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Q. What can termites
do to my home?
A. Termites
eat wood. In their natural state, they eat fallen
logs and stumps off the forest floor. But on your
property, they can eat away the equity you have
built up in your home and property. Termites infest
millions of homes nation-wide, causing over $750
million in damage annually, according to the United
States Department of Agriculture.
Q. What should I know
about a termite colony?
A. Subterranean termites are native to
every state except Alaska. A colony may include
up to several million individuals, living as deep
as 20 feet underground. Feeding on cellulose-based
material, such as wood, termites find human dwellings
offer the ideal combination of warmth, moisture
and food.
Q. How can a professional
pest control firm help?
A. Only a trained professional understands
the intricacies of how a termite colony behaves.
Using an advanced material, such as Biflex TC
or Dragnet FT termiticides, a skilled, professional
applicator can effectively protect your housing
investment.
Q. How do termites
get in?
A. Because termites need moisture and have
a low tolerance to air and light, they live underground,
attacking a home from below. A loose mortar joint,
a minute space around a drain pipe, or a settlement
crack in the basement is all they need to gain
entry.
Q. Will termites eat
my stucco, concrete block, or insulation?
A. Termites obtain food from a substance
called cellulose that is found in wood and plant
derived products. Humans can not digest
cellulose, but termites can. Termites do
not feed on concrete, stucco, fiberglass, insulation,
or other non-organic materials, because these
materials do not contain cellulose. However,
termites can tunnel through cracks or weakened
areas in concrete to get to underlying wood.
Q. Aren't homes and
houses with concrete slabs virtually termite-proof?
A. The experience of homeowners nationwide
shows that no home, new or old, is safe from termites.
By building mud tubes, termites can cross concrete,
brick, cinder block, metal termite shields, pre-treated
wood, or any barrier other than a professionally-applied
termite treatment.
Q. If I haven't seen
swarming termites, or traces of damage, can my
home still be in danger?
A. Unfortunately, yes. When a colony swarms,
the winged termites may be in the air for just
a few minutes and you may not see them.
Termites eat wood from the inside out, making
their activity detectable only by professional
termite inspection.
Q. When is the right
time to call in a termite professional?
A. Termite treatment is a fixed cost. But
the longer you delay treatment, the more damage
termites will do. Repairs will become more extensive,
and more expensive. Generally speaking, the sooner
you approve treatment, the better.
Q. How does a professional
inspection uncover activity that's invisible to
me?
A. While much termite damage is hidden,
termites have few secrets to the eyes of a professional.
He knows the conditions termites favor, and how
to uncover termite activity which the untrained
eye might pass over--with damaging results.
Q. What will a professional
do to get rid of the termites?
A. Create a barrier between your home and
the termites, blocking them from your house. Treatment
begins with a thorough inspection. Then, an analysis
of your home and property. Finally, applying materials
to effectively repel termites.
Q. How will you achieve
this invisible barrier?
A. Methods vary with each house, depending
on the type of foundation or basement, construction
materials, number and type of porches, patios,
chimneys, etc. By digging narrow trenches along
walls and drilling through horizontal surfaces
and into voids, materials can be applied where
they will kill termites within your home and block
the colony's re-entry.
Q. Won't this kind
of thorough treatment be a lot of trouble?
A. No. Modern termite control treatment
will usually take a single day, or less, with
very little upset to your daily routine. And,
considering the fact that a home is the largest
single investment most American families will
ever make, protecting its value is not much trouble
at all. |
