Termite Inspection and Treatment in Bakersfield

An inspection gives you a written report you can compare against a second opinion. Ask for a free inspection and a quote before any treatment.

The two termites that matter around Bakersfield

UC Statewide IPM lists three termite pests in California. Two are subterranean and drywood termites. The third, dampwood termites, need very moist wood and are most often found in cool, humid areas along the coast, so in Kern County the two you are likely to deal with are drywood and subterranean.

Drywood termites

The western drywood termite is found along the Pacific coast and into the Central Valley, according to UC IPM. It lives inside dry, sound wood. It never needs contact with soil. Colonies are small and hard to find. The usual clue is a pile of fecal pellets under a tiny kickout hole, less than 2 mm across. The pellets have six flattened sides, and UC IPM calls them diagnostic for drywood termites. Swarmers fly in daylight in summer and fall.

Subterranean termites

Subterranean termites are common across California and are the most destructive termites in the state, per UC IPM. They nest in the soil and reach wood through shelter tubes, the mud tubes you see on foundations and in crawl spaces. The Structural Pest Control Board describes those tubes as typically about the diameter of a pencil. The common species swarm on clear days after a soaking rain in spring or fall. In California they forage all year, with feeding highest in summer.

Signs to check for

• Sawdust-like piles or pellet-shaped droppings near wood surfaces.
• Mud tubes in the crawl space or on outside walls and wood beams.
• Darkened or blistered wood, such as a windowsill, that sounds hollow or gives under a screwdriver.
• Winged insects swarming inside the house, or coming out at the base of a foundation wall or an attached patio.

A swarm coming out of a stump or woodpile in the yard does not by itself mean the house is infested. Both the Board and UC IPM make that point. Winged ants get mistaken for termites all the time. Termites have straight antennae and an even, unpinched waist. Their four wings are of equal size. Ants have elbowed antennae, a pinched waist and front wings longer than the back ones. If you are not sure, see our ant control page.

A clear photo of the insect or the droppings usually settles it.

What a California termite inspection covers

California sets rules for termite inspections. Under Business and Professions Code section 8516, no company can give you an opinion about wood destroying pests until a Branch 3 field representative or operator has inspected the property. The written report has to go to you and the property owner within 10 business days of the start of the inspection. The company also files the property address with the Board.

The report includes a diagram of the structure showing where infestations and damage were found, the conditions likely to lead to an infestation, any areas the inspector could not reach, recommendations for repairs or treatment, and the pesticides proposed. It also has to carry a printed notice that different companies should report the same findings but may recommend different fixes, and that you have a right to a second opinion. A home sale report often splits findings into Section 1 and Section 2. Our guide to Section 1 and Section 2 findings explains what each means.

The minimum legal inspection is a visual search of the areas the inspector can get to. UC IPM notes that hidden drywood colonies can sit behind drywall or stucco where no one sees them. UC IPM also suggests getting at least three inspection reports before you choose a drywood treatment, and inspecting every 3 to 5 years. I agree with getting more than one report when the first one recommends tenting.

Tenting vs local treatment

California licenses termite work in two branches. Branch 1 covers fumigation with lethal gases, which is tenting. Branch 3 covers wood destroying pests treated with insecticides or structural repairs, which includes local or spot treatment. You can confirm which branches a company holds with our license check guide.

For drywood termites, the Board says fumigation and whole-house heat are the only methods that treat the entire structure. Local methods include:

• drilling and injecting insecticide
• electric current
• liquid nitrogen
• localized heat
• microwaves
• replacing the infested wood

They treat the targeted area only, and any colony the inspector did not find stays alive. The Board says a company claiming whole-house results from a spot method is guilty of false advertising and should be reported.

UC IPM reports that the fumigant sulfuryl fluoride kills drywood termites within several days, that monitored fumigations have the highest success rate, and that tarps dragged across a roof can damage it. My view: if pellets show up in several rooms and the attic, I would tent. For one infested window frame with clear access, a local treatment is reasonable value, as long as you know it treats that board and nothing else.

Subterranean termites are different. Tenting and heat do not control them. Neither do freezing or electrocution, because most of the colony lives in the soil out of reach. UC IPM says the main tools are termiticides applied to the soil next to the structure, treatments through shelter tubes, and bait stations. Baits can take months or even years and need ongoing monitoring. UC IPM also says no reliable over-the-counter termite products exist in California.

What tenting means for your household

This comes from the Board's fumigation guidance and the Business and Professions Code:

• Everyone has to leave and take pets and plants along. That includes fish. It also includes seeds or bulbs you plan to plant.
• Food and medicine must go out of the house or into the protective bags the fumigant maker recommends, unless sealed in metal or glass or in highly resistant containers. The same goes for pet feed.
• You are out from six hours to one week. How long depends on the infestation and the dose. The temperature and the size of the house matter too.
• Before fumigating, the company must have an occupant fumigation notice signed by the occupants or their agent. For Branch 1 work the pesticide notice has to arrive at least 48 hours ahead unless fumigation follows the inspection by less than 48 hours. If you rent, you get this notice too.
• The fumigant has no smell, so a warning agent such as chloropicrin is released inside. The company puts a second lock on every outside door, and nobody goes in until a re-entry notice is posted.

If anyone gets any of these within 24 hours of going back in, leave the house:

• a headache
• dizziness
• nausea
• coughing
• trouble breathing

Then call a doctor or Poison Control at (800) 222-1222, and tell the company and the Board. Fumigation leaves no residue, so other pests can move back in, and old pellets can keep falling out of tunnels after the termites are dead. Neither means the job failed.

What termite work costs

These are published national figures, not our quote. This Old House (updated June 17, 2026) lists termite inspections at $75 to $325, spot treatments at $350 to $1,000, heat at $1,300 to $2,500 and fumigation at $1,500 to $5,000. HomeAdvisor (updated June 19, 2026) puts most termite treatment at $263 to $1,033 and says many companies include the inspection free if you buy treatment. The company that inspects your home gives you a written price before any work starts. More ranges are in our Bakersfield pest control cost guide.

We only refer companies licensed by the California Structural Pest Control Board.