# Termidor treatment



## bluefitness (Sep 4, 2008)

I had an aggressive termite colony destroy a header assembly about 2 years ago. I found their mud tubes. I replaced the header and damaged wood and treated the new wood with borate. I also purchased some termidor and spot treated the soil. I haven't seen any mud tube formations, but I want to have the perimeter of my house treated. I've called several companies and the price ranges from $400 to $1000. I'm having trouble selecting a company. The $400 estimate was from a one man crew company. He doesn't have the huge truck with tank. I think he will just use a hand held sprayer. What type of questions should I ask them? Also, a lot of companies try to sell insurance type protections. There is an annual service charge. Are these types of agreements worth it?


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## PAbugman (Jun 29, 2010)

For subterranean termites a hand held sprayer just won't cut it. You have to use enough volume, and with enough pressure, with the right application tool to get the termiticide to soak down beside the foundation wall. If on a slab, you still need it to get several feet down.

$1000 is not unusual; that is about median. $400 is very little for a termite job. How long of a warranty can you get with the initial treatment? The extended warranties don't make a lot of sense in the northeast, unless you will be selling your house in the near future. It is good to give the buyer a warranty; smooths things over. What part of the country are you in?


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## bluefitness (Sep 4, 2008)

PAbugman said:


> For subterranean termites a hand held sprayer just won't cut it. You have to use enough volume, and with enough pressure, with the right application tool to get the termiticide to soak down beside the foundation wall. If on a slab, you still need it to get several feet down.
> 
> $1000 is not unusual; that is about median. $400 is very little for a termite job. How long of a warranty can you get with the initial treatment? The extended warranties don't make a lot of sense in the northeast, unless you will be selling your house in the near future. It is good to give the buyer a warranty; smooths things over. What part of the country are you in?



I have a monolithic slab. I haven't seen any active termites, but I did see some dirt that is being pushed up the side of the slab. What type of questions should I ask them when they give me an estimate? I was just going to have them explain the procedure. I guess it would be hard to gauge how well of a job they will do. I'm not really interested in the insurance, but I would expect them to reapply the termidor, if I find termite activity down the road. I live in the southeast.


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## PAbugman (Jun 29, 2010)

Been away so I hope this is still timely.

Ask them approximately how many gallons they estimate using.

Get more than a one year warranty if possible; being in the southeast that may not be available.

When I said that $1000 is not unusual, I was visualizing a basement. Unless your house has a LOT of linear footage, then $1000 would be too high. The deeper the foundation footing, the more gallons needed. Hope I didn't mislead you earlier.

I still don't believe that a hand held sprayer will do the job. Power spraying eqpt is necessary even though your soil is probably sandy(?).


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