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Old 02-09-2015, 06:19 PM   #1
kguess
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Termites......in RV.

A friend of mine found some moisture in his RV, Further investigation, he found an infestation of termites. There was some type of leak in a pullout that he had in the RV. When he showed me the pictures of the termites, I was shocked! Make sure all of your windows and areas where you have caulking is sealed so that moisture cannot find its way in. I am going to re-caulk all of my windows ASAP just to be on the safe side. I Plan on cleaning and resealing my rubber roof also.
PS if you know of a good caulking material to use on RVs, please let me know.
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Old 02-10-2015, 06:16 AM   #2
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Where does he live? I wouldn't think the subterranean termites north of the Mason-Dixon line could easily (if at all) get into an RV.
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Old 02-10-2015, 07:18 AM   #3
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Back in 2005, Hurricane Katrina made a mess of the Gulf Coast. Along with the damage to buildings, flooding and general destruction that occurred, a large number of trees were downed. After the flooding and with the need to clean up the area, many of those trees were not used for lumber, but were pulled from the wet swampy areas and ground up as mulch, bagged and shipped "north" as a byproduct of the damage. While it wasn't generally advertised, there is a big problem with aggressive termites in the Gulf Coast area. Those trees, at least many of them, were infected with termites. As the mulch was spread around foundations of homes "further north", termites were, in some instances, transplanted from one location to another. That spread of termites, along with the tiger mosquitoes that were blown from the swampy marsh areas have "helped a lot of people stay indoors and fight bugs when they do go out." Now, most mulch is "sanitized" and free of termites, but back then, that wasn't always the situation.

These "aggressive termites" can invade a travel trailer much the same as they invade a S&B home, but I wouldn't think sealing windows and making sure the roof doesn't leak will prevent their infestation. They would be much more likely to climb up the stabilizer jacks, the tires and suspension, the water hose and the electrical cord. Once inside the RV (usually from the bottom) they are free to invade at will. Keeping moisture out of the RV, sealing windows/doors and roof from leaks is a good thing to do on a regular basis, but it will take more than just keeping the RV "dry" to prevent termites from building a new home. Parking on concrete, using insecticide under the RV, not leaving access areas open and utilities connected when in storage all will help with prevention.

When we were in Louisiana, we had a "termite service" at our home, one of the areas that was "checked and treated" at every inspection was the trailer pad and the RV. We had our trailer serviced just as frequently as our home. Even then, we would have an occasional wasp nest built in a vent opening or under the propane cover or on the awning arms. Sometimes that would happen in as little as a week. Park on Sunday afternoon, get stung on Thursday when packing for the next weekend.

Bugs can be aggressive, termites are bugs......
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Old 02-10-2015, 05:27 PM   #4
kguess
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Ground Zero for Katrina - Hancock county , Mississippi ( our location )

My friend lives a few miles from me. His camper is about ten years old. Kept in a storage yard ( not covered). He did have leakage from lack of caulking.
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Old 02-11-2015, 05:07 PM   #5
64tbolt
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Dicor makes a self leveling for flat and non leveling for vertical. Best you can get. Make SURE to clean the surface well. Good luck to your friend.
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