ALL PEST SOLUTIONS has recently started using the Sentricon baiting system as an option. This involves placing small round stations at 10 to 20-foot intervals around the house within a few feet of the foundation, as well as place an above-ground station on any known entry points where visible termite tunnels exist. They will normally discover the stations, because they search for multiple food sources. Sentricon has a long history of being an effective product. During its 20 plus years of history, it has evolved into a very commonly used product. Under the direction of Dr. Nan-Yao Su, an entomologist with the University of Florida, it has developed into the best viable bait product for termites, and in 1991 Dow Agrosciences decided to pursue bringing the original active, Hexaflumuron and its delivery system to market. Currently there are approximately 1,000,000 homes protected by Sentricon Systems.
The stations contain an improved active ingredient called noviflumuron which is mixed into the wood pulp inside the station. The bait is referred to as Recruit HD. Termite colonies have three primary castes; the reproductives, which are the king, queen, alates, and supplementary reproductive, and the workers and soldiers. The workers and soldiers have the responsibility of collecting food for the rest of the colony and when they eat the bait, they consume a toxic dose of the noviflumuron that prevents them from molting. When the workers and soldiers can’t molt, they die and eventually the larvae, nymphs, and queen no longer have a support system and they will die, too.
When a product is used as a pesticide, the EPA requires that they have a signal word on the label to indicate the safety range they fall into. These are Caution, Warning, or Danger. Caution is the category with the lowest risk. Recruit HD falls into a category that is better than Caution and therefore, no signal word is listed on the label. In 1994 it became the first product to be registered in the new EPA category known as Reduced Risk Pesticide Initiative. This proves it is a very environmentally friendly product to use in virtually all settings.
Conventional soil treatments with a liquid product are also very good. ALL PEST SOLUTIONS applies Termidor, which is the most commonly used liquid product in todays market. It is labeled with a Caution listing, so it is also a good product to use. It is a non-repellent so if termites encounter it, they cannot sense that it is a pesticide and therefore will spread it throughout the colony. It will soon be distributed to many others and they will die from it. It is equally as effective as the baiting system, but may work a little quicker, depending on the amount of activity within the colony.
It is normally applied to the soil around the exterior of the building within a few inches of the foundation and about twelve inches deep or to the bottom of the footing if it is shallower, as well as any locations inside where a plumbing pipe comes through the concrete. If there are adjoining slabs connecting to the structure, the expansion joint may also need to be treated by drilling small holes through the concrete and injecting Termidor underneath it. If it is a pier and beam structure, the Termidor is applied underneath it around each pier and along the exterior beam and around plumbing or other utility lines, so termites cannot build tunnels on them.
Sentricon Baiting systems can be used with a liquid treatment. In certain instances, the Termidor is used where activity is located inside the structure to eliminate activity quicker than the bait alone would do. Turning the liquid into a foam is normally a great way to use the Termidor in some areas such as wall voids, because of the greater spread and distribution of the product.
If you are building a new structure, installing a Sentricon system is a fantastic way to prevent termites. If a property had an older building, or established mature trees, then an established termite colony may there and waiting for you bring it fresh wood to eat.
If you are interested in a termite treatment, please contact us. We have an in-house plan we have developed that will combine termite control and pest control. It is very cost efficient and quite popular with our customer base.