Hardwood Floors and Termites

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Share1love

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I ordered treated tongue and groove hardwood flooring in mid-March 2014. The flooring arrived and I put it in storage for 90 days until the contractor I selected could begin work. I opened the wood 90 days later and though there were no exterior holes on the bound boxes, there were termite holes through the wood and actual dry-wood termites in one of the boxes. Many of the pieces of wood had holes completely through them and are now unusable. My question is, could this wood have arrived with termites already in it? Could this much damage have been done in 90 days through half of my wood inventory? Can the pieces of wood in the same box that do not appear to be damaged still be used while the others will have to be tossed? I am concerned that if I lay the ones that appear to have no damage, they could still be infected. Please advise.
 
They came with the boxes i would say and i would send them back to where they came from.

Welcome to the forum.
 
Are you sure that they are termites? Can you post a picture of one? And, where did you have the boxes stored? Was the area dry at all times?

Oh, yeah...:welcome: to House Repair Talk!
 
I am at work so will send a picture later, I am sure they were termites - dry-wood termites that were small cream-colored things (very gross). The wood was stored in my dry shed for 90 days and there is no evidence of termites anywhere else in the shed it is also metal and there is a piece of plywood there but it has no termite damage at all (curious). The company (home depot) has a 90-day return period and just my luck, yesterday was day 92. Thank you all for the welcome! Pictures of the flooring coming soon.
 
Don't bring that wood in the house if there are termites on it. They can easily start a new infestation on multiple floors in multiple locations. These little critters don't need much moisture and don't need ground contact.

Where are you located as these termites seem to appear mostly in the southwest and the southern coastal states. If you are in an area where these things don't normally appear, it makes me think these were shipped in the box.
 
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If no holes thru the boxes it came in then yes it came with them inside and wouldn’t bring any of it inside or close to the house. I would go back to home depot and explain the problem and demand my money back. At the first mention of this 90 day thing I would tell them my next step will be the government agency that deals with transferring such insects from one place in the world to another. They will gladly at that point assume responsibilities I’m pretty sure.
 
could this wood have arrived with termites already in it?
"In some rare situations, if water and wood are available from a source other than the soil, subterranean termites can establish a colony with no ground contact. Isolated, above-ground infestations may occur in buildings where termites have access to water from condensation, leaking pipes, roofs, or other sources."
 
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