| Tired of Tenacious Termites |
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By Dwight Barnett
Scripps Howard News Service Question: Your article about Termidor, a repellent for termites, appeared in the Milwaukee Journal recently. We have had a termite problem for three years and professional companies have not been able to stop the infestation. I would appreciate any further information you can give me on this product. -- M.M., Milwaukee, Wisconsin Answer: There may be some misunderstanding about the type of termite treatments available. A repellent keeps termites from getting to the wood in the home by placing a chemical barrier between the termite colony and the home. Termidor is not a repellent. Termidor is placed around the foundation, where termites are invited to come into contact with the chemical. Upon contact, some of the chemical attaches itself to the termite's body and is carried back to the colony and to the queen. Termidor kills the entire colony so there is no chance of a reinfestation. Even if another colony is established during the swarming seasons, spring and fall, Termidor will still offer protection. Some foundation designs are difficult to treat using repellents. For instance, homes with poured concrete, brick or stone foundations cannot be treated by saturating the foundation with a repellent. Instead, the exterminator has to treat the soils on both sides of these foundations, plus the wood floor joists and wood sill plates. The soils around the foundation usually have different rates of absorption, and the chemical repellents may soak into some soils while missing other areas. A termite colony forages for food day and night and sooner or later the termites will find any openings in the soil that have not been saturated with the repellent. When the soils are treated with Termidor, the termite sooner or later will come into contact with the chemical, which is passed on until the whole colony is infected. Depending on soil conditions and the proximity of the home to a water source, other forms of treatment may include tenting of the home or soil removal and replacement. (Write C. Dwight Barnett, a certified master inspector, at C. Dwight Barnett, P.O. Box 14091, Evansville, Ind. 47728, or for more information on termites visit his website www.onecallinspections.com/april-29.html.)
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