Discovering termites in your home or garden can be a worrying experience, especially when there are no businesses available to address the issue immediately.
Did someone say... Christmas holiday closures?!
While termites can cause significant damage if left unchecked, it's important to not panic. There are several steps you can take to manage the situation until professional help becomes availiable.
Don't Try To Kill The Termites Yourself.
Reaching for an over-the-counter insect spray might seem like a good response, but in reality, it's not.
Subterranean Termites live deep within the ground in suprisingly large numbers.
Spraying a handful of Termites on the surface will only exasperate the problem further and have them scattering to harder-to-find areas in and around your home.
Pouring diesel or petrol on them, setting the nest on fire, using fly spray, chlorine or any pool chemicals are not effective and should be avoided at all costs.
Don't Try Relocating the Termites.
It is common for homeowners, particularly when tending to their yards, to attempt to eradicate termites by scooping them up and moving them elsewhere. Affected timbers get burnt, binned and mulches get scattered to other parts of the garden. This has limited success due to the same reasons mentioned above.
Termite colonies typically remain concealed. Some can be as far as 100 meters from the activity you've discovered.
Moving infested timbers with termites will likely scatter Termites throughout the yard in the process. When Termites are distrubed, they'll migrate to other parts of the garden, yard, or even worse, find their way inside your home.
Avoid disturbing the Termites Further.
Did curiosity of that crinkly bathroom wall or hollow windowsill get the better of you?
If you've disturbed the Termites by poking holes through walls, it's not too late to pretend you weren't there and wait for the experts.
Seal up Termite workings with tape to prevent access of light. Consider taking a photo of the Termites (that clearly depicts their body shape), their workings and the area they were discovered. This assists with proper identification and remedial treatents at a later date.
Keeping termites and their workings in a locatable area means a remedial or baiting treatment at a later date will be more effective at controlling the infestation faster.
Look around your home for areas that attract termites and rectify them.
Stumps and stored timbers in contact with the earth, leaking taps, irrugation systems or gardens against external walls all provide excellent habitats for hungry termites.
By rectifying these areas you make your home less apealing to termite colonies that are on the move.
What If The Termites Have Been Disturbed And Moved On From The Area?
In order to minimise the extent of hidden termite damage elsewhere in and around your home, ensure you have a competent and experienced termite inspector inspect your property as-soon-as-possible.
The best way to get in touch with our team, outside of operating hours, is via email. Attach clear photos for Termite identification (if possible) and we'll ensure you're at the top of our list to contact when we return.
Sometimes we receive panicked emails from clients and their 'termite' discoveries only to see a colony of household ants.
The photos really do help!
What steps we'll take to manage your termite problem:
INSPECTION
First, we’ll thoroughly inspect the building and property for signs of termite activity, conduct a termite damage assessment and identify conditions conducive to termite infestations.
Along with termites, we will also identify other timber pests which can be equally destructive as termites, such as borers and wood decay.
ERADCIATION
If Termites and their workings are still present in accessible areas, our termite specialist will conduct a remedial treatment to the active termite workings or the nests within the home or yard area.
Once the workings and termite activity has been located we then apply either liquid, dust or a foam treatment to them.
The products professional termite technicians use do not kill the termites immediatley. The termites that come in contact with the treatment will survive for about 2-3 weeks.
The idea of the treatment is to let the termites carry the poison to the rest of the colony. This is enough time for the entire colony to have been contaminated and eventually kill the whole colony.
It's important to note, this treatment will kill the active termites that are present in the area, however, it will not prevent further damage from future termite attack. This is where your Termite Management Systems come into play.
PREVENTION
Our termite technicians will discuss the best termite prevention method for your circumstances as well as provide you with a detailed quotation outlining the process involved. This is a no-obligation, free quote.
Our Termite Management Systems protect homes from Termite attack for up to 8 years.
Be wary of companies who offer a surface spray as a prevention. This is not to Australian Standards and provides no warranty against termite attack.
Chemical Termite Managment Systems need to be injected deep into the ground at a specified rate and backfilled to ensure maxium soil adhesion.
With the popularity of DIY treatments now flooding the market there are many options availiable. These DIY treatments will end up costing significantly more for the homeowner as their ratios are much weaker than what qualified termite techncians have availiable.
MAINTENANCE
We’ll conduct a regular, yearly inspection (as per Australian Standards) to ensure optimal termite protection for your home. We'll also go above and beyond and replenish treatment to soil areas as needed.
You'll receive a plain English report accompanied with colour photos which includes recommendations to ensure your Termite Barrier keeps your home protected from Termite attack for up to 8 years.
While termites are one of Australia's most destructive pests, with the right guidance, education and care from an experienced Termite inspector they need not be feared.
If you do find actvity in your garden or around the home this Christmas closure, don't panic. Send our team an email and you'll be at the top of our list to contact when we return in the New Year.
