# Termite help



## Nestor_Kelebay (Jun 17, 2008)

TBear:
You can treat both drywall and subteranean termites very effectively yourself using a relatively new method of termite erradication developed by Dr. Tim Myles at the University of Toronto. It's called "Trap, Treat and Release" and it relies on the fact that termites instinctively groom each other. So, you trap some termites in a "trap" which is nothing more than a piece of rolled up cardboard in a metal can (termites love cardboard because it's both soft to chew and the corrugations in it are the right size that the termite feels protected from other bigger bugs that may want to eat it). Once the termites discover the cardboard in the trap, the cardboard will quickly fill up with termites feeding on the cardboard. You catch these termites and put them in a large pan with steep sides (so they cannot escape) and treat them with a slow acting but effective insecticide called "Sulflurin", and put them back in the trap with new cardboard.

The treated termites will return to their nests to tell the other termites where the food is, and will spread the Sulflurin to all the termites in the next because of that instintive grooming they do to each other. Every time the trap fills up with termites, you treat them with Sulflurin and return them to the same location with new cardboard in the trap. Once you no longer find termites in the trap, you can be sure there are none to be found in your house, or in your yard.

This program is currently being used to treat entire neighborhoods in Toronto by volunteers (who undoubtedly have termites in their homes). Check out this web site:

http://www.utoronto.ca/forest/termite/ttradvantages.htm
http://www.utoronto.ca/forest/termite/termite.htm

The method is highly effective and can be done by individual homeowners. The only reason it's not being advertised is that it was developed at the U of T with public funding and so no one is making a business out of offering this service to the general public, so no one stands to make money from it as a business. But, you can read the results of trials done in various other cities in southern Ontario where volunteers using this method effectively erradicated termites from entire neighborhoods.


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## Bugzilla (Aug 2, 2008)

You can do termite work yourself but for a warranty, you'll have to let the pros do it. You might ask how valuable termite warranties are. I can tell you that out of a thousand+ customers at one company they receive between 15-20 claims per year. Terminix likes this ration so much that they offer a repair warranty for $399.00 a year without performing a preventative treatment. After five years, the customer has paid $2000.00 and the company has done nothing but inspect (maybe) once per year. If you prefer to treat yourself, use Termidor SC and follow the label directions precisely. Treated properly, your home should not experience a termite infestation for 10 years or more. I would retreat every 10 years. Because of Termidor's unique action (transfer effect), termites take it back to the colony and kill it out, wherever it may be. For more info, check out LINK REMOVED


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## Joe F (Jan 27, 2008)

Nestor_Kelebay said:


> ... treat them with a slow acting but effective insecticide called "Sulflurin", and put them back in the trap with new cardboard.


Very interesting approach to a termite problem. I can't find any info on Sulflurin, is that the correct spelling?


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## ocoee (May 31, 2007)

The product you are looking for is Sulfluramid

The method described is basically what Sentricon is all about


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## Nestor_Kelebay (Jun 17, 2008)

ocoee said:


> The product you are looking for is Sulfluramid
> 
> The method described is basically what Sentricon is all about


 
In a nutshell, Dr. Myles's Trap, Treat and Release (TTR) method simply involves rolling up strips of cardboard and placing that rolled up cardboard in metal cans buried in the ground around your house. (termites love cardboard because it's soft to chew and the corrugations in it make termites feel safe in it because no bigger bug can crawl into those corrugations to eat the termites) You check those "termite traps" periodically, and as the termites discover them, and spread the news as to where to find yummy cardboard to the colony, you collect the termites and use a soft sponge to apply Sulfluramid to the termites that you catch. (Basically, you just pull the cardboard out of the trap, shake the termites out of it onto a metal or glass bowl or tray, and then dab them with the Sulfluramid using a soft sponge.)

Then you wrap new cardboard up and fit it into the can, drop the treated termites into the new trap, and place it back in the hole you got it out of.

The treated termites will then return to the colony to tell all the other termites about the yummy cardboard and where to find it.

Termites instinctively "groom" each other by licking each other's bodies to remove pollen and sap and such. When the untreated termites lick the treated termites, the sulfluramid gets spread throughout the entire colony. Sulfluramid is an effective but slow acting insecticide. It's slow acting action ensures that the treated termites get licked by many termites in the whole colony, and then many termites in the colony gradually die off from the Sulfluramid.

The advantage of the TTR method is that it relies on the INSTINCTIVE behavior of termites to groom each other. So, even sick termites will groom other treated termites to get another dose of Sulfluramid. It's instinctive in them to do that, so you simply keep supplying the colonies with cardboard and fresh termites treated with Sulfluramid. You can tell when there's no termites left because your "cardboard rolled up in metal cans" termite traps will be empty.

Then, just keep checking your termite traps periodically to see if there are any termites in them. If so, trap, treat and release them. That will keep the termite population in your house negligible for as long as you keep checking your traps, treating the termites you find (if any) and releasing them to spread that Sulfluramid to the rest of the colony.


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## salsaman (Sep 27, 2008)

*Canadian Termites?*

I am surprised there are termites that fan North


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## Nestor_Kelebay (Jun 17, 2008)

Salsaman:

We heat our houses in the winter here, so the termites don't know how far North they are. They think they're in Arizona.

We don't have palm trees here tho.


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## SeaOfRed75 (Feb 4, 2009)

Bugzilla said:


> You can do termite work yourself but for a warranty, you'll have to let the pros do it. You might ask how valuable termite warranties are. I can tell you that out of a thousand+ customers at one company they receive between 15-20 claims per year. Terminix likes this ration so much that they offer a repair warranty for $399.00 a year without performing a preventative treatment. After five years, the customer has paid $2000.00 and the company has done nothing but inspect (maybe) once per year. If you prefer to treat yourself, use Termidor SC and follow the label directions precisely. Treated properly, your home should not experience a termite infestation for 10 years or more. I would retreat every 10 years. Because of Termidor's unique action (transfer effect), termites take it back to the colony and kill it out, wherever it may be. For more info, check out LINK REMOVED



Its been awhile since ive done any PC work, but Im not sure Termidoris available to the public. I could be wrong however. Plus last I checked it is freaking expensive at about $50 a pint.

I think most termite treatments are a decent deal, but the warranty check-up stuff is a complete rip-off. If they treat it right with Termidor you should be fine for an absolute minimum of 10 years.

Of course when I helped my dad do termite jobs, it was good ole Chloridane.


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## Scuba_Dave (Jan 16, 2009)

My last house I found termites, and yellow jackets, ants, bumblebees, roaches (couple thousand) & god knows what else
I had it exterminated, I also put stakes in that they recommended out along one side where the dirt was close to the house

I then sprayed every year - just in case, it was inexpensive (few years)
I managed to dig out dirt on the one side & rebuilt the effected wall
After that I didn't see any evidence of termites
I would put wood stakes down into the ground & leave then & then check them months later


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## SamSp (Dec 29, 2010)

bluefitness said:


> I found some termite and carpenter ant damage. I killed all of the ants and termites in this particular area. I'm now looking into exterminating other possible infestations. I believe I can handle the ant problem by perimeter spraying yearly. I'm just not sure about the termite problem. Is termite prevention a diy type job? Both quotes I got from pest control companies were for termidor and then spot checks. This costs around $800 for the initial treatment and $200 for yearly checkups. I hear most of the cost is for warranty/guarantees and digging the trench. Is there a similar product that I could purchase and do myself for the initial treatment? If not, should I just do the termidor treatment and do the yearly maintenance on my own?


 I believe termite control is not a diy job. My house was infested with termites, and I said the heck with it and called our local pest control company. These guys came out to my house and were done in 2 hours and my house is 3100sq. feet. 
Anyhow, I tried the diy approach & spent 200 on sprays and they didnt work a bit. Good luck and may the force be with you!


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## dephateras (Oct 27, 2018)

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## mifangr (Feb 7, 2021)

There is a new DIY termite baiting method which is quick and effective, for example termite can find the baiting stations quickly because its size is large. There are many more reasons. You can goto youtube and search "DIY Termite Control Series Playlist". This method is really suitable for homeowners as DIY. You will construct termite detection stations onsite by using plastic sheets and cardboards. When you detected termites, you will need to buy Termidor foam to spray in the stations with termite activities.


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