Termites can cause irreparable damage to homes and can affect the integrity and structure of your house. If you discover termites or suspect you have termites, it’s important to contact a professional pest control company immediately. A professional pest control company will be able to assess the situation and recommend and administer the appropriate termite treatment.
Main characteristics of Termites. Termites are usually small or medium-sized, whitish, or colorless insects, with short antennae. They have strong biting mouthparts with which to chew seeds, wood, or leaves. Apart from the Hymenoptera (bees, ants, and wasps), termites are the only insects that live in social groups.
Why worry about termites?
Termites cause billions of dollars in damage each year in the U.S. They primarily feed on wood, but also damage paper, books, insulation, and even swimming pool liners and filtration systems. Termites can injure living trees and shrubs, but more often are a secondary invader of woody plants already in decline. While termites may infest buildings at any time, they are particularly relevant when buying or selling a home since a termite inspection/infestation report is normally a condition of sale. Besides the monetary impact, thousands of winged termites emerging inside one’s home are an emotionally trying experience — not to mention the thought of termites silently feasting on one’s largest investment.
How will I know if my home is infested?
Discovering winged termites indoors almost always indicates an infestation warranting treatment. Since the swarmer are attracted to light, they often are seen around windows and doors. People often confuse winged termites with ants, which tend to swarm at the same time of year. Termites have straight antennae, a uniformly thickened waist, and wings of equal size. Conversely, ants have elbowed antennae, constricted waists, and forewings that are longer than the hind wings. Swarms of termites emerging from tree stumps, woodpiles, etc. out in the yard are not necessarily a cause for concern and do not automatically mean the house is infested. On the other hand, if swarms are emerging next to the foundation or from abutting porches or patios, there’s a good chance the home is infested as well.
Other signs of infestation are earthen “mud” tubes extending over foundation walls, support piers, sill plates, floor joists, etc. The mud tubes are typically about the diameter of a pencil, but sometimes can be thicker. Termites construct the tubes for shelter as they travel between their underground colonies and the structure. To help determine if an infestation is active, the tubes may be broken open and checked for the presence of small, creamy-white worker termites. If a tube happens to be vacant, it does not necessarily mean that the infestation is inactive; termites often abandon sections of the tube while foraging elsewhere in the structure.
Termite-damaged wood is hollowed out along the grain, with bits of dried mud or soil lining the feeding galleries. Wood damaged by moisture or other types of insects (e.g., carpenter ants) will not have this appearance. Occasionally termites also bore tiny holes through drywall or plaster, accompanied by bits of soil around the margin. Rippled or sunken traces behind wall coverings can also be indicative of termites tunneling underneath.
Oftentimes there will be no clear indication of an infestation. Termites are cryptic creatures
and infestations can go undetected for years, hidden behind walls, floor coverings, insulation, and other obstructions. Termite feeding and damage can even progress undetected in exposed wood because the outer surface usually remains intact. Confirmation of termites often requires the keen eye of a professional — however, even the most experienced inspector can overlook signs that are hidden.
Termite’s most Effective Treatment Technique
- Soil Treatment: Since subterranean termites live in the soil, termite treatment is used on the surrounding soil to act as a treatment barrier. First, a trench is dug around the foundation, and the soil is treated with a termiticide. The trench is then refilled. This type of treatment helps prevent future termite infestations and kills any termites in the house as they return to the soil to nest.
- Wood Treatment: Pest control professionals can use a variety of different wood treatments to help kill any existing termite colonies and prevent future ones from sprouting up. Wood treatments include surface sprays, injected sprays and foams, and Borate treated wood. Pest control professionals use borate wood treatments to prevent termite infestations and eliminate any existing termites in homes. Wood treatments include surface applications during the construction phase of home building and wood injections and foams after a home is built.
- Bait Systems: Bait termite treatment systems are an effective way of destroying termite colonies. A pest control professional will install bait stations around the perimeter of the home and monitor the stations on a set frequency ensuring a home is protected from future and any current infestations. This termite infestation treatment effectively eliminates termites.
Can I treat Termites myself?
The short answer is No. Ridding a home of termites requires special skills and Knowledge of building construction is needed to identify critical areas where termites are likely to enter. Many of these potential points of entry are hidden and difficult to access. Termite control also utilizes specialized equipment such as powerful masonry drills, large-capacity spray tanks, and long metal rods for injecting soil. A typical treatment may involve hundreds of gallons of a liquid pesticide, known as a termiticide, injected into the ground along the foundation, beneath concrete slabs, and within foundation walls. In short, termite treatment is a job for professionals. A possible exception might be if a little wooden post or object not attached to the house was infested. “Do-it-yourself” products, sold in stores can be effective.
How can Green Safety Limited Eradicate Termite infestation from your property?
These are complex questions. Green Safety Limited is licensed by LASEPA and EHORECON.
Our company is an established firm with access to technical and training information needed to do the job correctly. Fumigation service is one of the things we do best, we make sure that we work with you to create a treatment specific to your Termite problems.
Green Safety Limited offers different types of treatment methods and warranties. We eradicate all traces of termite infestation in and around your property with the use of Modern up-to-date methods that will aggressively deal with a stubborn termite infestation.
Contact us Today for Comprehensive termite treatment and protect your property from termite damage.