I come across many instances of termite damage during my site inspections of old houses.  Most of the time the home owner does not know that termites have been eating away at their structure until it is brought to their attention.  Sometimes termite damaged studs or floor joists are found during renovations. One simple sign that most home owners miss is ants crawling inside their home.  A typical home owner’s first response to ants inside their home, or to termite damage, is to call the exterminator.  This is a mistake and a total waste of their money, not to mention the environmental hazards of the chemicals used. Exterminators can eliminate ants inside or outside the house perimeter for a short period, but this is not a long term solution. Ants and other insects are not supposed to enter your home. And if they do, that means there are hidden cracks and holes in the exterior of the house.  Long term solution is to find the cracks and holes where ants are entering the house and then properly closing those entry points.  You can start by walking around the house foundation wall looking for ants.  If you see ants, you can follow their path and find the entry point. Other times it is not so easy and the remediation involves excavating around the foundation wall.   Just keep in mind that it is less expensive to close cracks and holes than to rebuild walls and floors.