How to spot termites in your home

Most termites are able to stay hidden very effectively – it’s in their very nature. As well as protecting them from predators staying hidden it is part of the reason they continue to thrive undetected.  However just because they are out of sight, does not mean they should be out of mind. If you look carefully around your home there are many signs which can indicate the presence of termites.

As an expert of termite targeting professionals here in the Philippines, we share what you can look for yourself to determine if termites could be eating away at your home – one bite at a time.

The Signs of a Termite Infestation

If you see a thin line of mud or dirt around you’re the exterior of your home (especially around the concrete slab or base of your home) it is likely to be the work of termites. They use these to travel from underground and into unsealed cracks or crevices around the foundation of the home – especially in gaps surrounding plumbing or electrical infrastructure. These are some other common signs of an infestation:

•    Build-up of mud, dirt and other muddy debris around the cornices of windows or door framing.
•    Damp or moisture stains on the walls or roof. Termites thrive in damp environments where there is a reliable source of moisture. This is another reason to fix leaking roofs or plumbing right away.
•    Blistering or chipping of paint work especially around window framing and skirting boards and other damage to timber work.
•    Discarded wings or insect detritus resembling sawdust (termite droppings)
•    Wood that feels hollow when tapped, or tiny holes visible on the outside of woodwork.

How can termites enter my home?

Termites can squeeze through very tight cracks and gaps usually around the base of the home. However if there is vegetation surrounding the home, especially if it is in contact with the roofing eaves this can also be a way for termites to access a home. Dry wood termites do not require mud tubes to access the home and can fly in through ceiling vents.

Here at Pest Control Technologist we encourage all homeowners to keep their eyes open for the signs of termites and if they spot any of these conduct a pest control professional to assess the extent of the problem. Most termite populations if treated early will have minimal damage to your home, making the important of regular termite inspections an absolute necessity to continually safeguard your home.

Don’t leave it any longer.  Call Pest Control Technologist on 0919-3810710 for your next termite inspection anywhere in the Philippines or visit our webpage: http://pestexpertonline.com/

Guide in choosing a Pest Control Company (Philippines)

You have found out that your house is infested with termites, or you have probably heard your daughter screaming and running away when she saw cockroaches or you have discovered that your electricity supply was halted by rats that chewed on the wires that supplies the current to your outlets or worst case scenario, smoke was seen from the fusebox and some explosions were heard and fire alarms went off. These are all reasons to hire a Pest control company nearby.............but how do you choose the right one? 

Ask about the Technician's Competency and Training Certificate and License

The SERVICE TECHNICIAN is the individual who does the actual pest control work. The quality of the control of pests depends to a large degree on the training the technician has received and the professionalism of the technician on the job.

Most Pest Control companies offer services and boasts of their market share.  Are the Service technicians well trained? Some companies train their technician by just letting them go and put them to work. A good technician must be able to correctly identify the specific pest from the rest. Technician's must have undergone training from the authorities in Pest Management such as the National Committee on Urban Pest Control (NCUPC). They must undergo competency training covering the Biology of Insect-Pest, Identification of Household, Structural and Stored products Pest, Proper usage of pest control equipment's and most important of all is the Safe handling of Pesticides.  Sad to say, most companies don't have a Professionally trained and Licensed Technician. Only the owner of the Pest control company is licensed and not the Technician.  They would just say "Technician's are under the direct supervision of a licensed PCO.  We'll have you seen the licensed owner go with their Technician's during their routine job and supervise them? If the Pest control guy tells you they are licensed, ask them to show you their license and or certification. If they can't show it then probably you have to look for another company.

Don’t trust that the pest control  technicians are licensed simply because they tell you they are. It is best to do your own research on this matter. Ask the company you are interviewing for their license numbers, and then verify them with the organization that gave the certifications. Remember, pest control licensing regulations vary. For more information on where to check the licenses for your particular area, you can call the Nat'l Committee on Urban Pest Control at (02) 484-0208.

Don’t make the mistake of thinking that all certificates and licenses are created equal. Agricultural Pest  is different from Urban Pest. Research each license and certification individually, and feel free to call the licensing agency to ask them about their requirements. Below are some questions you may want to ask when researching a license or certification for a company you are interviewing:

1. Is this license or certification obtained by simply paying a fee?
2. Does this certification require a certain number of hours of practice or education to earn?
3. Does the contractor have to do anything in order to maintain this license or certification?
4. How often does this license or certification expire?


Do they own a website? Check Their Online Reputation

Though every company will advertise that they are honest, dependable, and affordable, the reality is that there are many businesses that have none of those qualities whatsoever. Sometimes a company will attempt to advertise their experience by talking about how long they've been in business. Just because a company has been in business for 80 years doesn't mean they actually know how to get rid of your pests! Thanks to instant results on Google and Yahoo, it can be really easy to find out a company's online reputation quickly - if they even have one, that is. Online reviews, ratings, and rankings can help you find a company that backs up their promised value with actual value. For a quick search on Google just type Pest Control(area).  Example if you are in Iloilo City just type "Pest Control Iloilo" or "Pest Control Bacolod" and so on and so forth. Check all those listed and call them for an appointment.

Know The Company's Employee.Take Advantage of the Free Inspection

Most pest control companies will offer you a free inspection of your property so that they can give you a quote for services. Take advantage of this free inspection to see what kind of employees the company hires. A good pest control agent will be able to effectively communicate what is going on in your home, what you can do to help prevent that from happening, and be able to answer any questions you may have, does not say bad things about competitors and are professional in every aspect. If you don't get that level of service from the employee, then that might not be the best company for you.


Do You Need to Get Rid of Some Pests?

Despite our best efforts, we can get pests in our homes that can bite, sting, and even leave disease. That's why it is so important to make sure that we get those pests out of our homes as soon as possible! This can easily be done when you hire a good pest control company. Use these ideas today to evaluate your own local options so that you get the pests eradicated for a fair price! You might as well consider hiring a Pest Control consultant before hiring a Pest control company to ensure you get what you pay.  You can call my attention at 0919-3810710.

TERMITE PREVENTION TIPS

TERMITE PREVENTION TIPS

Whether you have just moved in to a new home or have been settled in one for years, it is important to keep up with termite prevention. Termites are focused in their pursuits, they are abundant in number, and they are probably nibbling on your home right now. One of the few insect colonies to eat continuously, a typical single termite colony can completely consume 2.3 linear feet of 2x4 pine in a single year. If that does not sound like much to you, consider the seriousness of the situation if that 2x4 was also one of the supporting beams of your house. Keep in mind also that where there is one termite colony there are usually others, clustered together in pursuit of food. Suddenly, that 2.3 linear feet seems significant, and it is, especially when it is multiplied four or five times. 

Termites are one of the biggest contributors to home destruction, costing a staggering $1 billion in damages each year. Thanks to the importing of the voracious Formosan termite from East Asia, that amount continues to skyrocket. Think about the following numbers for a moment. A termite colony consists of anywhere from 350,000 to well over a million workers, soldiers, and swarmers (termites with wings). A single termite queen can lay thousands of eggs per day and live between 30 and 50 years. That means a queen can recoup her losses and repopulate her colony even after tremendous devastation. The best way to fight this foe is to prevent them from ever touching your home.

Before we can look at how to prevent termite infestation, let’s look at the conditions that attract these insects to an area:

Soil: Most termites are subterranean, meaning that they build their colonies in the ground. They love the soil and build elaborate tunnel systems, called galleries, extending up to three feet below the surface. Termites will often use this versatile building material to create mud tubes leading from their underground colonies to above ground food sources, like the wood in your home.

Wood: Termites will consume any material that contains cellulose, and since wood contains a great deal of cellulose, termites devour wood voraciously. If a single piece of wood touches the ground, be certain that a colony of termites somewhere will know about it. Although some subterranean termites will consume other materials like vegetation, dung and humus, their primary source of food, and their favorite, is wood. 

Water: As with most living things, termites generally cannot survive without a source of water present. Whether in the form of a leaky faucet or the natural precipitation process of rain, termites will always seek some source of moisture to survive.

Now that the three conditions for termite survival have been identified, we can now look at how to prevent termites from infesting your home.

1.    Identify and fix all water leaks in your home, both internal and external. As mentioned above, termites need water, and it does not matter where they get it. If the water source comes from your home, all the better for the colony. It means they do not have to work as hard. Eliminating their water source removes one of the three requirements for survival.

2.    Remove any brush or heavy growth from around your home. Vegetation can create areas of intense moisture, which is necessary for colony survival. Termites like it wet, so try and disappoint them as much as possible.

3.    Eliminate any standing or pooling water from around your home.

4.    Store all excess building materials and firewood away from the house. Remember that wood is their primary food source. Scrap wood touching the ground is an open invitation to hungry termites. If your property is not large enough for wood storage away from the house, create barriers beneath the wood to prevent direct access to the termites. Thick concrete slabs or heavy duty metal stands can be used to raise the wood off of the ground.

5.    Use treated lumber for any wooden structures that will have direct contact with the ground. The chemicals in treated lumber do not guarantee that termites will not invade the wood, but they can act as a deterrent for decks and patios made out of treated lumber. Home improvement centers now offer concrete supports that raise the wooden support beams for decks and patios off of the ground. This would be a great way to avoid wood to ground contact.

6.    Avoid using mulch near your home. Mulch provides two things to hungry termites: a food source and a water source. The qualities of mulch that make it attractive for use in the garden are the very qualities that attract termites. If mulch is placed near the exterior of your home, it is only a small step for a colony to move into your walls. As an alternative to wood mulch, try using one of the newer rubber mulches now available at your local home improvement center. They have the look of mulch and the benefits of mulch without providing the risks.

7.    Never bury waste lumber or wood scraps in your yard. It acts as a magnet to termites and directs them to your property.

8.    Remove any dead trees, old stumps, or roots in your yard. As these items decay, they attract termites to the area by providing a food source. When the food is gone, the termite colony will look for new sources of food. This includes your house.

9.    Seal any cracks or holes within the foundation of your home. This will help prevent easy access for wandering termites.

10.    Keep all gutters and waterlines clean of debris. Clogged gutters and waterlines leak, creating pools of water close to the house.

11.    Make sure your home is properly ventilated, including your attic and internal crawl space areas. Adequate airflow prevents the buildup of moisture needed by termite colonies.

12.    Periodically, get your home inspected for termite damage. A once-a-year inspection can save your home with early detection. If termites are not found in the home, the trained pest control specialists can at least offer recommendations to help you prevent an invasion. They may catch something you missed.

So what happens if you take all of these precautions and termites still begin to munch on your home? Use a pest control specialist in your area to help you deal with the problem. Here are a few of the insect pest control options that are currently on the market:

Liquid Termiticide: This liquid pesticide is generally applied around the foundation of the house, as well as underneath the foundation. For new construction sites, the termiticide is applied to the graded soil as the home is being built, but for existing buildings, the foundation is partially dug out and drilled to ensure proper coverage. There are termiticides on the market that act as barriers and repellents to termite invasions, and there are termiticides that act as nerve poisons, killing the termites upon exposure.

Subterranean Bait: Rather than acting as a deterrent to termite invasion, termite baits attempt to eliminate the colony at its source. Bait stations are set in the ground every ten feet or so around the perimeter of the home. The treatment begins when untreated wood segments are installed in the bait units to determine if termites are active around the house. The units are checked once a week, and if live termites are found, the wood is replaced with a toxic bait that is ingested by the termites and carried back to the colony. The toxins in the bait affect the termites by preventing the molting process, causing them to die "within their shell." This long acting toxin allows the termites to both ingest the poison and carry it back to share with their colony. Special bait units can also be installed inside the home if termites damage is evident. A new series of bait traps have been developed by Dow Agrosciences to fight the more aggressive Formosan termite, which can penetrate cement, brick, heavy duty plastics, and high-pressure water lines just to get to food and water sources.

The best treatment option is a combination of termiticides and bait units setup both in the ground and throughout the house. Termites are hard to kill, and they are even harder to eradicate, so be tenacious in your efforts. Your best bet is to call a professional to help you. Over the counter solutions do not offer the same level of effectiveness that professional grade products do. Your house is one of your greatest commitments you will ever make. It is worth protecting the right way by getting the help of professionals who know what they are doing. In this case, an ounce of termite prevention really can take you far, ensuring a better chance of keeping these nasty bugs from eating up your investment before you have a chance to truly enjoy the fruits of your labor.

Read more: http://www.doityourself.com/stry/keeptermitesout#.UgRw_dKTSDk#ixzz2bRY5IgB7

Termite Baits are often bypassed by Termites

According to the Australian Building Codes Board (ABCB)
Termite Baiting Systems are :

*A post-construction methodology only
*Often bypassed by termites
*Indiscriminate in their action
*Often able to impact heavily on a healthy environment


Termite Baiting Systems (TBS)

The use of termite baiting systems has become a more common and widespread practice with the failure of many of the physical, chemical and reticulation systems discussed herein.  Termite baiting systems provide mixed results that sometimes may provide a solution dependent on a vast range of factors.  TBS are indiscriminate and may get the target species, or they may affect other termite species in the environment.

Termites often progress past termite baiting systems and proceed to forage in a building structure.  Termite baiting systems are generally remedial or preventative measures and are often used where either the cost of a chemical termite management system is prohibitive or otherwise logistically difficult to emplace.  Sometimes, because of certain construction methodologies, it is the only means by which some means of defence is afforded a structure.  It needs to be immediately recognised that termite baiting systems are not a means of protection and are simply a bait to attract and poison termite colonies.  Termite baits are often bypassed.

What does need to be understood with termite baiting systems is that despite the fact that they may provide toxicants to the target species, they often strike other termite colonies in the local environment.  It needs to be further noted that termites are a base provider of a healthy environment and that excessive baiting in several suburbs has created a very unhealthy and termite depleted environment.  There needs to be some environmental controls on the current unregulated baiting process.  Termites are a base food stock in nature that recycles, fertilises and aerates soil.  In fact, termites are a prerequisite for a healthy environment.



TBS are : -  A post-construction methodology only
Often bypassed by termites
Indiscriminate in their action
Often able to impact heavily on a healthy environment

SOURCE:
Termite Action Group

17th National Urban Pest Control Week (Presidential Proclamation 990 & 2063)

17th National Urban Pest Control Week

September 23-29, 2013

Presidential Proclamation 990 & 2063

Theme: Observance Of Zero Waste & Zero Pest Laws In Food Establishments, Urban And Agricultural Areas Means Strong Nation!

URBAN PEST MANAGEMENT AND FOOD SAFETY & QUALITY SYSTEMS

Annual Conference & Exhibition

SM Atrium GF/ SM Carpafk Door 5, Cagayan de Oro City, September 27-29, 2013

Termite Baiting System, Choose your Choice

Ok, lets face it, you'll be left behind and out if you haven't have a Termite Baiting System Installed. But how would you choose which one is better than the other? Let's sum it up by degree of flaw and its effects starting from the worst to the less worst (in my opinion). Let's focus our attention to the In Ground Stations since it's it's claim of Intercepting termites foraging in the ground that makes it more marketable.

1. Sentricon Colony Elimination System- In Ground stations made of a hollow cylindrical plastic tube about 2 inches in diameter with slots on its side to supposedly be the entry point of termites and so are  ants, crickets, centipedes and other tiny insects. The hollow center is being used as the cradle of wooden baits. Since it is hollow, it also invites other insects mostly ants into its cavity. When ants are there, would you expect termites to enter? Definitely not!

Sentricon In Ground

2. Exterra Termite Interception & Baiting System- The In Ground station consists of a hollow body with perforations on the sides and bottom to allow termite entry, an opening opposite the bottom, and a removable, tamper-resistant cover that is affixed over the opening. The station has a volume of 1.3 liters.  Termites are intercepted in the inground stations by timber interceptors that are placed inside the inground stations.  Six timber interceptors made of Australian Eucalyptus regnans are positioned around the edge of the station.  The interceptors provide a food source for termites that establishes termite activity within the station.  Perforations along the sides of the station allow termites to enter and feed on the interceptors. Again, the perforations on the sides will also allow the entry of other insects especially ants.  

Once when I was a marketeer of Exterra, I have witnessed that even when placed near mounds (about 1 foot from the mound), termites do not readily enter the station..

Exterra In Ground 

Now, I have found two (2) Termite Baiting system that minimizes the flaws of the 2 common TBS shown above, well for a certain point.  It prevents ants from entering the station thereby increasing the chances that termites will find the baits in the station.

3. Xterm Termite Baiting System- while it is also made of a hollow tube, the wood bait is solid almost the diameter of the In Ground Station itself plus it has a special compartment on the cap for the placement of ant baits, doubling its function as both ant & termite bait.

The compartment in the cap for the placement of ant baits.

Xterm Termite Baiting System In Ground Station

4. Green Termite Baits-impenetrable by ants or other insects. Made entirely of solid wood block and being implanted directly to the ground.  Can be treated by almost all known termiticides including the latest Insect Growth Regulators. Easy to inspect with its EC2C window. Mud on both window signals termite presence. Less disturbance to termites thus less chances of termites backing out and abandoning the station.

mud on windows indicates termite activity

That's it folks! You choose whats the best. There are other Termite Baiting systems available but all shares the same characteristics as the first two mentioned  at the beginning of this blog. If I may choose, and I definitely recommend the last two, the Xterm Termite Baiting and the Green Termite Baits.

Termite Baiting, are they really effective?

     At some point, termite baiting is good since it is proactive, contains less toxic element, easy to install and is being checked from time to time for evidence of termite infiltration.
   
     Did it ever crossed our mind that it is the frequent inspection done that helps the job done? It's what we are paying for, the inspections.
   
     By theory, termite bait will intercept foraging termites which might come near the installed interceptors. What if it bypasses the interceptors which is evenly placed at 3-8 meters interval? Termites are blind and they just rely on random search for food sources. Factors such as readily available cellulose in between and midway of interceptors, decaying wood, fallen timber and dried grass can easily attract termites and leave the installed interceptor empty for long periods. Termites might even find your home easily than those interceptors.
   
      Termite baiting system employs the use of cellulose containing materials to supposedly attract "blind" termites. Depending on the Termite Baiting system you are offered into by your Pest Management Professional, some contains softwoods, paper, cardboards and other materials which are all by products of wood and contains cellulose. And your home has it all, much more in quantity than those placed in  interceptors.

     Results for termite baiting systems are encouraging but more studies should be conducted before we can conclude on its efficacy. Some areas contains multiple  colonies and should be inspected more often to deter infestations coming into your homes.

     Again, it is the frequent inspections that is crucial, not the system. Homeowners think that the system works once it is installed. No, it is the other way around. For it to work, someone must inspect it regularly.
Inspect your home and its surrounding more frequent, shoot some over the counter chemicals if you found infestations and save thousands.  If you cannot do it yourself, comes the hiring of Pest Control providers. Remember it is the frequency of  inspection that matters not the expensive system offered.

Of Cockroaches, Ants and Frogs on Termite Bait Stations

     Since I started on experimenting on the proper placement and spacing of termite interceptors around a given perimeter and check on the results I used to see ants, earthworms, crickets, cockroaches and occasionally, frogs on an installed In ground termite interceptor.

     When digging the earth to install these termite baits, I see to it that the soil is compacted thoroughly when the interceptors are in place. Surprisingly, these little creatures still find themselves onto the shelter of the embedded termite interceptor.  It is a known fact that termites will avoid the termite traps/interceptor/bait when there is "someone" already in there, especially ants of which is the mortal enemy of termites.

     While it is supposed to intercept/attract termites, it seems it is the other way around. How did these creatures enter those interceptors?

                              "cockroaches"

                                                                                    

                                                                                                                                                                                                    "ants"                                                                         

                                   "snails"

                            "frog"

                "a nest of shrew litters"