For clients who require a pest inspection, The Home Inspection Hub partners with specialist pest inspector Teemu Carr of Crunch Pest Control.
Teemu uses a range of specialist equipment in the course of his inspections, including a thermal imaging camera.
This device detects and measures the infra-red energy of an object and converts this energy into an electronic image.
Changes in the surface temperature of a floor or wall may indicate the presence of common pests such as rodents, termites and wasps.
Teemu explains, ‘Thermal imaging devices can’t see through walls- for example, they can’t detect a rodent moving through a wall, but a thermal imaging camera can easily detect a termite nest that has been generating heat.’
‘Termites are cold-blooded but release heat through their digestive processes. In large numbers this will produce an obvious heat reading. They also use mud tubes to access buildings. These tubes produce a high moisture content which shows up as an irregularity in temperature on the wall surface, ceiling and floors.’
If the camera shows a change in temperature consistent with the presence of termites, Teemu then engages other pest detection processes such as sounding techniques, moisture testing and the use of a termite radar to confirm the presence of a nest.
The camera has other uses too. ‘Rodents create nests that can be detected with the camera’, explains Teemu, ‘and other issues such as insulation which has moved, or damaged walls which can create a cold spot which the camera detects.’
Using a thermal imaging camera correctly requires skill and experience to correctly interpret an image.
Teemu is a fully qualified and licensed pest control technician who has completed specialised training in the use of thermal imaging cameras.
Example 1: These images show the data captured by Crunch Pest Control’s Termatrac T3i Termite Radar. They show termite activity present in a wall cavity:
Example 2: These images show the data captured by Crunch Pest Control’s thermal imaging camera. Image 1 shows evidence of a small termite nest under some flooring.Image 2 shows a termite nest in a wall cavity, showing up as the red area on the camera screen:
Why a building and pest inspection is crucial
Are you looking for a home?
The only way to get the full picture of a property is to engage an experienced, reputable inspection company and pest inspector to carry out a comprehensive building and pest inspection.
The Home Inspection Hub in partnership with Crunch Pest Control can assist.
building inspector will inspect the following elements of the property:
- Site
- Foundations
- Building Exterior
- Building Interior
- Underfloor and Roof Space
- Wet Areas
- Services
- Pests (looking for initial evidence of an infestation)
For an idea of the kinds of defects our inspectors uncover, read our article Building Inspectors Are Defect Detectives.
Our qualified pest inspector Teemu Carr of Crunch Pest Control will then carry out an in-depth pest inspection to check for evidence of termite nests, rodent damage and other pest issues such as wasp nests.
Teemu is an accredited and licensed timber pest inspector, a certified Termatrac T3i technician and an Infrared Thermography and Thermal Non-destructive Tester.
The Home Inspection Hub team comprises inspectors who are all registered builders or architects, and who all have a minimum of twenty years’ industry experience.
See our full list of residential building inspection services
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