Wood Destroying Insect Reports (WDI)

Have you ever heard of a Wood Destroying Insect Report? Here in Texas, it is required to have one completed when either buying or selling a home. I have heard some of the horror stories of home inspectors who are not licensed in Structural Pest Control look for termites and quite honestly, the methods that some of them use make me cringe.

The best recommendation would be to find a Structural Pest Control Company that actually deals with termites, just in case termites are found. I will get calls from people saying, “So and so company did the WDI for us. They discovered termites but they don’t treat for them. Can you help us?” Of course we helped them but we have to look over the WDI report and verify what the inspector found is in fact termites or not.
Here are some things the inspector should be looking for:
Conducive conditions such as soil lines that are too high along the slab of the home; Bushes, trees, plants, etc that block the view of the slab; Standing water that doesn’t drain away from the house; Previous infestation and when was it treated; New damage and determine whether it’s carpenter ants, powder post beetles, termites, or carpenter bees.
If any of these these things are found, they should be noted on the inspection report as well as any corrective measures that need to be taken.

Even if you don’t live in Texas, you should make sure to be on the look out for these things when buying or selling your home.