Raised timber floors, hardwood stumps and damp sub-floors make Queenslanders a five-star termite hotel. Here's what to check, and how often.
Why Queenslanders are a termite magnet
Traditional Queenslander homes were built for the climate, not the termites. Raised hardwood stumps, exposed bearers, joists and tongue-and-groove flooring give subterranean termites (mostly Coptotermes acinaciformis on the Darling Downs) an almost unlimited buffet of softwood and weathered hardwood to chew through.
Add a sub-floor that traps moisture, garden beds built up against the bearers, and decades of leaky shower trays above, and you have textbook conditions for a colony to move in undetected for years.
The five signs every Toowoomba owner should check for
1. Mud leads (also called 'mud tubes') — pencil-thin, dirty-brown tunnels running up stumps, brick piers or internal walls. Termites build them to travel between the nest and the timber.
2. Hollow-sounding skirting boards, architraves or door frames. Tap with the back of a screwdriver — a healthy timber sounds solid; a galleried timber sounds papery.
3. Blistered or rippled paint, especially low on internal walls or around wet areas. Termites eat right up to the paint layer and stop, leaving a fragile blister.
4. Tight-fitting doors and windows that suddenly stick. Termite moisture inside the frame swells the timber.
5. Discarded wings around windowsills in spring or after a storm — a sure sign a colony swarmed nearby.
Where to look (and what most people miss)
Sub-floor: get a torch and inspect every stump, bearer and the underside of the floorboards. Pay special attention to anywhere a stump meets the ground.
Roof void: termites travel up internal wall cavities and feed in the top plates. A spongey or sagging cornice is a red flag.
Wet areas: behind the shower, under the kitchen sink, around the laundry tub — any persistent moisture is an invitation.
Outside: timber retaining walls, old stumps left in the ground, firewood stacked against the house, and weep holes covered by garden mulch.
What to do if you find something
Do not spray anything. Off-the-shelf surface sprays kill the workers you can see and tell the colony to move and rebuild somewhere you can't. That is genuinely the worst possible outcome.
Leave the mud leads intact, take a photo, and book an inspection. A licensed technician will trace the activity back to the entry point and recommend either direct chemical treatment, baiting (Sentricon) or a perimeter barrier (Termidor).
How often should a Toowoomba home be inspected?
The Australian Standard (AS 3660.2) recommends a competent timber-pest inspection at least every 12 months. In high-risk areas (homes with a history of activity, leaky wet areas, or heavy gardens against the house) we recommend every 6 months.
A full inspection is cheaper than a single skirting board replacement — and a fraction of the cost of structural repairs.
FAQs
Are termites active in Toowoomba in winter?
Yes. Toowoomba winters are mild enough that subterranean termite colonies stay active year-round inside the sub-floor and wall cavities. They slow down but they don't stop.
Will my home insurance cover termite damage?
Almost never. Standard building insurance excludes termite damage because it's considered preventable with regular inspections.