How often should a Mackay house have a termite inspection?

The QBCC advises one every year, or more often where termites are more active. Ask the termite inspector what suits your house, its construction and the garden around it.

Is a pest inspection the same as a building inspection?

No. In Queensland they're separate licences: a residential building inspector does the building report and a pest controller with termite licensing does the termite report, unless one person holds both. See pre-purchase pest inspections in Mackay.

Will a mosquito treatment stop dengue?

We'd never promise that. Removing standing water every week is what Mackay Regional Council asks of residents, and Queensland Health is the place for dengue advice.

Pest control Mackay: termites, mosquitoes and the wet

What's different in Mackay

Rain from November to April

The Whitsunday, Hinterland and Mackay region averages 689 mm of rain a year, falling mainly between November and April, with a tropical cyclone season from December to April.

Tropical termites

The giant northern termite, which Business Queensland calls the most destructive subterranean termite, occurs in tropical northern Queensland, alongside the Coptotermes and Schedorhinotermes termites found statewide. In March 2024 the QBCC warned that wet weather and moisture help termites flourish.

Mosquitoes after rain and high tides

Mackay Regional Council says mosquitoes breed in freshwater after heavy rain and in tidal saltmarshes after high tides. Its mosquito control aims to limit the spread of dengue fever by the Aedes aegypti mosquito.

Asian honey bees: report them

Outside the known infested area around Cairns, Asian honey bee sightings must be reported to Biosecurity Queensland within 24 hours. They're a report, never a pest job through our form.

Termite treatment and control in Mackay

Every termite job starts with an inspection. Most people notice termites through damaged wood (86% of homes with termites in a CSIRO survey) or mud tubes (34%), and only 8% by seeing wings, so book one when you find soft or hollow timber or a mud trail up a pier.

If you do find them, leave them be. CSIRO says several control options rely on finding termites still active, so spraying or breaking into the workings makes the job harder.

Treatment usually means a chemical barrier in the soil around the house, a baiting system, or both, with follow-up visits. Our pages on termite treatment and termite baiting go through how each works.

Who can do termite work in Queensland

Applying pesticides for a fee in Queensland needs a pest management licence from Queensland Health, endorsed for urban pest control, timber pest control or fumigation. Inspecting and reporting on termite systems and infestations in finished buildings also falls under the QBCC's termite management (chemical) licence class. Our Queensland page sets out the rules in full.

After each heavy rain

Tip out pot plant drip trays, or fill them with sand, as Mackay Regional Council suggests.
Get rid of containers lying around the yard that hold water.
Clear gutters and any water pooling against the house, since termites go looking for moisture.
Fix dripping taps and leaking pipes, especially near walls and stumps.
Move offcuts, old sleepers and stored timber off the ground.

What we'd do about pests in Mackay

We'd have the termite inspection done every year, and sooner if the last one came before a big wet. Do the drip tray round weekly from November. When you're ready, tap Termites with your postcode.

Want someone to look at it?

Tell us what you've seen and your postcode, and a local pest business that handles exactly that calls you to talk it through.

What have you seen?