Tornado Restoration Uncovers Severe Termite Damage in Elkhorn

This one started as tornado restoration. But once we opened things up on this Elkhorn home, it became a very different job. What we found hiding behind the siding and under the floor system was severe termite damage - eaten-through rim joists, compromised sill plates, and framing members that had been hollowed out from the inside. The kind of damage you'd never know was there just by looking at the outside of the house.

That's the thing about termite damage. It doesn't announce itself. A house can look totally fine from the curb while the structural framing underneath is being eaten away. In this case, the tornado actually did the homeowner a favor - it forced us to open up walls and floors that would've otherwise stayed closed for years.

Once we got everything stripped back, we could see the full picture. The rim joist along the foundation wall was nearly gone in spots. We pulled all of it - every piece that was compromised - and replaced it with solid new lumber. New sill plates, new rim joists, new subfloor sheathing laid tight and fastened properly. No shortcuts. If we're putting a house back together, we're putting it back together right.

The framing and structural repair side of this job was just as important as anything else. Getting the bones solid again before any siding, insulation, or drywall goes back up - that's the only way to do it. Covering up bad framing with fresh materials just delays the problem. We don't work that way.

If your home took storm damage - or if you've got soft floors, sagging walls, or anything else that's felt off for a while - it might be worth having someone take a closer look. Hidden damage is always cheaper to fix when you catch it early.