Termite problem, need advise

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demarpaint

demarpaint

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I was doing some work on the house, and noticed some rotted wood on the outside of my house around a basement window. It was a wooden frame holding a storm window into brick. I noticed active termites in the wood. I sprayed the daylights out of them, and replaced the frame with pressure treated wood. Now have to go inside the basement, pull some paneling down and see if I can find their trail. Not today though, it will be a big project.

The house was treated about 12 years ago. Any tips, I'd rather not call in an exterminator if possible. The foundation is surrounded by concrete on the outside of the house, so digging a trench is not possible.

TIA
Frank D
 
I had termites when i lived in NY, and remembered seeing those swarmers come out in the spring. Rather than try to tackle it myself, I had Terminix use the Sentricon system at that time, and that got rid of all of them. The baiting system they used was very effective, and required no drilling into the foundation, and using that watered down liquid they used to use that basically did nothing. I also found a lot of damage from termites in the walls, when i ripped off some of the siding on my house. You can't always see the extent of damage they could cause from years of infestation.
 
There were no swarmers, none at all. These were the while wingless workers. I'm going to have to motivate myself to pull the paneling down and have a look behind the wall, and possibly bite the bullet.

Thanks!
 
If you're on a budget you can do it yourself. I have a rental in Virginia that had not been treated in 20 years. I bought the chemicals from ebay. Exactly the same stuff that the pros use. Dig a shallow trench around the perimeter of the house and pour the liquid in and let it soak. I took pictures and kept my receipts in case I sell the place. I spent less than $100 and an afternoon. That was 3 years ago this month and I have seen zero signs of any termite or carpenter ants etc.
 
Thanks. My problem is this area is concrete up to the house, I can't trench it. I can do the balance of the house, how deep a trench did you dig?
 
See the termite guy on the web, no trenching required these days. Was checking out advice because I just had swarming carpenters ants in the house (nasty0. They're between my roof deck and the foam core insulation up there. Must a been water seeping in the winter had ice dam problems due to the weird weather. I just love shoveling off the roof in addition to snow blowing the driveway;)
 
Moist wood is gone, termites were in wood that was attached to brick for basement storm windows. They come up from underground, so the fact that they were in this wood means they could be elsewhere in that area. Poking around at the sill plate I discovered it was nice and sound, good news there. I want to get them before they get me.

I'll search the termite guy and see if I can gather any info from there.

Thanks
 
Lowes carries a knock off Sentricon style bait station that you could use.

Self treatment would be a good option.

Most of the exterminators around here seem to be paying for their bass boats with their overpriced termite treatments.
 
Originally Posted By: SilverC6


Most of the exterminators around here seem to be paying for their bass boats with their overpriced termite treatments.



The same here, only they're paying off different toys. I'm in the constuction industry and know how these guys try and rip people off.

My problem here is the concrete around this area of the house. I'd rather not drill through it if there is some way of avoiding it. I don't mind paying someone who is honest, problem is chatting with my customers over the years about various home problems taught me that local exterminators are a rip off. Besides I'm a hands on guy.
 
Not a deep trench. I took a maddock and made an indentation. Enough to where I could pour the mixture and it would soak straight down.I had concrete too. I went up against it as best i could. A few of the bait stations would be cheap insurance.
 
Originally Posted By: SilverC6
Lowes carries a knock off Sentricon style bait station that you could use.

Self treatment would be a good option.

Most of the exterminators around here seem to be paying for their bass boats with their overpriced termite treatments.



Bait stations have questionable efficacy, especially the off brand ones (different compounds).

OP has to remove any damaged wood and figure out how the termites got there and fix a problem. Later, soaking the grounds with a solution of fipronil (same stuff pros use) should help for many years.
 
Thanks for all the suggestions. I searched the area inside the house, pulled some paneling down and can't find the trail or any bad wood inside. I will have to spend some more time and look a little harder.

I did some searching on the www, and looked around the house and feel treating the entire house will take me and a helper less than a day.

I checked out fipronil, and found they won't ship it to NY residents! Any other products that are as good?


Enjoy the 4th, and thanks for all the replies.
 
You can actually buy Termidor or Premise online and apply it DIY via ditching. Home Depot and Lowe's carries Ortho-Klor which is basically the homeowner concentration of Talstar(a pyrethroid made by FMC for pros) that could also work but cost adds up.

In NY, I think you'll need to settle for Premise which is imidacloprid, the same stuff used on cats and dogs as Advantage for fleas. Fipronil is used in Termidor for homes and Frontline for pets.
 
Thanks. I'll probably end up using Ortho-Klor. I can trench about 90% of the house, and will drill through concrete and funnel it in where the concrete is.

Do I have to do any treatment inside the house, such as spray the sill plate of the house? Or will the trenching be enough?

Thanks!
Frank D
 
You could do that, but if that did happen you probably have drywood termites - and you're SOL if that happens. A pro needs to come out, tent your house and do a scorched-earth plan of Vikane piped into the house.

As for the spot treatment, I've seen a Spectracide termite aerosol. You could also hit the wood with Copper-Green or Termin-8.
 
Last edited:
I never heard of that procedure, and I've lived on Long Island for over 45 years. I'd like to only trench around the house, but if needed I will spray the sill plate.

Thanks,
Frank D
 
I pulled a scrap of wood from the trash that had a few dead termites that I sprayed and took it to the local hardware guy. He said they were the subterranean termites. He suggested I pull the basement paneling on that wall and have a good look for a tunnel. I should be able to get to that over the weekend. I took a quick look but really need to spend some time looking.

Thanks!
Frank D
 
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