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Saturday, 28 June, 2008 2:19 PM
Termite Season
Coming - It Could Cost You!
Graphic
courtesy of www.extermital.com
Glendora,
Calif. – Drywood termite swarming season is about
to begin and homeowners everywhere are preparing to open their wallets
to protect their houses from structural damage.
“I
have seen termite swarm eruptions in grocery store parking lots,
the middle of a huge lawn and of course in nearly 18,000 homes,”
says Michael Allen, owner of Century Termite Control and author
of the new book “Top Secrets of the Termite Industry; What
Termite Companies Don’t Want You to Know, That You Should
Know.”
The cost
of tenting an American home to get rid of termites ranges from $1,300
to over $3,000 depending on the size of the home and the pest control
company you choose. Allen says if homeowners know what signs to
look for they shouldn’t have to pay a penny to professionals.
“These
chemical companies are multi-million dollar machines. They push
their products to pest control companies which are supposed to push
it to homeowners. The price keeps going up and there is just no
reason for it. Termite companies aren’t helping homeowners
do anything they can’t do by themselves.”
On his website,
www.centurytermitesolutions.com
Allen has a list of the top 10 things you need to know about protecting
your home from termites. Here are four of them:
1) Stop
the Pheromones and You’ve Stopped the Termites. All termites
line the tunnels they dig with pheromones, a scent that the bugs
follow to get to and from your home. It’s a way of communicating
to the other termites to follow the scent and find food. “All
you need to do is break that line of pheromones with store bought
orange oil or a home made mixture and the termites won’t know
how to get to your house anymore. It will be as if they’ve
lost the map and put up an electric fence.”
2) The North
Side Of Your Home Is Especially Vulnerable. Because the north side
of your home gets the least amount of sun more moisture can accumulate
in the wood (cellulose), softening it up for the termites to eat.
Try to keep the north side as dry as possible by turning away sprinklers
and trimming back trees and overgrown vegetation that are blocking
the sun. Other than swarming these insects never leave the infected
wood for water. They rely only on the trapped moisture in the cellulose
for a complete life cycle.
3) Decorative
Finishes Create Easy Access Points For Termites. Termites can enter
where the brick or decorative finish material touches the ground.
They crawl up between the gaps to get to the wood. This happens
at the mudsill line. Get familiar with and measure your home’s
mudsill line.
4) Bait
Stations Lead Termites to Your Home. Many unscrupulous pest control
companies recommend putting bait stations in your home. But bait
stations don’t work. The smell from the bait attracts termites
and encourages them to build underground roads and highways close
to your home. While some may take the bait and die most of the insects
will never get as far as the queen. There are millions of termites
in an infected home. Killing even thousands a day will not make
a dent. The remaining termites will just wind up feasting on what’s
close to the bait station -- your home. Any pest control company
that wants to put a bait station in your house is not as interested
in solving your termite problem as they are in forcing you to be
a return customer.
“You
can pay the pest control guys several thousand dollars,” says
Allen, “or you can put in a little elbow grease to get rid
of the pests by yourself and keep those few thousand dollars in
your own bank account!”
About Michael Allen
Michael
Allen has owned a termite company in Southern California for 19
years and currently owns Century Termite Control (www.centurytermitesolutions.com).
He is the author of “Top Secrets of the Termite Industry.”
Allen began working in pest control straight after high school,
attended the Advanced Institute of Pest Technology and is a licensed
Master Graduate. Allen is originally from the suburbs of Chicago,
but has now lived in Southern California for 21 years with his wife,
Jeni, and his 15-year-old daughter.
Source:
News and Experts
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