wood sills in basement have termite damage, what to do with it. Would change of wood sills damage the house?

Answer 1

The first order of business is to have the exterminator treat the house for termites to prevent further damage. The next step is an assessment as to the extent of the damage already done.

I am assuming that you are talking about the "sill plate" that rests on top of the foundation and upon which the floor joists and rim joists rest. It is notmally the first place that termites attack. If you have a concrete block foundation, they can come pu through the block unnoticed to get to the sill plate. From there, the whole house is theirs. If you are lucky, you noticed the damage before the termites moved their way from the sill plate to the joists above. That does not mean that there is no damage above, because termites will build a mud tube to get themselves to their favorite wood. I have seen them attack a fir sill plate, mudtube up past southern yellow pine floor joists, and go to work on fir wall studs. They are insidious.

To start, take a scratch awl or an ice pick and poke around the sill plate. If the point sinks easily, or if the sill plate crumbles, you have incurred extensive damage and the plates may need to be replaced. This is a tedious job, but not overly difficult.

If you find extensive damage in the sill plate, poke around the floor joists. Again, if you notice extensive damage, repairs will have to be made. You need to test higher and higher as you continue to find damage to assess the totality of the damage. They can, and will go all they way to your attic and work on the roof framing. It is not uncommon.

Your exterminator should do a through search for damage for you and now you know what to look for. I sincerely hope you haven't incurred serious damage because it can be very expensive to fix.

Good luck with your problem.

Answer 2

Do you mean window sills or the sillplate the house sits on . change window sills, Im not sure you can change the sillplate and if its a basement it shouldnt have a sillplate below ground the one at ground level would be very expensive and difficult to replace, would require jacking up the house, but if they crumble that will have to be done anyway. Im glad i dont have your problem. good luck

Answer 3

Not necessarily. Have you already treated for termites? If they're in the wood sills, they're in the whole house.

Answer 4

Windows are put inside of framed openings. These openings hold and transfer the weight of the house down to the ground, basement, footers, etc.

Windows are just decoration within this frame struction. To remove a window causes no stucture change, just cosmetic.

Answer 5

You don't say if the foundation is concrete or concrete block,but,have you considered glass block?They come in several ornate patterns,add light ,are inexpensive,and can be easily installed with with quick- crete.All are sold at Menards,or any building center,and sound like a solution to your problem,with out having to go windowless

Answer 6

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