Termite Infestation

Termites are a common household annoyance, particularly in high humidity or hot climates. With these termite control tips, learn ways to stop termites and tackle your termite infestation. While flying termites, wood termites, and subterranean termites may sound daunting to exterminate, with the correct tools, they are eliminated rapidly.

There are several natural methods for eradicating termites from your house and garden that work. Annually, termite colonies cause an unbelievable amount of damage. Like a bed bug infestation, a termite infestation is something most people want to avoid.

The three primary termites are subterranean termites, dampwood termites, and drywood termites, all posing a real threat to your home and belongings.

The Best Termite Control Tips for Your Home and Yard

Swarming termites, often known as flying termites, are mature termites sometimes mistaken for flying ants and are one of the most noticeable signs of termite infestation. Subterranean termite swarmers form inside the colony when the conditions are right. They emerge from their underground home to start a new colony of termites.

You know you need pest management, precisely termite control, when you see winged termites or a flying termite swarm. Regardless of the type of termite, it’s vital to address it rapidly to avoid termite infestation ruining the structural integrity of your home.

Swarming termites are a solid sign termite colonies are nearby and posing a threat. Fortunately, simple pest control techniques and termite control tips offer ways to stop termites and prevent or treat a termite infestation before ruined wood becomes a hazard.

Termites of all varieties play a vital function in the environment because they recycle wood. Regardless, their dietary habits are bothersome and cause many problems for homeowners.

Subterranean termites make their home underground and use mud tubes to go to trees, fences, and other food sources. Drywood termites prefer dead trees and wooden constructions, whereas dampwood termites choose live wood with higher moisture content.

The worker and swarmer termites, known as flying termites, are the most frequent termite species found in dwellings. Flying termites are one of the most visible signs of termite infestation and signal the presence of termite colonies nearby. Termite droppings, frass, and little wood pellet piles are signs of termite activity.

Subterranean termites build mud tunnels around the foundation of your house made of dirt, wood, and leftovers. Knowing ways to stop termites and a few good termite control tips help safeguard your property in case of a termite infestation.

DIY Bait Stations for Termite Infestation

Bait stations are a novel technique to eliminate flying termites without having to spray poisons inside your home. These useful traps employ sugar as bait to lure the bugs and poison the pests with boric acid, which they then transport back to the termite colony, killing more termites.

Fill the cardboard box base with a half-and-half mix of sugar and boric acid. Place the bait station near the termite’s home. If you don’t know where the termite colony is, build a few stations and disperse them over the area to give termite swarms many opportunities to discover the termite treatment and accept the bait.

Plants Offer Ways to Stop Termites

When termites swarm, certain plants help safeguard your yard and home. This idea is similar to the principle of companion planting. Consider adding to the garden if you observed a winged ant and later found it was a termite swarmer or had a positive termite inspection.

Some plants are not only incredible natural termite repellents, but they’re also beautiful and valuable in the kitchen, making them an excellent choice.

Plant the best plants that deter termites around your house to form a natural barrier and discourage termites from coming into your garden and home.

Boric Acid Kills Termites

The subterranean termite makes the biggest nest of any insect in North Carolina, South Carolina, and the rest of the United States. Termites use a mud tube to connect their colony to food sources, making them a simple way to detect a termite infestation. Boric acid is perhaps one of the best ways to stop termites in the soil.

Termite activity in your yard, such as mud tubes, shelter tubes, or infested wood, should be noted. Cover these locations with boric acid, getting the powder into any gaps or holes.

The dust attaches to the termites’ bodies as they travel through it and kills them once swallowed. Use it to kill tiny black bugs on wood, too. These boric acid termite control tips are cost-effective and easy to follow.

Tackle Termites Naturally with Orange Oil

Termite control using orange oil is a straightforward process. D-limonene in the oil dissolves the exoskeleton on the termites and destroys their eggs – this is one of the best natural options to stop termites and control a termite infestation using a home remedy.

For this home treatment for termites, drill holes in the afflicted wooden structure while wearing safety glasses and squirt several drops of orange oil into the hole to allow it to infiltrate straight to the termites’ feeding areas and deliver the best results.

Repeat every few days until the termite infestation disappears. The orange oil kills flying termites, worker termites, and Formosan termites on contact, and it works in both dampwood and drywood termite colonies.

Yard Management for Termite Control

You may be curious as to what draws flying termites. Lots of moisture, wood, or a combination of the two are the culprits. Keeping termites out of the yard is as simple as removing anything attracting them.

They live in the damp because it creates a favorable atmosphere, and wood supplies food. Insects are less likely to attack your area if you keep items they like to a minimum.

Remove as many moist areas and wooden structures as possible from your environment to help prevent termites or aid in removing them.

Extreme Temperatures Eradicate Termites

Extreme warmth and cooling naturally eliminates a termite population, and using heat to get rid of these pests is simple. With these termite control tips, all you need is water to get rid of termites in the yard.

If you discover a termite swarm, boil some water and carefully transfer it into a container or watering can. Use this to drench termite colonies to eradicate them. Repeat these steps after a week to ensure all termites have been eliminated.

Neem Oil – A Natural Termite Treatment

Neem oil is a common natural insecticide used to kill carpenter ants, bed bugs, flying ants, a termite infestation, and other pests. The oil is a naturally occurring pesticide generated from the neem tree, and it effectively kills termites.

Apply neem oil to the area with a cotton ball or spray it into the wood with a squirt bottle. To attract the termites to ingest the oil, coat the areas they eat with it. Use the spray as a way to get rid of termites in fence boards or in the wood of your raised garden beds. Repeat the procedure once a week till the termites have vanished.

Garden Clean Up for Termites

The most common mulches used by homeowners in their landscapes are wood chips and chopped bark. Does mulch attract termites? It can. Mulch is created from plants containing cellulose, which termites adore. Instead of using plant-based products, employ inorganic mulch such as gravel or rubber chips to safeguard your property from termite infestation.

Use a non-wood building material for yard constructions so your garden feature won’t become a termite target. Choose from concrete, vinyl, or metal for your porch or deck. Termites love to live in undisturbed earth beneath a hardwood deck and feed on it; it’s only a short trip from there for them to go into your house.

Garlic Oil to Remove a Termite Infestation

Garlic oil contains insecticidal properties, making it perfect for termite control. While this technique takes longer than others, it is simple to set up and perfect to remove a minor termite infestation.

Fill a bottle halfway with water and garlic oil. Spray the affected areas after vigorously shaking the container. If desired, add clove oil to the concoction to make it stronger.

Beneficial Nematodes Kill Termites Naturally

Beneficial nematodes are parasitic creatures that burrow into termite bodies. Once inside, they release bacteria to kill the termites. This treatment takes only a few days to complete and is relatively easy.

When adding a beneficial nematode to polluted soil or wood, follow the manufacturer’s instructions for specific measures. Mix the parasitic nematodes and water in a spray bottle and spray the diseased region.

Diatomaceous Earth Helps Your Termite Problem

Diatomaceous earth is an organic powder safe for both humans and animals. It destroys termites by disintegrating their outer shell, dehydrating them, and killing them.

Apply a mask and distribute a thin layer of powder over the problematic areas, paying special attention to cracks, crevices, and any other spots where termites have been identified. Repeat every day until the termites or signs of termites are no longer present.

Fight carpenter ants naturally the same way. DE is a very effective and simple pest control mechanism.

Cardboard Traps for Termite Issues

Cost-effective cardboard traps can kill termites or target a termite swarm, like when you lure and trap carpenter bees with a bee trap. Assemble termite traps and place them anywhere termite swarmers have been spotted. Of the termite control tips, this one is easy, cheap, and fast to put together.

To replicate damp wood, wet pieces of cardboard and stack them on top of each other. Place traps near areas where you believe a termite colony exists and leave them alone for a week. Once the termite pests are caught inside, take the trap to a safe spot and burn it.

Commercial Termite Products

Commercial termite treatment is available at many home and garden retailers. If you’re employing a commercial termite treatment, read all safety instructions and follow the manufacturer’s guide to get optimal results.

The appropriate commercial treatment varies based on where termite colonies are located, and the level of pest control required. Be sure to choose the correct termite control product for the job to ensure success.

Western Exterminator Termite Services

A termite, pest, and wildlife control specialist offers services to treat termites. Many termite services are available across North America. Termite professionals usually conduct a termite inspection to identify the areas involved, highlight termite damage, and outline a plan for termite control.

Some homeowners have difficulty identifying termite damage versus water damage. In this instance, a termite service is helpful as technicians are trained to look for signs of termites, including discarded wings, frass, termite droppings, mud tunnels, damaged wood, and other indicators that signify termite infestations.

If DIY efforts have failed, consider contacting the National Pest Management Association or a termite learning center for support.

Try a Bug Zapper for Termite Relief

If a swarm of flying termites has infested your home, a bug zapper provides some relief, albeit it won’t treat the colony. Place the bug zapper in a dark area. The termite swarmers fly towards the bug zapper, where an electrical shock kills them. This method helps to reduce the numbers quickly while you work on a longer-term control strategy.

Prevent Termites in Your Home

Termite treatment isn’t a pleasant experience, so take precautions to protect your house from further termite infestation. As you walk around the outside of your house, look for any wetness near the foundation.

If you discover decaying or rotting wood in your home, make sure it’s termite-free and get rid of it as soon as possible. An expert termite inspection will assist you in identifying any termite-infested locations and issues to rectify for future termite avoidance.

Detecting a termite population or a termite swarm in your house or wooden construction is cause for concern. However, if you know ways to eradicate termites reliably, there are simple solutions to gain pest control.

With these brilliant ways to get rid of termites, your property will be termite-free. Choose a technique based on the supplies you have on hand and other important factors, including cost and whether you prefer natural or chemical methods.

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