Pest Control and Exterminator Service in Oreland, PA

Seventy-Year-Old Basements Off Oreland Mill Road

Capes and colonials from this period sit on block or stone foundations with full basements. Mortar cracks after seventy winters of freeze and thaw, and old basement windows rarely seal tight.

Mature trees shade many lots and keep soil damp against foundations, the standard setup for termites and carpenter ants.

Over seventy years, most Oreland houses have been added to: a shed dormer across the back of a cape, a family room on a slab, an enclosed porch or a kitchen bump-out. Each addition sits on its own footing, and the seam where new framing meets the original block wall is a common hiding place for termite tubes and a common doorway for mice. Steel bulkhead doors over basement stairs rust at the frame and leave gaps under the lid.

With roughly nine homes in ten owner-occupied, renovation is constant, and opening a wall or pulling up an old basement floor often uncovers mouse nests and old termite galleries that went unseen for years. Patios and walkways poured tight against the foundation can also crack and tilt toward the house, sending rainwater down the outside of the block wall and into the soil where termites forage.

Getting to Oreland from Media

We take the Turnpike to Fort Washington and Bethlehem Pike toward Oreland. Thom and his team look at the basement, sill, attic and yard, then give you a written quote after the free inspection. When the calendar has room we can sometimes come the same day, so call early.

Oreland in Springfield Township, Montgomery County

Oreland is one of several communities in Springfield Township, along with Flourtown, Erdenheim and Wyndmoor. It has its own stop on SEPTA's Lansdale/Doylestown Line. The community takes its name from the iron ore once mined in the area, and many homes sit within walking distance of the Oreland station, where commuters catch trains toward Center City. Oreland Mill Road carries local traffic across the community, Bethlehem Pike runs along the western side through Flourtown, and Glenside lies just east across the township line. Fort Washington State Park and the Wissahickon valley are only a few minutes northwest, close enough that deer and ticks turn up in some back yards. Students attend the Springfield Township School District, which, like every Pennsylvania public district, follows Act 35 of 2002 integrated pest management rules. Expect the same requests here street after street: mice in basements, termite checks on sills and additions, and moisture insects in finished lower levels.