Termites On Television | Louisiana Termite Inspection

It shouldn’t really come as a surprise that on an HGTV show titled “Flip or Flop” certain insect problems come up from time to time since the show deals with the two stars, Christina and Tarek El Moussa, flipping houses to make a profit. This, of course, involves renovating and fixing up rundown houses, which often have some kind of pest problem, be it insect or animal. On a recent episode of the show, however, the El Moussa team got more than they had bargained for.

In an episode of “Flip or Flop” that aired on March 30 featured the team purchasing an eyesore of a house, which they knew would need a lot of work, for a mere $425,000. Even as the episode began the two stars were debating whether the house was the worst they’d ever seen as they walked up to the front door. Things only got worse when Christina groaned, “It smells like 5,000 year old milk,” after walking in the door. That smell was a warning of things to come.

When they began renovations, the plumbers were the first to notice the serious termite problem when they found that the walls and drain lines had been voraciously devoured by termites. When they ripped off the wood paneling in the room behind it, they discovered a massive termite infestation. The walls looked like they were covered in black fuzz, which turned out to be a happily thriving termite colony. They had clearly been residents in the house for quite some time. The sight of the infested walls was so disgusting one of the hosts even screamed when she first laid eyes on the destruction.

As bad as the infestation was, termites were certainly nothing new for the team, and they had handled them in the past. According to experts, more than 600,000 homes are infested by termites every year, the damage costing Americans over $5 billion.

Termites are also one of the most difficult infestations to deal with, as insect control can help protect a house for a time, but termites are difficult to remove entirely and can return to torture house owners years later.

What is the worst termite infestation you’ve ever seen or heard about?