Imagine enjoying your morning coffee when you notice a small pile of what looks like sawdust near your bookshelf. You brush it off as construction debris from nearby renovations.
Three months later, you discover that your expensive teak dining table has been completely hollowed out from the inside. This is a reality of termite damage in Singapore.
In fact, approximately 1 in every 4 homes in Singapore is affected by termite infestations. In 2020 alone, the National Environment Agency (NEA) reported over 13,000 cases of termite infestation. Yet these “silent destroyers” continue to operate largely undetected, causing extensive damage before homeowners even realise there’s a problem.
The Climate in SG is a Termite Paradise
Singapore’s humidity levels average 80-90% year-round, frequently reaching 100% before sunrise. This is not about discomfort. It’s paradise for termites. Due to their thin cuticles, termites are highly susceptible to desiccation (water loss) and require high humidity to survive.
For subterranean termites, high humidity makes it easier to move through soil and construct their characteristic mud tubes (the pencil-width tunnels you might spot on your walls or foundations).
The high humidity enables their expansion and makes every wooden structure in your home a potential target.
Rainfall is the Trigger
Singapore receives approximately 2,166mm of rainfall annually across 167 rain days—meaning it rains roughly every second day. This is a direct trigger for critical termite behaviours.
Heavy rain saturates the soil, making it significantly easier for subterranean termites to tunnel and build their protective mud tubes. More importantly, rainfall triggers swarming events, also known as reproductive flights, where winged termites (alates) leave their parent colonies to mate and establish new colonies.
These swarming events usually occur on warm, humid days following rainstorms, most commonly between November and March during the Northeast Monsoon period.
For homeowners, this means that every heavy downpour signals the establishment of a new termite colony in your area. The consistent and heavy rainfall in Singapore ensures that these critical swarming events aren’t isolated seasonal peaks but regular occurrences throughout the year, creating continuous opportunities for new infestations.
The Science Behind the Threat
Termites are ectothermic insects, meaning their body temperature and metabolic rate are directly controlled by their environment. The consistently high temperatures act like a biological accelerator, supercharging every aspect of termite activity.
A termite queen can lay over 30,000 eggs per day and live for more than 20 years. The constant warmth ensures these eggs develop rapidly into active workers—the caste responsible for the actual wood destruction.
The compound effect is staggering. Colonies grow faster, mature quicker and consume wood at dramatically accelerated rates. This means that they are not only silent destroyers, but also fast destroyers. Thus, swift action and early detection are more crucial than ever to prevent extensive damage.
Continuous Colony Expansion
Swarming represents one of the most significant threats to homeowners. During these reproductive flights, winged termites emerge from established colonies to mate and found new colonies. In temperate climates, swarming typically happens during specific seasons. In Singapore, because of the year-round warmth, high humidity, and frequent rainfall, swarming conditions are optimal throughout the year.
After heavy rains, you might notice small piles of discarded wings near windows, doors, or light sources. These are evidence of new termite colonies being established in your neighbourhood. Each successful swarming event is a new threat to your property. The worse news, the climate facilitates these events to occur more regularly.
Meet SG’s Termite Residents
Subterranean Termites
Subterranean termites live underground and depend heavily on soil moisture for survival. They account for over 70% of reported termite infestations in Singapore. They’re the architects of those distinctive mud tubes you might spot on your exterior walls, foundations, and wooden structures.
These termites form extensive colonies within the soil and are highly destructive to wooden structures. They hollow out wood from the inside, leaving only a thin veneer that gives the floors a sagging look.
Common hotspots include areas around pipes, store rooms where humans seldom frequent, and unused building materials stored outdoors.
Drywood Termites
Unlike their subterranean cousins, drywood termites don’t rely on soil moisture. They live entirely within the dry wood structures they infest. These include doors, walls, furniture, shelves, cabinets, roof beams, and even wooden artwork.
Remarkably, an entire drywood termite colony can reside within a single piece of timber. So it can be hard for them to be detected.
The key indicator of their presence is frass (small, hard, pellet-shaped pieces resembling wood dust, typically 1-2 mm in length and light brown in colour). These pellets are found in small piles near infested areas or scattered around visible exit holes in wood surfaces.
The insidious nature of drywood termites means infestations often progress silently for extended periods. This results in more extensive and costly repairs compared to those detected early.
Dampwood Termites
Dampwood termites require wood with high moisture content and need a constant water supply. They are commonly found in decaying logs, damp wooden structures, or areas with water leaks.
They may pose less of a direct threat to home structures, but their presence indicates moisture concerns that could attract other species.
These termites play a crucial ecological role as natural decomposers, breaking down decaying wood in forest environments. However, their presence in homes signals underlying moisture issues that need immediate attention.
The Termite “Super-Organism”
Termites are eusocial insects living in highly organised, multi-generational families with distinct castes.
Reproductives (King, Queen, Swarmers)
The queen is incredibly prolific, laying over 30,000 eggs daily for up to 20 years. Winged reproductives (swarmers) leave the colony during swarming flights to establish new colonies.
Workers
These soft-bodied, wingless individuals perform most colony labour, including foraging, feeding other castes, and maintaining nest structures. Crucially, workers are responsible for the wood damage you see in infested structures.
Soldiers
With specialised mandibles, soldiers defend the colony against threats and can communicate danger by tapping their heads against tunnel walls. This is most probably the source of those faint clicking sounds you might hear from infested wood.
How to Know if Termites Are Active
How would you know if there’s an infestation in your personal space? We will discuss the signs of termite activity.
First, The Challenge of Detecting
Nearly 60% of termite infestations are discovered by homeowners only after visible damage has occurred. The real reason? It’s not due to negligence, but because termites are generally considered “silent destroyers” that they operate largely hidden from plain eyesight.
Signs of Termite Activity to Watch For
- Look for pencil-width tunnels made from soil, cellulose, and debris on the exteriors of walls, foundations, and wooden structures. These are the protected highways that subterranean termites use to travel between their underground nests and your wooden structures.
- Small piles of translucent wings near windows, doors, or light sources indicate recent swarming activity. These wings belong to reproductive termites that shed them after mating flights—a clear sign of active termite colonies nearby.
- (Frass) Small, pellet-shaped, wood-coloured droppings found in piles or scattered near infested areas. This is common with drywood termites and indicates active feeding within your wooden structures.
- Wood that sounds hollow when tapped suggests termites have consumed the interior. This is often accompanied by wood that feels unusually light or weak.
- Sagging floors, cracked walls, or visible structural weakening indicate extensive internal wood damage. If you notice these signs, you will need an immediate professional assessment.
Subtle Signs You Could Miss
Termites can introduce moisture as they tunnel, causing paint to bubble or blister on walls and skirting boards, which can easily be mistaken for water damage.
As termites consume timber, their excrement can trap moisture and heat, causing wood to swell and making doors and windows difficult to open or close.
When disturbed, termite soldiers hit their heads against tunnel walls to alert colony members.
Termite Hotspots
Certain areas of your home are vulnerable to termite infestation. Check if there are signs of their activity in the following areas.
- Around pipes and plumbing
- Storerooms and hidden corners
- Wooden flooring and skirting
- Outdoor building materials
- Direct wood-to-ground contact
- Areas with consistent moisture
Conclusion
Invest in professional pest control in Singapore now. This is the best choice, especially if you are seeing signs of termite activity. Don’t wait until you discover hollow furniture or sagging floors.
Take action today!
