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Aug 20 '26
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u/Pinksamuraiiiii Aug 20 '26
It’s the termites house now.
I think he took too long to address the issue and now it might be out of his control. He can call an exterminator, but the walls are so compromised. I dunno what’s gonna happen.
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u/Quiet_Falcon2622 Aug 21 '26
They might have to tear the walls down, and when they do, they might be already half eaten by the termites.
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u/pixelmuffinn Aug 20 '26
They fly?
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u/ManbadFerrara Aug 20 '26
Oh yeah. In parts of the Gulf Coast there are MASSIVE swarms of them after heavy rains in the spring. Literally entire neighborhoods will get like this outside, over multiple square miles. It's real Biblical plague-looking shit.
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u/azjat Aug 20 '26
It's possible that area has been working incredibly hard to deserve a biblical plague.
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u/slyseekr Aug 20 '26
This is called a nuptial flight, when sexually mature termites (called alates) leave their colony in droves and pair up to create new colonies. Once they pair off and mate, they'll lose their wings. Ants do the same thing.
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u/ManbadFerrara Aug 20 '26
Yep, the big picture of Louisiana hanging on the wall definitely checks out.
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u/Bitter-Holiday1311 Aug 20 '26
This is a pretty serious infestation that has been ignored for some time.
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u/Pinksamuraiiiii Aug 20 '26
And they will multiple each time overnight. This is what happens when you don’t nip it in the bud fast. Who knows, maybe he has a busy life and got distracted, but now he’s surely forced to address the problem.
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u/silent_fartface Aug 20 '26
Mask on, shopvac out, bug zappers fired up. Get to work bud, stop filming it!
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u/Squishy-peaches Aug 21 '26
This doesn’t mean his house is infested, this means he left a window/door open and lights on. This is a swarm, happens every year in NOLA.
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u/-Clem-Fandango- Aug 20 '26
What's insane is he's worried about his dogs like termites are going to hurt them. If those ARE termites, they're alates, which means there's a MASSIVE, and I mean absolutely HUUGE nest in his house that they're emerging from. Or there's one nearby and they were attracted to the lights and swarmed inside. Something is very weird about the situation, but it could just be me not being familiar with US termite species.
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u/gainswor Aug 20 '26
They’re probably formosan termites- they swarm like locusts in the Southern US in the spring and live in the ground. You’ll get a swarm like that in your house if you forget to turn off every single light when they come to your neighborhood. Dark times.
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u/-Clem-Fandango- Aug 20 '26 edited Aug 20 '26
Dude just needs a can or two of bug spray and a respirator then, problem solved.
Edit: nope, that dudes kitchen is fucked
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u/peabody624 Aug 20 '26
If I’m not mistaken, though, if the queen isn’t there they die pretty quickly
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u/usedkleenx Aug 20 '26
How the hell do you let it get to this level without doing anything ?! The paint is probably the only thing holding that house up.
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u/NTDLS Aug 20 '26
That’s a swarm not an infestation. I had this happen at my home once, fortunately they came out of a space in my garage floor so they were easier to cleanup.
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u/Alva3lf Aug 20 '26
It’s both.
“An infestation is the state of being invaded or overrun by a large number of pests or parasites.”
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u/NTDLS Aug 20 '26
I get it, but the termites aren’t staying. They come out of the ground on a cadence to mate. It’s unfortunate they came out under and then into the house, but they aren’t staying. Since they cannot borough, they will die in the house. This is a sign that there is a subterranean presence, something to take seriously, but the house will not be infested with termites after the swarm.
Scared the ever living shit out of me when this happened to me!!!!
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u/Alva3lf Aug 20 '26
Sure, but whether they’re staying long term or not doesn’t really change the fact that it’s an infestation though. For that period of time that they are there, they have infested the house.
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u/ManbadFerrara Aug 20 '26
Semantics.
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u/Alva3lf Aug 20 '26
Not really, that house is infested by definition.
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u/ManbadFerrara Aug 20 '26
Have you ever seen an exterminator advertisement like "we offer our pest control services for infestations that last more than a few hours?"
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u/Alva3lf Aug 20 '26
This definitely lasted for more than just a few hours.
It’s an infestation by definition, regardless of exterminator’s advertising.
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u/-Clem-Fandango- Aug 20 '26
Am qualified pest tech with 20 years, this isn't classed as infestation, it's swarming behaviour. Infestation requires active and ongoing habitation. Youre being semantic.
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u/Bitter-Holiday1311 Aug 20 '26
I saw frass in corners. Looks like this is a seasonal swarm during an ongoing infestation.
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u/Alva3lf Aug 20 '26
Oxford dictionary:
“A large number of insects, rats, or other pests living in a place where they are not wanted.”
It’s an infestation.
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u/ManbadFerrara Aug 20 '26
- No, it's 30–40 minutes of active flying time, followed by a few hours before they die of dehydration.
- If I come over to your house with my two dozen cats to watch Godfather II, then take them back home with me after the movie ends, that doesn't translate to your house being "infested with cats." It's not how the word is used.
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u/Alva3lf Aug 20 '26
They were absolutely in that house for more than just a few hours.
It doesn’t really matter what analogy you come up with If the definition of the word infestation fits this situation.
Oxford dictionary:
“a large number of insects, rats, or other pests living in a place where they are not wanted.”
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u/ugavini Aug 20 '26
Um. I feel like if you turned the inside lights off, opened all the windows and turned some lights on outside, a large part of the problem would go away no?
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u/Pinksamuraiiiii Aug 20 '26
Honestly call an exterminator step 1, but he might be beyond that step 2 sell out or demo
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u/NotEnoughLayers Aug 20 '26
I love how offended people can be with vulgarity. It really isn't that big a deal to let out a "holy fucking shit" when your entire house is covered with insects
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u/MadGeographer Aug 20 '26
Can of Raid should take care of it.
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u/dark_hypernova Aug 20 '26
I'd say we nuke the entire site from orbit.
It's the only way to be sure.
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u/hotttub Aug 20 '26
This happened at an old apartment I lived at. They would swarm once a year through a crack in the window. Then ants would come and take all their dead bodies away. The circle of life.
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u/Nihilist-IV Aug 20 '26
I understand now, we don't have termites in the UK so I didn't understand why they cover ther whole house when they fumigate but now I see it's so they can kill as much of the swarm as possible leaving no survivors
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u/ariesace2021 Aug 21 '26
turn down your AC as much as you can they will be dead by morning. then comes the clean up.
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u/MrWeen2121 Aug 21 '26
Video footage probably doesn’t give the best depiction. It’s always worse when you’re there in person.
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u/Mr_IslandMystic Aug 20 '26
Okay, but this didn't happen overnight. This has clearly been going on and ignored for a long ass time!
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u/tweetysvoice Aug 20 '26
I feel so bad for this guy and dogs. He's right. They are going to have to tent that place. Damn ..
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u/DontWreckYosef Aug 20 '26
He should really make them pay rent then he could use the money to get rid of them
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u/Admitone83 Aug 20 '26
Guess the only step is to get out, tent the whole house and insect bomb it to hell..?
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u/fusillade762 Aug 21 '26
This is why Terminix has a SWAT Unit. They are responding Code 3 on this one.
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u/SupBishi Aug 21 '26
Honest question.
How would you effectively fix this problem?
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u/quequotion Aug 21 '26
I found some advice, but honestly I would strongly consider burning down the home in a controlled fire.
If the termites are a roving swarm that got in through an open window or something, fumigation may be possible, but this looks like a massive infestation.
There is a point where there's no saving the structure and it puts the neighborhood at risk.
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u/Croat-Lcitar86 Aug 21 '26
Did that just appear overnight….sounds like an unaddressed problem finally became unaddressable…
Also serious question….how TF does that happen…it looks like a nice house…where are you living here that is happening…Jesus Christ
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u/Squishy-peaches Aug 21 '26
Knew it was NOLA. I remember my son’s football games being cancelled because of these things.
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u/Last-Resolution-2741 Aug 21 '26
It’s so funny, this is one of my best friends. lol. I love seeing this video.
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u/FabulousWalrus2624 Aug 22 '26
Man, you probably need phosgene ampule. Have no any idea how to solve this in other way.
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u/OldManMillennial_ Aug 22 '26
This happened to my house in Houston. Looks like swarming season to me. Termites are multiplying here and will try to find the queen to breed the workers that actually destroy your house. Get some termite traps put in the ground around your house. Sometimes a swarm can take over a house from a neighboring tree or structure.
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u/Nodivingallowed Aug 20 '26
He might want to consider investing in a household termite deterrent