If you believe you have termites, or they have been seen swarming in
your neighborhood, we seriously recommend you hire a pest management
professional to treat any termite problems you may be faced with.

Brandon Pest Control offers you an effective program to control,
manage or eliminate termite problems from your home while protecting
the safety of you, your family and your pets.

Termites feed on cellulose in wood and paper products such as books,
cardboard, and various other items.

Termite damage in homes is usually not obvious until significant
damage has occurred. Sometimes homeowners first notice termites when
they swarm. Swarmers are “winged reproductives” that leave the colony
in a swarm to mate, reproduce, and start new colonies. Yet, it’s the
worker termites – small, creamy white insects that are seldom seen —
that are the most numerous and the cause most of all the termite
damage.

There are many species of termites that can infest homes under a
variety of conditions. Subterranean termites, the most common type,
build nests in the ground and often construct mud tubes on structures.
They use the mud tubes as passageways to explore for food and travel
to and from the soil. If you suspect that you have a termite
infestation, you should have your home thoroughly inspected by a
termite specialist. Professional termite inspectors are trained to
locate specific areas in your home where a termite attack is most
likely to occur. If termites are found, the specialist can design a
treatment plan to control current infestations and to protect your
home from future infestations.

There are many treatment options available for subterranean termite
control. Baiting, soil treatments, and wood treatments are all methods
used, alone or in combination, to control termites in many different
situations.

Most soil treatments are applied directly to the soil around the
perimeter of your home. These treatments set up a continuous treated
area that will control termites that come into contact with the
treatment.

Bait systems perform well but require more time to work. Termites
must find and accept the bait then share it with other members of the
colony

Wood treatments, often done as a preventive treatment, are applied
directly to wood that is infested or could potentially be infested.
Termites avoid the treated wood and those that feed on treated wood
die.

The best treatment for your home will depend on many factors that are
unique to your home and termite problem. All three methods are
effective if applied correctly.

There are several things you can do to help make your home less
susceptible to termites:

* Look for excessive moisture in and around your home especially in
basements and crawl spaces. Termites require moisture to successfully
live and breed in structures. Reducing moisture problems in and around
your home will decrease the likelihood of termite attack. Repair
leaking pipes, water lines and fixtures that may wet any wooden parts
of your home.
* Stack firewood, lumber and other wooden items several feet away
from your home and plant flowerbeds and other frequently watered
ornamentals as far away from the perimeter of your house as possible.
* Ideally, wood-containing mulches should be placed at least one foot
away from the foundation of your home. Wood used in decks and porches
should be pressure treated.
* Outdoor lights with white bulbs may attract night swarming
termites, especially in the spring. Try replacing white bulbs with
yellow or pale amber.

Most active termite infestations require some type of chemical
treatment. Reducing conducive conditions (such as repairing moisture
and ventilation problems) will help reduce infestations of some
termite populations, but these changes will not provide control. To
eliminate the egg-laying queen and other reproductives, termiticides
are used that contain slow acting poisons or growth regulators. These
chemicals are carried in food that is eaten by termite workers and
later fed to the queen and other members of their colony. To
completely eliminate a colony, the queen and all other reproductives
must be eliminated or sterilized.

Non-chemical treatments, such as heat, cold, fungal pathogens, or
microwaves treatments, have been developed to successfully treat dry
wood termites. Because there are many types of termites that infest
structures, you should consult a professional pest management firm
that can tell you what type of termites you have and advise you on
appropriate treatment options.

Depending on the situation it can take a few hours to several years
to control a termite problem. The construction of your home, the area
and extent of infestation, the species of termite infesting your home
as well as the treatment method you select, are some of the factors
that have an affect on how quickly termites can be eliminated from
your home. If more than one colony exists in any given area, or if you
live in an area where well-established colonies exist, it can take
more time to gain adequate control. Whatever treatment or maintenance
contract that you choose, make sure that you get any warranties and
other guarantees in writing and stay updated on any termite problems
and activity on your property. Also be sure to ask for a complete
explanation of the terms of any warranty and read all documents
carefully before you sign them.

There are many factors that can affect the longevity of the various
termite treatments applied today including the type of treatment
performed, environmental conditions, type and pH of your soil, or
physical disruption of the treatment site. Ideally, treatments can
last for several years. Some treatments and infested areas must be
monitored regularly to make sure active infestations are being
effectively controlled. Soil and wood treatments may be disrupted if
the treated soil or wood has been displaced through construction,
gardening or otherwise. In this case, these areas may need to be
retreated.