We've got Termites

We’ve got termites!  During our boat survey we found a termite trail, but no live termites.  The previous owner said he they had termites years before and managed to rid the boat of them by removing all the insulation around the refrigerator.  It was just one trail near the refrigerator with no live termites, so no big deal.

Well, that may or may not have been an old trail, but we certainly have termites now.  I start Googling boats and termites and find that this is not an uncommon thing.  It is especially common in Florida, California and Hawaii.  Someone in Hawaii said he expects to have to fumigate his boat every five years.  We won’t be spending much time in Hawaii.  In Florida there are plenty of places that will get rid of termites on a boat, but not so many around Ft Pierce.  I call around and finally find someone who will do it.  No quote until they inspect the boat.  We’re back in Austin, so we’ll have to have someone else let them on the boat.  No problem, the Harbor Master sends someone over to meet the exterminator.

Much to my surprise, there is more than one kind of termite.  The type that most commonly attacks boats is Drywood Termites.  The kind that usually attacks houses is Subterranean Termites.  Fortunately, Drywood Termites are much less destructive than the Subterranean Termites.  The Subterranean Termites are very aggressive, but since the Drywood Termite live on boats they tend to be more laid back.

So, the exterminator checks out the boat, sends me some pictures of trails and calls me up to give me a report.  He starts by asking if the boat has been stored on land recently.  I say, “Yes, it has been for the last two years”.  He replies that explains how Kailani got Subterranean Termites.  Even better, Subterranean Termites create a big nest that is sort of like a dry mud that helps protect the colony.  So, not only do we have more aggressive termites they are also more difficult to destroy.  According to our exterminator, it will take twice as much of the poison to make sure it reaches all the termites in the nest which means it is going to cost nearly twice as much money as it normally would.

The way they kill termites on a boat is by putting a big tent over the boat and letting the bottom of the tent hang into the water to seal it off.  They let me know that all of the rigging needs to be taken down so that they can get a good seal on the tent.  They also say that I may leave the mast up and that makes me worry.  A mast with no rigging to hold it in place is like balancing a baseball bat straight upright on a ball and expecting it to stay there.  It’s just not going to happen, so I’m left wondering if they have ever tented a boat before.

Since we are in Austin we have to arrange for the marina to move the boat, remove all the rigging and take down the mast.  During our boat survey the surveyor suggested repainting the mast if it is ever down.  Well, it’s going to be down, so I ask about repainting.  I figure somewhere between $5,000 and $10,000, but I was way off.  The quote comes back at $19,000 to repaint the mast.  The labor is almost $300 an hour.  I thank the yard for the education on marina labor costs and let them know that we’ll pass on the paint job.  We opt for a simple mast removal and replacement at “just” $3000.

It takes a while for the yard to fit the mast removal into their schedule then it takes a while for the exterminator to get us on their schedule, but after only three weeks Kailani is tented and those little boat eating bastards are sent straight to termite hell.

After returning to the boat we find that there are a lot more trails around the boat than when we left.  The termites where quickly spreading out to cover as much boat as they could, so it was good we acted as quickly as we did.  The one lucky thing in all this was that they had built their next up in the headliner of the main salon.  There is some plywood backing that has been partially destroyed, but it serves no structural purpose.  None of the teak interior was touched.  As far as we can tell all of the termites are dead and gone.  The mast is still down so I’m not sure if we are officially a sailboat at this point, but at least the Kailani is pest free.