A Spanish Colonial Revival home with a red tile roof in California — San Bruno, California service area

Structural Pest Control

Termite Control in San Bruno, CA

Name: 101 Exterminators Inc.
Address: 635 Sanborn Pl Ste 12, Salinas, CA, 93901, US
Telephone: (831) 500-1613

101 Exterminators handles termite control in San Bruno as a California-licensed structural pest company, SPCB Lic. #9119. This city falls west to east, from the Skyline ridge down to San Bruno Creek and the Bay, and where a house sits on that slope changes which termite you have. Framing up in Crestmoor and Portola Highlands dries out. Ground down near the creek does not. We inspect first, report by Section 1 and Section 2, then treat what the report found.

(831) 500-161310% off your first service · new customers

Local Context

The Slope From Skyline Down to San Bruno Creek Sorts the Termites

San Bruno is not one termite market. It is a hillside and a flat, and they behave differently. Up on the west side, on the Crestmoor and Portola Highlands streets below Skyline, water sheds off the slope and framing gets a chance to dry between storms. Western drywood termites (Incisitermes minor) do well in wood like that. They never touch soil, they live entirely inside the member they eat, and they give themselves away with a small cone of six-sided pellets under a pinhole in fascia or a window header.

Down on the flats, through Belle Air and the blocks between El Camino Real and the Caltrain tracks, the mechanism flips. San Bruno Creek and the drainage around it hold soil moisture near the surface, and the ground east toward US-101 grades toward the Bay. Reticulitermes colonies live in that soil and build pencil-width mud tubes up stem walls, pier blocks and slab edges to reach framing. Mud, not pellets. Those calls arrive after a wet January.

Fog is why neither species gets a break. The city sits in the San Bruno Gap, the low break in the coastal hills that Pacific air uses to reach the Bay, which is why summer highs here sit around 70°F and September rather than July is the warmest month. Wood dries slowly in air like that. In raised-foundation houses near the creek corridor, steady sub-floor damp also supports dampwood termites (Zootermopsis) in sill plates and joists. That is a third species, and one you rule in or out from under the house.

How We Work in San Bruno

Our first question on a San Bruno job is elevation. Above the I-280 corridor, on the Crestmoor and Portola Highlands streets, we work the roofline first: fascia, rafter tails, eave blocking and window headers, because drywood termites enter weather-exposed wood from above. On the flats toward Huntington Avenue and the Caltrain tracks we open the crawl space instead and read the sill plate, pier blocks and stem wall for mud tubes. Every finding is photographed, then split into Section 1 and Section 2 on a state-compliant WDO report.

San Bruno Climate

San Bruno receives marine air and seasonal rain. Fog does not establish subterranean activity.

Housing Stock

San Bruno includes postwar neighborhoods and homes on hillsides below the coastal ridge. The construction and later alterations determine which wood is visible.

Why Local Expertise Matters

In San Bruno, foundation type and any finished lower level determine what an inspector can reach. Ask for the inspected areas, any limits, and the written basis for a treatment recommendation. A separate Section I/Section II report is available on request; the report itself does not decide a transaction’s repair terms.

Warning Signs

When to Ask About Termite Control in San Bruno

We check visible wood in accessible attics, crawl spaces, fences, and exterior areas, then explain the next step. For written findings needed in a sale, book a paid structural pest inspection. Its WDO report separates Section 1 from Section 2 conditions.

Hollow-sounding wood when tapped — galleries eaten from inside

Frass (fine sawdust-like pellets) near baseboards or windowsills — drywood termite excrement

Discarded wings near doors or windows in spring — swarmers leaving to start new colonies

Blistering or bubbling paint on wood surfaces — subterranean tunnel activity underneath

Mud tubes running up foundation walls or piers — subterranean termite foraging trails

Soft or sagging flooring near walls — severe structural damage to subfloor joists

Small holes in wood with discoloration around the edges

Real estate transaction requiring a WDO inspection and clearance report

How It Works

What to Expect from Termite Control in San Bruno

Tell us where you found wings, pellets, mud tubes or damaged wood. If you need a written report for a sale or refinance, ask for a formal WDO inspection when you book.

Visual Review or Formal Inspection

A licensed technician reviews visible signs in accessible areas and explains them. For a sale, a separately booked paid structural pest inspection documents findings for the written WDO report.

Findings & Recommendations

We explain what we find and recommend the next step. A formal written WDO report comes with a separately booked paid structural pest inspection.

Targeted Treatment Plan

We recommend the most effective and least invasive treatment — whether that's localized spot treatment, fumigation for widespread drywood infestation, or subterranean bait systems.

Treatment & Documentation (If Needed)

If treatment is authorized, we carry out the agreed plan and explain any follow-up. When correcting Section 1 findings from a separately booked paid WDO inspection, we provide the applicable completion documentation.

Why 101 Exterminators

Why Choose 101 Exterminators for Termite Control in San Bruno

State-Licensed Inspectors

Our inspectors hold California Structural Pest Control licenses and are compliant with SPCB regulations for both inspections and treatments.

WDO Reports for Real Estate

We issue California Structural Pest Control Reports used in real-estate and financing workflows. If your lender, escrow company, or loan program has specific requirements, confirm them before scheduling.

Both Termite Species Covered

Central California has both drywood and subterranean termites. We identify which species is present and apply the treatment protocol specific to each.

Written Follow-Up Terms

Any re-inspection, re-service, or warranty terms for the recommended treatment are provided in writing before work begins.

Common Questions

Termite Control FAQs for San Bruno

Our house is up in Crestmoor — do hillside homes in San Bruno get a different termite than the flats?

Yes, elevation changes which species we expect to find. The hillside neighborhoods shed water and their framing dries, which favors western drywood termites working inside fascia, headers and rafter tails. The low blocks near San Bruno Creek and the Caltrain corridor hold soil moisture, which favors subterranean termites tubing up from the ground. We inspect for both everywhere, but on a Crestmoor house we start at the eaves and in the attic, and on a Belle Air house we start under the floor.

What does a post-war San Bruno tract house usually show on a termite inspection?

Most often conducive conditions rather than a hidden disaster. Sixty-odd years of added patio covers, converted garages, planter beds built up against stucco and irrigation aimed at the foundation create earth-to-wood contact and moisture that a report lists under Section 2. Active drywood galleries in eave framing turn up regularly too. What separates a simple job from a difficult one is usually how long a moisture condition ran, not the age of the house.

We are selling near San Bruno City Park — when should we order the termite report?

Order it before the house goes on the market, not after an offer lands. A pre-listing WDO report tells you what the Section 1 items are while you still control the calendar, and clearing them yourself avoids a repair credit negotiated against a closing deadline. Treatment and any repairs are the part that takes real time. Sellers who wait for the buyer's inspector usually pay for the same work with less room to shop it.

Local Pest Pressure

Common Pests We Treat in San Bruno

Every area has its own pest profile shaped by climate, housing, and geography. These are the pests we see and treat most often in San Bruno — tap any one to learn how to identify it and what treatment involves.