control, 1 L: Agenda 25 (fipronil) is a concentrate for treating the soil around foundations, and it is one of the essentials of the chemical barrier that termites pass through, carrying the material into the colony.
- Agenda 25 EC Public Health Insecticide for Termite Control, 100 ml: A small pack of Agenda for spot treatment in a small building or the affected part.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I know the pellets are from termites?
They are smooth and hard, like tiny ridged grains in colors similar to wood, and they fall from tiny holes.
Is spraying the visible wood enough?
No, because the colony is inside the wood. You need an injection or a treatment that reaches the inside.
Does it spread between apartments?
It may spread through furniture or winged termites, so check the neighbors in attached buildings.
Should I get rid of the infested furniture?
A small piece can be treated with heat or injection, and discarding it is optional in severe infestations.
Image source: Ra Inta, CSIRO, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 3.0)
Frequently Asked Questions About Drywood Termites
What is the difference between it and the subterranean termite?
The drywood termite lives inside the wood itself and does not need contact with the soil or high humidity, while the subterranean termite lives in the soil and builds mud tunnels to reach the wood.
What are its main signs?
Small hard pellets (droppings) that fall near the wood, small holes in furniture, fallen wings near windows, and wood that sounds hollow.
Is surface spraying enough?
Usually not, because the insect lives inside the wood. Treatment may need spot injection into the wood or a whole-structure treatment depending on the size of the infestation, and it is best to consult a specialist.
How do I protect new furniture?
Inspect the wood before buying it, avoid bringing in old infested furniture, coat exposed wood with protective products, and watch for pellet droppings.